Medical Professionals letters of support for DWP

Hello hope you are well. They took all my points off me following previous PIP award at reassessment but disputing assessment as not fit for purpose, reported  I performed movements in a physical exam that did not take place that is impossible for me to manage because of metalwork fitted in my cervical spine from one of many ops.   Can only try! I think my GP's receptionist implied they were not allowed to charge patients for letters that the DWP have disregarded. The DWP said they would not contact the medical people for further evidence and it is totally up to the claimant? Who do we believe?

I'm not too bad thanks. Yes zero points i thought that was the case.

Disputing the lies told in the report during the MR process isn't the way to go about it in all honesty. The DWP will not be in the slightest bit interested in any lies that were told in the assessment report. What you should have done for the MR is write your letter and be straight to the point. Stating exactly what you disagree with and where exactly you think you should have scored those points and why.

If the letter you wrote is long and carries on about the lies then the decision maker reading it will most likely not even bother reading the whole letter. Which is why you should stick being straight to the point. I'm sure i advised this to you when you first had the decision letter, i could be wrong of course. Usually though i do advise people write their MR request letters this way.

I'm not sue what you mean by not allowed to charge patients for letters the DWP have disregarded. GPs mostly do charge for any letters they write. What they're not allowed to do anymore is charge for copies of medical records because of the data protection rules that came into force recently. They have to provide a free electronic copy at any patients request. Like i said DWP or the assessment providers and even the the Tribunal very rarely contact anyone for evidence.

DWP may have even done the MR decision by now as you did say they wouldn't wait for the extra evidence. The likely hood of you going from zero points to an award is very slim to be honest. It's very rare for the decision to change at this stage, if it was 1 or 2 points maybe it could have but it's a lot of points to ask to change. Mostly they rubber stamp the MR decision with the decision that was previously made. Of course i really hope for you that i'm wrong and the decision does change. If it doesn't and you need advise regarding the next step please just ask. Do let us know the outcome of the MR of course.

Thank you Denise. I always paid for GP medical support letters, now I was told they could no longer charge for them? As stated they are busy, so it must not be worth their while writing them in their time? 

I did as you advised and sent information which is straight to the point concerning my everyday problems etc. but my worry is the DWP are simply going to decide in this M R on incorrect assessment report? How can they do this, should we not have pointed out that I could not have possibly performed the reported movements because of cervical spinal metalwork, also the boxes are dotted for 'needs aids' etc but no points presented? 

The medical records were hopefully going to support what I described but I ran out of time for them to arrive.

Thank you again, so pleased I am involved with this forum, it is so helpful to 'get things of my chest', as well as your experienced advice.

I will let you know of course, (when the dreaded brown envelope arrives); I won't hold my breath!

So sorry for you I often think no one cares, everyone in their own 'little world', Unless people suffer from chronic pain they don't know what they are talking about! The trouble is we don't always LOOK ill so narrow-minded people think we are OK! Heard this the other day, "I don't look disabled, you don't look ignorant, there we go" Made me smile.

So sad the GPs don't all help and support us when we need help, as you say a 10 minute letter!

Hi,

I'm guessing this a review for your husband? May i ask what evidence he sent in last time? Did he send that evidence this time? He could back it up with a written diary and a letter from yourself, stating clearly how his conditions affect him and what descriptors apply and why. It's too late for this now as he's had his assessment but it's useful to know for the future.

He can ring DWP to ask for a copy of the assessment report to be sent to him. This will give him some idea what the decision will be as they mostly go with the report. It's rare for the decision maker to go against that report.

If he loses his PIP please consider MR then Tribunal if needed. Get some help with this process if you have to. Your local CAB or the likes, like age UK. As he's 65 then this will be his last chance for PIP, if he's refused and decides not to appeal then he won't be able to re-apply in the future.

Good luck and i hope a decision goes in his favour.

Last time was the first that his GP refused to help. Hide Rheumatologist comes out to our local hospital but the Doctor just disappeared and they didn't either send out another Consultant or send him to the main hospital. A locum visited in February but we don't know where he is now and I doubt he would be able to remember enough to write an adequate report. He has just been abandoned, getting worse almost daily. The assessor was very knowledgeable about fibromyalgia and she let me speak, something the Tribunal disallowed although I was his representative, the chair took a dislike to me because I had done quite a bit of research, following the outcome of a decision about driving to an unfamiliar place causing anxiety and distress. Unfortunately my belief in my own judgement has been destroyed and although this assessor was very kind and knew the questions to ask I know that doesn't mean a lot when it comes to writing the report.

A Consultant usually write a report after a patient has been to the see them. This report is sent to your GP and put into the medical file. You can ask your GP for any medical evidence in your file and there's no charge for digital copies of any of this. New data protection laws have put a stop to all those nasty charges. When i see a Consultant all of the letters have my CC'd into them so it means i always receive a copy as well as my GP. Makes things so much easier when it comes to needing medical evidence.

The assessors don't need to be knowledgeable about a condition because PIP isn't about a diagnosis, it's totally depends on how that condition affects you daily and everyone is affected differently. During a PIP assessment the questions they ask are usually computer generated and are based on the PIP descriptors and how your condition affects you.

At a Tribunal you can't be classed as a representative unless you know the law. In your case you were the claimants partner and there for support purposes only. If you were his appointee then you could have spoken on his behalf, if not then he would have needed to answer all the questions himself. Sometimes they will ask you a question or two at the end but this doesn't always happen. The whole purpose of appearing in person at a Tribunal is so they can get a picture of how your conditions affect you daily and speaking for yourself is the only way, unless you have a representative that knows the law and then the representative is able to speak on behalf of the claimant. A lot of assessment providers are exactly the same and they won't let you speak unless you're the claimants appointee. Some will let you prompt them but very few will let you speak on behalf of the claimant.

He can ring DWP and ask for a copy of the assessment report. This will give him some idea what the decision is likely to be as they mostly go with that report. I know it's hard to believe but you do get assessment providers that do tell the truth and recommend points from descriptors are awarded. I've never had a bad report for any assessment i've been to for myself and my daughter. I know there's others that post here that have had truthful reports and successful awards too. Good luck.