Appeal Confusion

[wishface]

The other day I received a letter telling me my appeal had failed. Today i get a letter from the tribunal service and I'm not really sure I follow what's going on. I figured that, dating from the first letter, my benefit would now be stopped, but the tribunal letter says that it's been referred to them pending my approving this (and i won't be heard before march apparently), so what's the deal? Will my ESA be stopped? I'm having trouble following all this. Thanks.

Edited November 13, 2010 by wishface

[rebel11]

Hi wish

 

I'm sure the guys will respond when they are available.

[honeybee13]

Hello wishface. I'm not sure what stage you're at right now and you have so many threads, I'm not sure which to look at. Is it possible that your appeal has gone to a DWP decision maker who has upheld the original decision that you'failed' the Atos assessment? If it was, then the tribunal would be your next step.

 

My sticky should give you some guidance while you wait for other replies.

 

HB

[wishface]

I explained it all above. If you can't help then just say so.

[honeybee13]

I'm trying to help, but who is the letter from?

 

HB

[wishface]

the letter is from the tribunal service, as I said.

[ErikaPNP]

Your appeal hasn't failed in its entirity. When a person appeals, the DWP must first reconsider the original decision. If the reconsideration results in a favourable decision, the appeal lapses and that is the end of the appeals process. Where the reconsideration performed by DWP has resulted in the original decision being upheld, the appeal continues and is forwarded to the Tribunals Service. During this, your appeal is ongoing and you will continue to receive payments of ESA as long as you are sending in the certificates provided by your GP.

 

The tribunals service will send you an enquiry form, like this. When you receive it, you must complete and return it within 14 days or your appeal will be struck out. At some point later on down the line, you will receive DWP's submission to the tribunal. This will contain all the information they used to make the decision, and the decision in itself. These are the documents you need to go through with a fine toothed comb to point out any inconsistencies to the tribunal in your own submission.

 

I appreciate that you may be finding this process very difficult to navigate; it's certainly not made easy for people. However please understand that when people ask questions such as Honeybee did above, they are simply asking for things to be clarified to enable them to answer. Sometimes a posting though appearing to contain all the information required to provide an answer may not. Some people can take a look at a post and be able to answer from the information provided and others may need further clarification. Please try not to get frustrated when people ask further questions. They are just trying to establish/clarify matters so that they can advise you correctly.

[honeybee13]

Hello again Wishface.

 

Please believe that I'm not unsympathetic to where you find yourself, because I've been there. I had anxiety depression and had to go to a tribunal to continue receiving IB as it was at the time. Because of this, I've done my best to help on the forum for nearly a year and have shared the template that helped me win my tribunal on the sticky that you seem not to want to read.

 

For my own tribunal, I had to go through the copy Atos report to see the inaccuracies and inconsistencies in it and then add them to the template created by my OH. Other people who've done the same, most recently HadEnough, have done just that and it helped his Welfare Rights representative. He won last week, I think it was.

 

If you want to win your tribunal, sadly you will probably have to do the same to help whoever is advising you or to submit to the panel. I'm not being difficult when I ask questions, as Erika said, but if you want to win your tribunal appeal, you will need to do some reading and research for yourself, and go through the paperwork as I and others have had to do. I'm not saying it was easy and I don't suppose the others would, but it was worth it.

 

HB

[furnitman2003]

I've found there is often a lot of confusion as to who sends what regarding Atos, Dwp, Reconsiderations, Appeals, Tribunals, etc.

It is very frustrating, I know, but I believe its also deliberate.

I was lucky my original decision was overtrurned at the Reconsideration Stage and did'nt actually need to go to appeal, (this time anyway)

But it pays to be prepared, and HB's Sticky allows for this.

 

Alan

[wishface]

Ok thanks. Unfortunately it's not going to matter as my GP won't cover me till the tribunal. My sick note expires on the 24th and my GP won't write another even though the appeal won't be heard before March. The reason I am writing is to seek advice as to what to do next. I really don't want to go back to signing on as the Jobcentre is a nightmare and I'm concerned about being pushed into work/situations, through the conditionality of the JSA, I can't cope with. Now the problem is my GP doesn't understand the ins and outs of hte situation. He doesn't belive that medical notes are required to cover the period waiting for the outcome of an appeal (he insists on having this fact in writing which I can't see happening). He thinks that, because I failed the medical, therefore that decision should stand and that I'm capable of working. My problem is that I don't think that going to sign on is the best thing for me. I said to him, and on the appeal form, that the Work Focussed Group would be the best outcome, but in order to get into that group I have to pass the medical (as I understand it). But he refuses to write further notes because he thinks I can work. So we have an empasse. I've tried explaining that dealing with the JC+ is horrendous and that it would be really awkward being pushed into situations where I would be seen as refusing work (and thus putting my benefit at risk) etc. This is what concerns me. But he doesn't accept that the JC would ever do that. I think he's really naive, although understandably so (he's never had to deal with the benefits system so doesn't really get how nasty and difficult it could be). Problem is, if the ESA claim lapses, thats it: no appeal and i'm committed to having to deal with JSA. Is there anything I can do in this situation? To his credit the doctor did offer to write a note to pass on to the jobcentre outlinging the fact i need help. But, with my experience of dealing with the JC, i don't believe it will make an iota of difference because the rules are the rules, and I don't really want to be put in the position of having to find out because there is no turning back at that point, the ESA claim will be closed and that's that. Anything else I can do?

[doktorjohn]

There is no way I would see a doctor with that attitude. I do not tolerate unsympathetic doctors at all.

 

dj

[wishface]

There is no way I would see a doctor with that attitude. I do not tolerate unsympathetic doctors at all.

 

dj

 

If i go and talk to someone else then there's the risk that they will think i'm playing them and taking the ****. I really don't know what I can reasonably do. I really dread having to go back to signing on because we all know what the JC+ experiemce is like, except my GP.

[doktorjohn]

I cannot see a risk in seeing another doctor.

 

dj

[speedfreek]

He doesn't belive that medical notes are required to cover the period waiting for the outcome of an appeal (he insists on having this fact in writing which I can't see happening).

 

Your GP will have been sent a letter by the DWP saying you have failed and not to provide any further certs. This a then goes on to say unless you appeal.

 

You should also have 2 A CHANGE IN THE EMPLOYMENT & SUPPORT ALLOWANCE RATE PAYABLE letters which also state "You will need to supply us with medical certificate while appealing." The 1st one tells you we can not pay you from the medical date, whilst the 2nd is the one telling you the rate you will be paid now you have appealed.

 

So unless the DWP are doing the missing letter trick again between you, you have this written by the DWP in 3 letters

[wishface]

I can't help thinking that if the appeal was heard earlier than March (say December) he'd have been much more positive about writing another note. But he just thinks 'because you can do something therefore i can't justify writing notes'. That's not the point. THe point I tried making was that it's about getting the right kind of help, because it won't be with the JC - they are part of the reason I signed off in the first place. When I tried applying conditionality before (was asked to apply for a busy cafe job in a shopping centre at this time of year, i can't cope with such environments, too busy) I was treated like a leper and forced to remove 'retail' (which is how the job was classed) entirely from my JSA. Their reasoning: that's what all retail will be like, even though that's what i have some experience of. And that was by the jobcentre's disability advisor!