[paulyoung666]

awful thread to read through , with the stopping of DLA i will be looking to get PIP , i will never get better , the evidence is already there and documented , so why the hell do i have to go through this , took me 3 goes to get DLA , it was only when i asked my GP to get involved did i get the decision in my favour ......

[moonburn]

Originally Posted by paulyoung666

awful thread to read through , with the stopping of DLA i will be looking to get PIP , i will never get better , the evidence is already there and documented , so why the hell do i have to go through this , took me 3 goes to get DLA , it was only when i asked my GP to get involved did i get the decision in my favour ......

Sadly this goverment and in fairness the last one.
Yes ESA is the legacy of Labour.

Although apparently GB vowed he would never Axe DLA and that is why Lord Fraud buggered off and joined the Tories.PiP is his little Masterplan.

Im deeply worried because I found out this week my condition is so rare its not been awared its own funding even away from PCT's so how the hell the DWP are going to give it a fair hearing when basically the word of GP's consultants is being ignored a lot of the time.

What I find truly insulting is how ATOS and DWP think patients apply pressure to doctors to help...

I think what another poster said is all a person can do put as much detail as possible.dont be scared to write down everything no matter how embarrassing it might be.

[JasonWatkins]

Originally Posted by morecowbell

Jason, will you come back and tell us what happened during the process and what the decision was. Wishing you the best.

As promised, I'm back ..

Had my tribunal hearing this morning. Got there 10 minutes beforehand and was told by the clerk that they were running 40 minutes late due to the woman in front of me having a ton of paperwork that she'd forgotten to submit in due time, so she brought it with her.

My mum and sister came with me and I was given the option to have them as witnesses to make a statement on my behalf or to just have them in there as moral support so we talked about it and we all agreed that they'd just sit there in support.

Saw a judge and a doctor and the doctor basically quizzed me on what a typical day would be like for me. It was much more detailed than the "medical" I had last year so I was certainly better able to put across my side of things.

the judge asked me a few questions about what I used to do as a career and if i'd still like to do it now if I could, if my condition had cleared up, which I said I would.

Overall it was a bit nerve-racking, but they were all quite nice. When it was all over, we all left the room and made our way to the lifts because I was told that they would discuss the case afterwards and that they'd mail me the decision.

As we were waiting for the lifts, the judge appeared from the door behind us and said "Mr Watkins, just wanted to tell you before you go that you won your case ..".

So there you go

[jarryhack]

My Brother-In-Law is at present waiting for his appeal, he lost his money a few months ago. He is an amputee who's remaining leg is crumbling and finds it hard to get around. He has limited mobility in one of his hands and limited vision in one eye as a result of a car crash. When he went they didn't even have his medical records. He was told to sign on but was advised by DWP to get a sick note from his doctor as he would find it difficult to get to the job centre (??) beggars belief that the DWP advise him to get a sick note so he doesn't have to go to the Job Centre to sign on but take his DLA off him (I think it's DLA...not too sure which benefit he's had taken off him)...the doc has just give him a 6 month sick note, lets hope he doesn't have to wait that long. Actually this is the 2nd time he has had his money stopped, last time he got it back on appeal.

[petertard]

Atos judgements have now passed into popular culture. On the New Quiz, Sandi Toksvig said the newly-discovered dead body of Richard III had been passed fit to work by Atos.

[CELT1987]

Originally Posted by petertard

Atos judgements have now passed into popular culture. On the New Quiz, Sandi Toksvig said the newly-discovered dead body of Richard III had been passed fit to work by Atos.

That probably would happen.

[nobabydaddy]

Just my two-penneth worth.

Do not try and fill in the forms, go to the interviews, go through the appeals tribunals (if you get that far) on your own.

Involve as many people as you can who are concerned with your condition.

Do take someone with you to give you a bit of moral support. If you have a care worker, take them along. You can be sure they won't give you the runaround if there is another professional present.

Read up on the website about the forms and assessment requirements and descriptors.

Seek advice and help from the CAB. Some CAB officers will help you fill in the form.

