disallowed on esa

tojoxjtojoxj Posts: 668
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I was disallowed on Friday on esa and I want to know if I will still get my benefit if I appeal the decision.Anyone know for a fact?

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  • v0idv0id Posts: 1,009
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    I doubt it, you'd get paid what is owed to you up until the date it was stopped.
    If you plan to appeal, you should be put on the lower rate of income support until the outcome (~£40 per week)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 304
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    A similar thing happened to me when I was on Income Support a few years ago. Don't know if the same thing happens now for ESA, but I never got any benefits when I tried appeal. I just gave up in the end because they just bogged me down with constant paperwork and interviews.

    Hopefully the people at your local DSS office are nicer than the ones at mine. Best of luck OP. :)
  • tojoxjtojoxj Posts: 668
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    Thanks for that, it was a nice Christmas present from the Social.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 10,985
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    Don't shoot me down...but I work for the DWP on the ESA section :o

    What were you disallowed for? Failing the medical?
  • ScaramoucheScaramouche Posts: 3,515
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    If it was disallowed on medical grounds they'll continue to pay you at the assessment rate once a valid appeal is received on form GL24 until they have made a decision as long as you are still supplying medical certificates from your doctor.
    Whilst appealing, claimants can if they so wish stay on ESA, though at a reduced rate. Claimants found not to have limited capability for work who have appealed against that decision can get reduced-rate ESA whilst the appeal is pending, provided that they continue to submit medical certificates - note that is not restricted to income-related ESA.[Footnote 15] It is understood that the appeal letter can be treated as a new claim for ESA, and the reduced-rate is achieved by applying only the 'assessment phase' rate of ESA (i.e., without additional components) while the appeal is pending.

    http://www.cpag.org.uk/cro/wrb/wrb207/esa_appeals.htm

    Alternatively you can claim JSA while appealing, although many people would have difficulty negotiating the Job Seekers' Agreement if they consider themselves unfit for work.
  • catzooocatzooo Posts: 327
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    If you had ESA disallowed due to failing a medical, you can appeal, during which time you will still receive the basic rate of ESA.
    If its disallowed because you failed to attend a medical, or didn't supply med certs, you need to write them a nice letter apologising and give a good reason.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 10,985
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    If it was disallowed on medical grounds they'll continue to pay you at the assessment rate once a valid appeal is received on form GL24 until they have made a decision as long as you are still supplying medical certificates from your doctor.



    http://www.cpag.org.uk/cro/wrb/wrb207/esa_appeals.htm

    Alternatively you can claim JSA while appealing, although many people would have difficulty negotiating the Job Seekers' Agreement if they consider themselves unfit for work.

    As I said in my above post I work for the DWP on ESA.

    What you have said is correct, you can appeal and still get paid at the rate that you are receiving (£50.95 if under 25, £64.30 over 25 and £100.95 for a couple) and if you do claim JSA whilst you are appealing, it DOESN'T go against you :)
  • xdaorbitxdaorbit Posts: 368
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    Angel-owl wrote: »
    Don't shoot me down...but I work for the DWP on the ESA section :o

    What were you disallowed for? Failing the medical?

    id shoot you down i think everyone is incompedent, it took me two months of phone calls i was back and forth with loads of paperwork.
    everytime i gave them what they asked for they wanted more and more everyone told me different storeys i even got lied to which was proved and the persons supervisor was furious .
    in the end all the hastle just wasnt worth it if it wasnt for the great help i got from one person at the job center i doutb my claim would be sorted now.

    two months for £108 and people think those on benefits are loaded 3 of us have to live on that
  • xdaorbitxdaorbit Posts: 368
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    Angel-owl wrote: »
    As I said in my above post I work for the DWP on ESA.

