Pip award review and face to face

Posted , 11 users are following.

Hi, everyone.

My husband is awarded to Pip (enhanced rate) till Nov/2017 and he received an award review form (AR1) last year.

He ticked all the question "no change" and sent the form with his current medication list, reports (copies of feedback after consultations to GP) from psychiatric, future treatment plans about insomnia.

We thought those support docs show enough he's condition hasn't got improved as he still needs all these treatment.

But today he received appointment letter for face to face assessment.

We are wondering why and he is worried about the assessment.

Can anyone give us any advice through experiences?

Should we take all the docs we already sent for the assessment? 

Any additional docs we can prepair ( letter from me?)?

0 likes, 24 replies

24 Replies

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  • Posted

    Hi l have just had my face to face at home they were really nice just asked about your health and your day to day stuff and asked if you could do a few excersises but if you could you just had to say they were very nice
    • Posted

      Hopefully they'll remain being "nice" in the report. So many people state how nice they were then stabed them in the back when writing that all import report. You can ring DWP and ask for a copy of that report, this will give you some idea on what the decision will be. Mostly the decision maker goes with what's stated in that report. Good luck.

  • Posted

    Hi everyone I first applied for PIP back in 2013/14 due to numerous hip problems which has lead to avascular necrosis which is death of bone tissue, and further leading to arthritis which also causes Alot of back and knee pain and problems, I went to a atos assessment and they seemed really nice until they lied on everything they asked me, they wrote the opposite to what I had said. I then appealed the decision and got a call a few days later from DWP and the lady on the phone went through the questions with me again and then I told them how it was the opposite to what atos have wrote, I also then sent medical forms which states all the hip problems I have and they then awarded me with standard mobility and standard daily. Since then my hip problem has seemed to getting physically harder and mentally harder, i have had years of issues when going to doctor and hospital appointments, I wait hours for an appointment that they book with a time, and by the time I get seen they tell me I need a hip replacement but can't do one until I've lost weight. I've asked for dietary help as I literally cannot exercise much at all with how painful my hip is. The advice one doctor gave me was to not eat at all, which in theory doesn't work if you still yet can't exercise, and due to me being unable to go on public transport and no family close by and not being able to afford transport every time I have a hospital appointment, they currently have stopped sending me appointments for last 2 years, my local doctor doesn't help either and that is still too far away for me to get there, my mental health has gotten much worse as I am pretty much house bound, 21 year old living on my own with no help, and I have been going through my hip problems for over 10 years now, I can never sleep on anight as I am either in absolute agony or because of how bad my mental health is. So I got these AR1 forms about 2/3 week ago, and I managed to get transport by a friend to take me to the doctor's, and I went in with my crutches in agony and burst out into tears and told him everything I'm saying now, and I asked for stronger painkillers as I've always been given co-codamol, and I got really dependant on them a while back so I have to stop taking them for a certain amount of time and then take them again so I'm in pain most of the time as I don't want to get addicted to them again as it made me really ill. And all the doctor did was give me orislat to make me have constant dioreah (when with how bad my arthritis is it's hard enough to reach the toilet on time) and cocodamol. I also asked for a medical report as it still states my hip problems as on going, and the only prescription evidence I had, and the doctors notes were "she is really upset with her weight" that's where i have no faith at all in the system. I have written all this on my AR1 forms as yes I feel that I am getting no help, when you break down in front of a doctor because of all these physical problems and not been able to sleep at night and being attacked a year ago by a stranger who knocks on your door which I also told the doctor about. And nothing and now I'm dreading that either I get sent to a atos assessment again or they just decline me rolleyes

    • Posted

      Hi,

      Most poeple have to have an assessment even at review. It's not true that they won't award PIP without an assessment unless you're terminally ill. They do award it BUT it's very rare. So expect to have another assessment. There's no timescales as to how long it takes, it all depends on the backlog in your area. You can ask for a home assessment but you'll most likely need a letter from your GP stating the reasons why this is needed. Remember that you can only change the appointment date/time once so if you have to do this then please think carefully. A few days after the assessment you can ring DWP and ask for a copy of the assessment report to be sent to you. This will give you some idea what the decision will be as mostly they go with that report. The assessment will be exactly like the first one you had. Questions about how your condtions affect you will be asked. You can write a diary explaining how your days affect you, this may help.

      I would also advice you to change DR's. A Dr that advices a patient to stop eating needs to be reported. If my DR ever said that to me then i would have report him/her before i even left the surgery. Stopping eating is most certainly not the way to lose weight. Consultants are usually very reluctant to do a hip replacement on someone as young as you.

      I know it's easier said than done but try not to worry. Everyone goes through this was new claims and reviews. Hopefully you won't have to wait too long for a date. Good luck.

    • Posted

      Hi

      I retired from DWP in February 2017, I was a decision maker on another benefit not PIP.

      I was recently awarded PIP myself standard daily living as I have Fibromyalgia and arthritis in my neck.

      I can assure you f2f will be done unless you are terminally ill or in a coma under present rules. Also when I claimed I was allocated a home visit which I didn't want as I felt up to attending a normal meeting, they arranged that for me when I made that clear. My assessors were from Capita and it seems that the home visit very much depends on which company has the contract in your area not DWP practice.

      I was very surprised to be successful at the first attempt to claim an nearly didn't bother but as I'm 64 it was my last chance !

      Also I had no specialist referrals or other doctors paperwork, just copies of my prescriptions, just goes to show how different experiences can be.

      I'm very glad I did and I hope there will be changes to the criteria soon which gives some weight to all of the things we can't do like cleaning/shopping etc which don't count at all at present.

  • Posted

    Try not to worry but they won't award PIP these days without a f2f assessment, the only exception is for terminal illness. Be honest at the assessment and take a copy of your application with you to refer to and you can have somebody with you. It sounds to me as if you need a better GP, good luck 😊

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