There could be independent advocacy organisations locally who can liaise and represent you at the assessment and/or tribunal stage. Contact your CAB or Job Centre.

As usual with these sort of organisations, they might be doing all they can to reject your application. But equally, if they can see that you have included care plans, action plans and evidence of your condition from your consultants and care workers/supervisors (and they see you are regularly attending appointments with them) they will process your application promptly.

[morecowbell]

Originally Posted by JasonWatkins

As promised, I'm back ..

Had my tribunal hearing this morning. Got there 10 minutes beforehand and was told by the clerk that they were running 40 minutes late due to the woman in front of me having a ton of paperwork that she'd forgotten to submit in due time, so she brought it with her.

My mum and sister came with me and I was given the option to have them as witnesses to make a statement on my behalf or to just have them in there as moral support so we talked about it and we all agreed that they'd just sit there in support.

Saw a judge and a doctor and the doctor basically quizzed me on what a typical day would be like for me. It was much more detailed than the "medical" I had last year so I was certainly better able to put across my side of things.

the judge asked me a few questions about what I used to do as a career and if i'd still like to do it now if I could, if my condition had cleared up, which I said I would.

Overall it was a bit nerve-racking, but they were all quite nice. When it was all over, we all left the room and made our way to the lifts because I was told that they would discuss the case afterwards and that they'd mail me the decision.

As we were waiting for the lifts, the judge appeared from the door behind us and said "Mr Watkins, just wanted to tell you before you go that you won your case ..".

So there you go

Lovely news Jason! Well done. What a massive relief that must be

[cobwebsoup]

Atos are scum. It's astonishing just how screwed up and unfair all this is. My mother has severe depression, she has done for the last few years, not surprising the amount of sh** our family has gone through, and they failed her. When she appealed, they sent what they'd wrote during the interview, it was a pack of lies. They said she was well enough to attend the interview, but if she had no choice but to attend! They said she was very comfortable and showed no signs of distress - I was with her and she was in tears. The "doctor" even passed her a box of tissues! If this carries on, the government are going to have riots on their hands because people won't stand for this unfair system for much longer.

The amount of people on here, on TV documentaries and on other forums who have had similar experiences is shocking also. I feel for each and every one of you that has had to go through all this.

[gerr60]

Originally Posted by cobwebsoup

Atos are scum. It's astonishing just how screwed up and unfair all this is. My mother has severe depression, she has done for the last few years, not surprising the amount of sh** our family has gone through, and they failed her. When she appealed, they sent what they'd wrote during the interview, it was a pack of lies. They said she was well enough to attend the interview, but if she had no choice but to attend! They said she was very comfortable and showed no signs of distress - I was with her and she was in tears. The "doctor" even passed her a box of tissues! If this carries on, the government are going to have riots on their hands because people won't stand for this unfair system for much longer.

The amount of people on here, on TV documentaries and on other forums who have had similar experiences is shocking also. I feel for each and every one of you that has had to go through all this.

I hope you have appealed.

[princesstech]

I have been through 2 of these assessments. On both occasions I scored 0 points. The 1st one was overturned on tribunal appeal and I was placed in the WRAG group. The 2nd one also went to tribunal and I am now in the support group. I had masses of help from my welfare benefits worker (got her via my local council) and also http://www.dwpexamination.org/

I will add that I have several conditions any one of which could leave me unfit for work never mind all lumped together. My conditions have also not changed for the better since I first left work and scored my 1st 0 at the assessment. I was naive in trusting in the benefits system. At my last one the HCP wrote down a pack of lies. It was so wrong that I initially thought she had mixed up my info with somebody else. If my Mum hadn't gone with me I would have thought I was going potty.

People are dying as a direct result of these assessments http://calumslist.org/ This should not be happening in the UK today.

[JasonWatkins]

Originally Posted by morecowbell

Lovely news Jason! Well done. What a massive relief that must be

It certainly is. I'm half tempted to go back to see the woman at the CAB to poke my tongue out after she dropped my case because she felt I had no chance of winning

[Sexbomb]

I've just been assessed without facing atos and put in the WRAG for 2 years, I go to ESA next month from IB. Not looking forward going to JC to see an advisor eventually.