    What you have said is correct, you can appeal and still get paid at the rate that you are receiving (£50.95 if under 25, £64.30 over 25 and £100.95 for a couple) and if you do claim JSA whilst you are appealing, it DOESN'T go against you :)

    im 36 married one child i get £108 a month
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 10,985
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    xdaorbit wrote: »
    id shoot you down i think everyone is incompedent, it took me two months of phone calls i was back and forth with loads of paperwork.
    everytime i gave them what they asked for they wanted more and more everyone told me different storeys i even got lied to which was proved and the persons supervisor was furious .
    in the end all the hastle just wasnt worth it if it wasnt for the great help i got from one person at the job center i doutb my claim would be sorted now.

    two months for £108 and people think those on benefits are loaded 3 of us have to live on that

    well you can shoot me down but that doesn't mean I'm like what you've said! It does sound as though you've had a bad experience but that doesn't mean everyone who works for DWP is the same!!!! There are loads of stuff that you need to provide to get a claim up and running but that's how it is!
    xdaorbit wrote: »
    im 36 married one child i get £108 a month

    That's the standard rate that I said...it depends if you are getting any extra premiums, help with your mortgage costs, any deductions for loans/fines etc, it also depends whether you are on contributory or income related
  • ScaramoucheScaramouche Posts: 3,515
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    Angel-owl wrote: »
    As I said in my above post I work for the DWP on ESA.

    What you have said is correct, you can appeal and still get paid at the rate that you are receiving (£50.95 if under 25, £64.30 over 25 and £100.95 for a couple) and if you do claim JSA whilst you are appealing, it DOESN'T go against you :)

    It doesn't go against you in principle I know but when I worked for Jobcentre Plus I used to see a lot of arguments at new claims interviews for JSA where the claimant had to specify which types of work they were looking for on the JSAG while arguing that they were unfit for any type of work which was why they were appealing the IB/ IS/ ESA decision.

    JSA won't be paid while the JSAG is in dispute or if they can't agree to be available for 40 hours per week (less if the adviser accepts that they have a disability but many advisers seemed unaware that they had this discretion or were unwilling to use it).

    I think people are generally better off staying on ESA while they wait for their appeal to be considered for this reason. I say generally because this will depend on individual circumstances.

    If they do decide to apply for JSA I'd always suggest that they involve the Disability Employment Adviser if possible as they tend to be more understanding.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 10,985
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    It doesn't go against you in principle I know but when I worked for Jobcentre Plus I used to see a lot of arguments at new claims interviews for JSA where the claimant had to specify which types of work they were looking for on the JSAG while arguing that they were unfit for any type of work which was why they were appealing the IB/ IS/ ESA decision.

    JSA won't be paid while the JSAG is in dispute or if they can't agree to be available for 40 hours per week (less if the adviser accepts that they have a disability but many advisers seemed unaware that they had this discretion or were unwilling to use it).

    I think people are generally better off staying on ESA while they wait for their appeal to be considered for this reason. I say generally because this will depend on individual circumstances.

    If they do decide to apply for JSA I'd always suggest that they involve the Disability Employment Adviser if possible as they tend to be more understanding.

    I agree with you. Especially as you're supposed to be 'fit for' and actively looking for work to claim JSA...which you're not if you're saying you're unfit for work
  • xdaorbitxdaorbit Posts: 368
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    Angel-owl wrote: »
    well you can shoot me down but that doesn't mean I'm like what you've said! It does sound as though you've had a bad experience but that doesn't mean everyone who works for DWP is the same!!!! There are loads of stuff that you need to provide to get a claim up and running but that's how it is!



    That's the standard rate that I said...it depends if you are getting any extra premiums, help with your mortgage costs, any deductions for loans/fines etc, it also depends whether you are on contributory or income related

    my wife gets 189 sick pay a month dont get help with anything
  • ScaramoucheScaramouche Posts: 3,515
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    xdaorbit wrote: »
    id shoot you down i think everyone is incompedent, it took me two months of phone calls i was back and forth with loads of paperwork.
    everytime i gave them what they asked for they wanted more and more everyone told me different storeys i even got lied to which was proved and the persons supervisor was furious .
    in the end all the hastle just wasnt worth it if it wasnt for the great help i got from one person at the job center i doutb my claim would be sorted now.

    two months for £108 and people think those on benefits are loaded 3 of us have to live on that

    I know from experience that there are some idiots working for JCP and I have sympathy for those who have a hard time because of them but surely the fact that Angel-owl is using her free time to offer help and advice here suggests that she's one of the better ones?

    Shouldn't you be encouraging her rather than trying to 'shoot her down'? If more people liked her worked for the DWP perhaps your experience would have been more positive.
  • SylviaSylvia Posts: 14,586
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    It's not really the people who work in it but the system itself that is a complete mess.

    Everything is so unnecessarily complicated - people shouldn't have to go to places like the CAB for help filling in claim forms, for example.
  • tojoxjtojoxj Posts: 668
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    Angel-owl wrote: »
    Don't shoot me down...but I work for the DWP on the ESA section :o

    What were you disallowed for? Failing the medical?

