Well the woman on the phone said she wasnt able to do anything on that actual call, and i will have to wait for the DWP letter coming through the post telling me that my ESA claim has been refused. All she tried to do on that call was to push me onto JSA.

So they added another layer of confusement before the actual appeal/tribunal phase... that was nice of them Thanks for the help! Wouldnt have know about that mandatory consideration thing at all.

This will be the fourth, or fifth time its happened, i cant remember now. Just got off the phone to someone in DWP who said I didnt score enough points and wanted to put me through to someone in the Jobseekers Allowance department to make a new claim for JSA. Having a feeling that I would be turned down for ESA (again), i went to the Job Center just after lunch (its usually quiet in the local JC about 1pm) and asked to speak to a claims advisor or someone from the Disability area. Sat down with her, explained my conditions and she simply said "appeal...there is no way you would be able to find a job". I told this to the DWP person on the phone when she called at after 3pm... it stopped her dead in her tracks, she kept pushing me to get off of ESA and get on to JSA... It's been a while since I've had to appeal though, last appeal i went through was summer of last year...is the appeal process still the same? 1: Wait on letter arriving 2: Fill out form GL24 (i think i have the name right) 3: Ask to receive ESA on Assessment level. 4: Keep sending in Doctors notes. 5: Wait for tribunal date. Has anything changed?

Well, one year at Ingeus done. I think over the past year I must have been called in about 6 times (im on ESA WRAG). The last time I was there (last week) there was a whole group of young folks who must have been in their 20's... all lined up for some interview with some serious looking bloke in a suit. I see my adviser one more time and then apparently i get moved to the "Second Stage" which involves me going to a group meeting with other folks on ESA and then getting a new adviser. Kinda will miss my old adviser I think the Ingeus place I go to is empty most of the time...was usually only me, one person at a computer doing jobsearch and a whole bunch of staff sitting around chatting.

Thank you Margaret, and yes it was the job centre advisor that said I should appeal. She said that an emploter would have a difficult time hiring someone who could go almost totally blind with no warning at any time of day... thats what aural migraines do to me. My M.E isn't my worst condition, the aural migraines are. I have had several bad falls over the past 5 months, the last one knocked my front teeth loose, had to go to the dentist to have an upper and lower plate put in (partial). No employer would want to risk taking on someone who could go blind at a drop of a hat... Regulation 29 of ESA SHOULD have covered me, but i didnt have anyone from the CAB to argue my case and was totally unprepared I will wait and see when the latter from the DWP drops in my letter box saying that my claim for ESA has been discontinued, but up here in Scotland they are usually quick with things like this. If the claim gets discontinued soon, i'll pop into the jobcentre to see what an advisor says. For now though, i'll wait to see how long it takes them to stop my money. Thanks again!

Hello folks. This time last year i won an appeal for basically the same conditions I have this year. Today i got word back that i have lost the appeal i had last week. The difference between last years tribunal and this years tribunal is I didn't have anyone from the CAB with me. The local CAB is snowed under...anytime i went to their office it was either closed, had a sign up saying "come back tomorrow" or closed for "staff training". So this years tribunal i went in myself, totally unprepared. I have aural migraines, which hit without warning anytime, and leaves me almost totally blind. The amount of accidents I have had due to this one single condition, coupled with M.E, was enough to place me in wrag at the tribunal last year, this year however it wasn't. The original ATOS decision was in April 12th of this year. 6 months have not passed yet which means i cant put in a fresh claim for ESA. I highly doubt that the Jobcentre will allow me to make a claim for JSA when they find out that I can turn blind with no warning at any time of day... but I cam going to head to the Jobcentre tomorrow for advice. If the Jobcentre turn me down (which they did last year as well, hence last years Tribunal to get ESA back) does anyone have any advice? It will basically mean i have no money for almost an entire month

Will i still get the base rate of ESA when i appeal? I've been reading that this was going to stop and folks appealing wont get anything

Just had my second ATOS reassessment last month, the letter came in today with 0 points The strange thing is the letter that came in from the DWP had no mention of appealing the decision at all, no GL24 form to fill in and send back, just a bunch of pages with 0 points next to the descriptor and a paragraph at the end informing me to claim JSA or call them back to "look at the decision again" which just means they will still award me 0 points. Has something changed in the appeals process?