Don't know what descriptors I got points on though.

[Richievilla]

Good to see that you finally got the correct decision, Jason, although it is a shame that you are one of the hundreds of thousands that have had to go through the lengthy and stressful appeals process in order to get that correct decision.

Sexbomb, I would ask the DWP for a breakdown of how you were scored as a matter of urgency. Do you think, after checking the descriptors, that the WRAG is the right decision or do you think that you should be in the Support Group? I don't know whether you are still within the timescale for a potential appeal, but you need to know how they have scored you.

I have noticed that a lot of people on the IB-ESA migration are being put into the WRAG without the face to face Atos medical. The cynic in me thinks that is because the DWP believe that people will often be so relieved that they still qualify for ESA, that they will not appeal even if they should be in the Support Group. Many of those placed in the WRAG will be unaware that they could lose all their ESA after just 12 months (for example if they have a partner earning just £150 pw), as well as the potential unlimited and unpaid workfare implications for people in the WRAG.

[spookyLX]

Originally Posted by JasonWatkins

As promised, I'm back ..

Had my tribunal hearing this morning. Got there 10 minutes beforehand and was told by the clerk that they were running 40 minutes late due to the woman in front of me having a ton of paperwork that she'd forgotten to submit in due time, so she brought it with her.

My mum and sister came with me and I was given the option to have them as witnesses to make a statement on my behalf or to just have them in there as moral support so we talked about it and we all agreed that they'd just sit there in support.

Saw a judge and a doctor and the doctor basically quizzed me on what a typical day would be like for me. It was much more detailed than the "medical" I had last year so I was certainly better able to put across my side of things.

the judge asked me a few questions about what I used to do as a career and if i'd still like to do it now if I could, if my condition had cleared up, which I said I would.

Overall it was a bit nerve-racking, but they were all quite nice. When it was all over, we all left the room and made our way to the lifts because I was told that they would discuss the case afterwards and that they'd mail me the decision.

As we were waiting for the lifts, the judge appeared from the door behind us and said "Mr Watkins, just wanted to tell you before you go that you won your case ..".

So there you go

Well Done Jason

I have just posted my form , My Care co ordinator helped me fill it out luckily my care plan was up fro renewal as well so she did that and made it more detailed than usual as in she put down what I have been like recently etc so I could include it as evidence she also suggested I try at get a home visit if I have to have a interview as she can't see me being able to leave my flat to attend .

Question do they bother getting in contact with support workers named on the form ?

[cobwebsoup]

Originally Posted by gerr60

I hope you have appealed.

It's been appealed although it could be nine months before it goes to court as there are so many at the moment. Ato's have been told to fail nine out of ten people according to the solicitor. It's just wrong.

[rhumble]

HI everyone i hope someone can help me.

My Brother has suffered with depression and anxiety and nerves for the last 12 years,,,he was made medically retired from his job because of mental breakdowns. He has claimed incapacity benefitrs ever since,,,,,he has had medical assesments throughout and has never had any problems.
Earlier this month he had to have an ATOS medical,,,,,,,he got a doctors note because he suffers with anxiety for traveling on public transport so had to use a taxi,,,,,me and my mother also had to go with him to give emotional support. There was very few questions asked by the guy doing the assesment but he seemed pleasent enough and put us all at ease. My brother told him that the only thing he is able to achieve on an iconsistent level was going to the shops with our mom to help but also because it would be stressful to go on his own and he also sometimes goes to the gym if and when he can on the advice of the GP to try to help with his depression,,,,,sometimes he is able to walk the 10 minutes to the gym other times people have to take him.
This was the basic extent to how far the assesment went and we left using their taxi service because of the docotrs note.

We have now had the results and because he attented has been given 0 points out of 15. Had they have taken everything into account and asked more in depth questions they would have been able to see he is not fit for work. The assesment also highlighted that my brother did not appear stressed yet the asseser assured us during the interview so he felt better so probably felt less stressed than at other times.