    Yes, I only got 6 points.
    I was let go from my last job in April as they said that I was a danger to myself and others due to my condition.I am a week off 63 and have worked for the previous 43 years in three jobs, the previous two going under taking my pension with them. I feel badly let down by the State when they are telling me to go back to work in these circumstances,to pay for civil servants featherbedded pensions, immigrants who are getting£1600pw housing benefit,MPs who claim for food as expenses and the loads of people who are getting invalidity benefit and disability living allowance by putting it on, and we all know them. I am not going to have a very happy Christmas, and I only wish that Voodoo was for real so I could be sticking pins into the doctor(?) and the decision maker responsible.
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 10,985
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    tojoxj wrote: »
    Yes, I only got 6 points.
    I was let go from my last job in April as they said that I was a danger to myself and others due to my condition.I am a week off 63 and have worked for the previous 43 years in three jobs, the previous two going under taking my pension with them. I feel badly let down by the State when they are telling me to go back to work in these circumstances,to pay for civil servants featherbedded pensions, immigrants who are getting£1600pw housing benefit,MPs who claim for food as expenses and the loads of people who are getting invalidity benefit and disability living allowance by putting it on, and we all know them. I am not going to have a very happy Christmas, and I only wish that Voodoo was for real so I could be sticking pins into the doctor(?) and the decision maker responsible.

    OK. Well yes you can still claim ESA at the assessment phase rate (which is what you will have been on before) whilst the appeal is ongoing. I don't know where you are, but in my area appeals are taking 3-4 months at the moment. As long as you keep providing sick notes you will keep getting paid.

    I'll be honest with you, I completely agreed with the bits I've highlighted, but since working there I know that what you have said isn't completely true. It does seem silly that you are almost 63 and being told that you are fit for work...but what people need to understand is that it's not people like me that work there that make the decisions...it's those above us.

    I do wish you luck and if there's anything else I can help you with feel free to PM me :)
  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] Posts: 10,985
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    I know from experience that there are some idiots working for JCP and I have sympathy for those who have a hard time because of them but surely the fact that Angel-owl is using her free time to offer help and advice here suggests that she's one of the better ones?

    Shouldn't you be encouraging her rather than trying to 'shoot her down'? If more people liked her worked for the DWP perhaps your experience would have been more positive.

    Thank you for that scara. You are completely right, but then there are incompetent people in every company!!! :D
  • ScaramoucheScaramouche Posts: 3,515
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    I've just noticed tojoxj's age. Would Pension Credit not be more appropriate? I could be wrong as I'm no expert on it but if so it'd be easier than faffing around with the jobcentre.

    http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/MoneyTaxAndBenefits/BenefitsTaxCreditsAndOtherSupport/On_a_low_income/DG_10018692
  • tojoxjtojoxj Posts: 668
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    Thanks for your post Angel-owl, it has really heartened me. I'm going ahead with my appeal, I can only hope for the best.
    Re Scaramouche's suggestion about Pension Credit; I find that I wouldn't qualify for that as my wife is getting the State Pension and is working part time. Now I question myself am I being greedy to look benefit? Any thoughts?
  • ScaramoucheScaramouche Posts: 3,515
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    tojoxj wrote: »
    Thanks for your post Angel-owl, it has really heartened me. I'm going ahead with my appeal, I can only hope for the best.
    Re Scaramouche's suggestion about Pension Credit; I find that I wouldn't qualify for that as my wife is getting the State Pension and is working part time. Now I question myself am I being greedy to look benefit? Any thoughts?

    If you don't qualify for pension credit because of your wife's earnings I assume it's contribution based ESA you're applying for?

    If that's the case my only thoughts are that as you've paid into the system you should be able to claim something back in a time of need. Good luck to you.

    Whether that something should be ESA or JSA is up to the 'decision makers'. Unfortunately they're bound by the new regulations for ESA which include the Ministers' anticipated failure rate, which almost certainly translates as targets for getting people off benefit for the department involved.

    Speaking from experience, take it to tribunal; it's your right to do so and a frighteningly large (around 60% last time I looked) of decision makers' initial, umm, decisions are overturned at this stage.

    I think Ministers are relying on people not having the will or the support to do that to meet their projected outcomes.
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