It looks like something has changed, i was sent straight to Ingeous on the first interview at the Job Center

So here is my story so far. ATOS WCA last year, passed with 16 points. ATOS reassesment beginning of this year, scroed 0 points for the same conditions i had last year. Went to tribunal, waited 6 months for the hearing and won it in August. Beginning of this month i was called by the Job Center folks to come in and speak to an advisor, which i expected, theres 6 of these interviews...or at least there was. In my first interview three days ago, the woman who interviewed me was really helpfull, taking time to explain things and asking how bad my health problems affect me. She then dropped a bombshell on me...i would be referred to Ingeus, the Work Programme people who "look after" JSA claimants. She looked almost apologetic, and said that there would be a chance that Ingeus would not even call me up and basically pass me over, which is what happened with the six interviews i had with the Job Center last year, i went to only one of them, was never called back after that. I got a phone call from Ingeus today, they want me to come in next week o.O The ohonecall interview was like i was on JCA all over again. Not one mention about how fit i was. I was asked to bring in a CV for my first appointment, i was then asked what kind of work I had done before, what kind of work i was "looking to do now", how far i would be willing to travel to find a job, how long i would be willing to work per day, and then the "interview" on the phone ended. Whats going on here? Will I end up being forced into a job on my first few interviews with this Ingeus lot? I told her i was on ESA and she said "yes we have it on our records"... o.O

If its not one thing with the DWP its another... 7 months ago, i went to my ATOS "medical"...failed, came here asking for advice, got great advice, then went to my local CAB and done the appeal. The beginning of this month i won the appeal, 15 points and in the WRAG. I got the back payment that i was due 2 weeks ago. I used it to basically pay off all the debt i had accumulated, paying back my parents for the help they gave me, paying off other debts which left me with a little left over...but to be honest not much. Last week my ESA was late, i phoned up, the bloke on the phone said it was held back but he didnt know why, he then said he will "fast track" it so it will be in my bank account the next day, and it was. Today, i got a letter from the DWP saying that they are now holding back the backpayment because of a "possible overpayment"....the thing is...i already have received the backpayment LAST WEEK!? What happens if they now decide that i was overpayed (which was their fault for not using a sodding calculator) does this mean they will stop my ESA in order to get back the overpayed money? I thought that winning that tribunal would mean that for the first time in 7 months, i can finally relax and take care of my health issues...now the DWP throw another bag of angry cats at me and im worrying all over again.

Hi folks I had my tribunal today and it was a success, awarded 15 points and put in the WRAG group. My CAB advisor concentrated solely on the aural migrane, stipulating a "Special Circumstances" clause. My M.E wasnt mentioned as my CAB advisor said that the doctor in todays hearings was "a tough one". He was right. The doctor at the tribunal hauled me over the coals for about 30 minutes about my migraine's, how the aural part affected my vision (it basically blinds me) and how the actual headache part affects me...well, its a migraine...dark room, no noises...etc etc. Awarded 15 points however...the letter said I shouldn't be reassessed for 6 months. Considering my original assessment was actually six months ago (february) it looks like I will be hauled into ATOS once again soon for another assessment, given 0 points and need to go to tribunal again. The CAB officer shook his head and said ultimately it was a waste of time. A bitter sweet tribunal win

I'm just wondering, do they send a letter in confirming that I have been placed back on the assessment rate of ESA? Or do I need to just wait for the benefit to be in the bank on a random date?

So is it worth sending in further evidence now or should i just wait until I go to the tribunal stage?

Hi again folks I just got a letter from the DWP saying that my GL24 was received and that they are looking at the decision. They mentioned "further evidence" that i can send in to help them with their decision...how long do i have to get this "further evidence"? The way the woman in the CAB talked last week she reckons that I should just wait until the thing goes to tribunal...but the worry is driving me up the wall, i want this thing over as quick as possible

This is whats scareing me. The disabled will become destitute, forced out into the street because of the inability to pay their rent, even with Housing Benefit with the loss of ESA payments it means nothing to actually live on, no money for food, basic heating, electricity. More and more disabled folks thrown out into the street cause they had to use their HB to pay for the basic needs of food. Is this the face of things to come in the next few years?