It seems to me they have used every nasty trick in the book to make my brother appear able to do normal things on the basis of a 10 minute chat,,,,,,this is dispicable. Can someone please help me and give me advice on ways people have fought this similar thing and how you got on and what i can do to help him.
Sorry its long but i need help,,,,,,thanks

[ScarletStarlet]

I got my letter to attend an assessment on 11th Oct. There's NO WAY I can go on the bus to Edinburgh. Not by myself...ugh I feel faint thinking about it. I'm going to worry myself to death now

[annette kurten]

my advice is to ask for a home visit, i did [twice] and didn`t have to attend a medical or send any doctors evidence the second time, i`m in the support group.

[ScarletStarlet]

Originally Posted by annette kurten

my advice is to ask for a home visit, i did [twice] and didn`t have to attend a medical or send any doctors evidence the second time, i`m in the support group.

I'm going to try to get an appt with the Doc tomorrow, they know my situation. Honestly, I could puke right now. As well as agoraphobia and anxiety issues, I'm waiting for operations on my feet which are going to keep me laid up for weeks and weeks. I'm not fit for anything!

Getting myself in a state. not good.

[TelevisionUser]

Originally Posted by rhumble

HI everyone i hope someone can help me.

My Brother has suffered with depression and anxiety and nerves for the last 12 years,,,he was made medically retired from his job because of mental breakdowns. He has claimed incapacity benefitrs ever since,,,,,he has had medical assesments throughout and has never had any problems.
Earlier this month he had to have an ATOS medical,,,,,,,he got a doctors note because he suffers with anxiety for traveling on public transport so had to use a taxi,,,,,me and my mother also had to go with him to give emotional support. There was very few questions asked by the guy doing the assesment but he seemed pleasent enough and put us all at ease. My brother told him that the only thing he is able to achieve on an iconsistent level was going to the shops with our mom to help but also because it would be stressful to go on his own and he also sometimes goes to the gym if and when he can on the advice of the GP to try to help with his depression,,,,,sometimes he is able to walk the 10 minutes to the gym other times people have to take him.
This was the basic extent to how far the assesment went and we left using their taxi service because of the docotrs note.

We have now had the results and because he attented has been given 0 points out of 15. Had they have taken everything into account and asked more in depth questions they would have been able to see he is not fit for work. The assesment also highlighted that my brother did not appear stressed yet the asseser assured us during the interview so he felt better so probably felt less stressed than at other times.

It seems to me they have used every nasty trick in the book to make my brother appear able to do normal things on the basis of a 10 minute chat,,,,,,this is dispicable. Can someone please help me and give me advice on ways people have fought this similar thing and how you got on and what i can do to help him.
Sorry its long but i need help,,,,,,thanks

Firstly, please read this thread here: http://forums.digitalspy.co.uk/showthread.php?t=1293271

Secondly, please look at this helpful website here http://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/ where they also sell appeal and application guides: http://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/buy-guides

Thirdly, book an appointment at your nearest Citizens Advice Bureau http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/index/getadvice.htm or community legal aid centre and take all the relevant documentation with you because getting professional help effectively doubles the likelihood of a successful appeal from 40% success rate to 80% success rate.

Originally Posted by ScarletStarlet

I got my letter to attend an assessment on 11th Oct. There's NO WAY I can go on the bus to Edinburgh. Not by myself...ugh I feel faint thinking about it. I'm going to worry myself to death now

No one should be required to travel more than 90 minutes one way by bus to get to an ATOS assessment centre. If a journey takes longer than that then you can ask for an ATOS doctor to do a home visit (although they will try and worm their way out of this).

If you don't qualify for that exemption then I'd suggest going to your GP and either get a letter from them which you can send to the ATOS assessment centre requesting a home visit on medical grounds or ask the GP to send it directly to them (please make sure your national insurance number is on any correspondence so that ATOS can identify you).

If ATOS continue to give you grief, you can always get your MP involved to help you to pressure them to behave humanely: http://www.theyworkforyou.com/

[ScarletStarlet]

Thanks TVU. Will get an appt tomorrow. Had a major panic attack earlier after I got off this thread

[Janey Jones]

Originally Posted by rhumble

HI everyone i hope someone can help me.