Well, it's started. I popped down to my Doctor, when i mentioned ESA he immediately said "you are doing an appeal", got out his little book thing and wrote me a note. He told me that the amount of his patients who have been getting 0 points on the second assessment after receiving over 15 on their first has risen dramatically. Note in hand i phoned up my cousin to come pick me up and drive me to the local Citizens Advice place. The woman who saw me there was really helpfull. I mention i was reading up in this forum and she nodded and told me that was a good decision She told me the pricess from start to finish, helped me with the GL24 form and said if i needed someone to come with me if the appeal went to the tribunal stage to phone her up. She also told me the waiting time if it did go to tribunal has finally went down...to six months o.O She said at one point folks was waiting a year to go to tribunal and that only now is the backlog starting to abate partly due to more towns having their own tribunal service which was specifically set up only for ESA. She did mention though about the M.E I suffer. When i informed her that the first assessment was done by a much younger 'health professional' she reckoned that the younger ATOS person recognized M.E as a disease. The second assessment i had the doctor was older, much older...put me through an assessment which lasted 4 times longer than the first one with heavy emphasis on physical abilities. She informed me that this was the problem, that I probably went into the assessment on the day with my M.E not too bad as it usually is...and yeah, shes right. She also said that in the tribunal, if it does get to that stage we should put a little more emphasis on the Rheumatic pain, hernia and the daily migraines and use M.E as a back up as again, some older doctors still refuse to look at M.E and something called fibromialgia as a bonafide condition. At any rate, the process is now underway, the appeal letter has been sent, and this forum has helped ease my mind a bit more from the confused worried state i was in at the end of last week

I'll have another read at that sticky post later on when my head is a bit clearer, its just a lot to take in right now Hi, do i ask them when i will phone them up on Monday or do i need to head to the local Jobcenter plus place?

Well i got the letter today about how i failed...0 points on everything The "doctor" who done the assesment was obviously on another planet and not taking part in the same assessment i was taking part in. There was no GL24 leaflet in the letter, just the letter itself saying how i did not pass. So, I'm gonna download that GL24 from their website and then phone them to tell them I am gonna appeal on Monday. After that I'm kinda lost, ive been reading the sticky thread about appealing and it looks obvious now im gonna have to pop in to the local Citizens Advice place here, never been to one in my life...

Thanks Honeybee When i do appeal and send them back the form plus my doctors medical certificate, will I automatically be put back on ESA under the low rate or do I need to ask them to put me on it?

I had my first ATOS assessment a little over a year ago, passed it and was put into the Work group. I had 2 out of the six meetings with the person in the Jobcenter and she basically told me that if there was anything else she would phone me, but for all intents and purposes she seen I was basically not fit for work. One year later, back to ATOS. I suffer from M.E, I didn't even know what it was until the doctor explained. I was also tested as being RA+, something to do with rheumatic pain, i suffer from crippling aural migraine's every day which literally partially blinds me and then the headache hits which knocks me out. All the same things that i had this time last year. The day of the medical was a "normal" day for me. I hobbled up to the medical center, sat down on the same low chairs, spent 30 minutes in pain, standing up now and again to stop my legs trying to seize up. The medical itself was totally different to the last one. The first medical I had only lasted about 15 minutes. This new one lasted more like 50 minutes. The 'doctor' (if he even was a doctor), had me trying to bend over to touch my toes, I only got halfway there. He then asked me to try and raise my hands above my head, only got half way there, asked me to get up onto a bed...i had to 'back up' onto the bed and sorta slide my rear end onto it...in pain all the way through and I told him this. He had me trying to bend my legs, hardly managed it...then point my toes to the wall, didnt manage that either... ...there was a LOT of tests. I walked out of that medical thinking i had went two rounds with a professional boxer. I limped out, and had to rest several times before making the entrance of the medical center. Today, about 1 hour ago, i got a phone call from the local job center from a nice women who actually sounded VERY apologetic that I had failed and she was sending me the report in the mail. ...failed... I can't walk more than about 60 meters without stopping at least twice, can't bend, cant lift, staring at a computer screen will almost certainly trigger another migraine (i can see the zig zag lines starting to appear while typing this). For about half an hour before finding this forum I was saying to myself "How the heck am I gonna manage on JSA...i aint fit for work". Now i see a lot more people in the same boat as me...once that report drops through the letter box, im gonna appeal.