My Brother has suffered with depression and anxiety and nerves for the last 12 years,,,he was made medically retired from his job because of mental breakdowns. He has claimed incapacity benefitrs ever since,,,,,he has had medical assesments throughout and has never had any problems.
Earlier this month he had to have an ATOS medical,,,,,,,he got a doctors note because he suffers with anxiety for traveling on public transport so had to use a taxi,,,,,me and my mother also had to go with him to give emotional support. There was very few questions asked by the guy doing the assesment but he seemed pleasent enough and put us all at ease. My brother told him that the only thing he is able to achieve on an iconsistent level was going to the shops with our mom to help but also because it would be stressful to go on his own and he also sometimes goes to the gym if and when he can on the advice of the GP to try to help with his depression,,,,,sometimes he is able to walk the 10 minutes to the gym other times people have to take him.
This was the basic extent to how far the assesment went and we left using their taxi service because of the docotrs note.

We have now had the results and because he attented has been given 0 points out of 15. Had they have taken everything into account and asked more in depth questions they would have been able to see he is not fit for work. The assesment also highlighted that my brother did not appear stressed yet the asseser assured us during the interview so he felt better so probably felt less stressed than at other times.

It seems to me they have used every nasty trick in the book to make my brother appear able to do normal things on the basis of a 10 minute chat,,,,,,this is dispicable. Can someone please help me and give me advice on ways people have fought this similar thing and how you got on and what i can do to help him.
Sorry its long but i need help,,,,,,thanks

Rhumble, in addition to TVUser's excellent advice above, your brother - or someone acting on his behalf - needs to ring the ESA department at the DWP office dealing with his claim as soon as possible. Tell them that he intends to appeal the decision and ask them to send him a GL24 (appeal form).

He will then have to make an appointment with his GP for a MED3 "fit" note, which must be dated from the day after his ESA is due to stop. Send the MED3 to the DWP by recorded delivery if possible and your brother will continue to receive ESA at the assessment rate until the result of the Tribunal is known. Appeals are taking months to process at the moment, some offices are only just processing appeals from April/May this year, this is a good thing because it will give your brother time to obtain the supporting evidence he needs for a (hopefully) successful appeal.

There's also some fantastic advice and guidance available here:

http://dwpexamination.org/

and here:

http://thefullfacts.com/esa/forum/

If there's anything else you want to know, I'll do my best to help.

Don't give up and Good Luck x

Edit: Almost forgot, when you call the DWP, ask them to send you a copy of the ESA85 - this is the report that the ATOS assessor sends to the Decision Maker after the interview. Don't be surprised if the report bears no relation to what actually happened but you need to go through it with a fine toothcomb and if anything has been "misrepresented" (cough), you need to point it out in the appeal and it should go in your brother's favour.

[rhumble]

Originally Posted by Janey Jones

Rhumble, in addition to TVUser's excellent advice above, your brother - or someone acting on his behalf - needs to ring the ESA department at the DWP office dealing with his claim as soon as possible. Tell them that he intends to appeal the decision and ask them to send him a GL24 (appeal form).

He will then have to make an appointment with his GP for a MED3 "fit" note, which must be dated from the day after his ESA is due to stop. Send the MED3 to the DWP by recorded delivery if possible and your brother will continue to receive ESA at the assessment rate until the result of the Tribunal is known. Appeals are taking months to process at the moment, some offices are only just processing appeals from April/May this year, this is a good thing because it will give your brother time to obtain the supporting evidence he needs for a (hopefully) successful appeal.

There's also some fantastic advice and guidance available here:

http://dwpexamination.org/

and here:

http://thefullfacts.com/esa/forum/

If there's anything else you want to know, I'll do my best to help.

Don't give up and Good Luck x

Thanks for the reply,,,,,,,i have phoned the Jobcentre and they have said he doesnt need a GL24 form and to just write a letter,,,,we've made plans to see the GP and to go to the citizans advice,,,,,,is this something he should be doing

[Janey Jones]

Rhumble - see the edit to my original post, I'm going to be busy for a bit now but will be back later