Question about Disability Benefit
Posted , 17 users are following.
I'm in he process of waiting for a appeal to go to a independant tribunal for Disability Benefit. I've been diagnosed as having severe Cervical Spondylosis - I also have a Myclonic condition [muscle spasms] I'm in pain 24 hours a day - and find it hard to cope with life - The decision makers at the DWP turned me down for Disability Benefit on the grounds that I'm able to walk in their opinion 200 metres before the onset of severe pain.
The question that I would like to ask sufferers of CS is:
Are there any fellow sufferer of Cervical Spondylosis out there that have been [granted] Disability Mobility Allowance?
Reason for the question is: I believe that the DWP dont class this condition as being a disability - Please respond it's very important.
1 like, 262 replies
Tony_L
Posted
Sorry should have said that's based on him living 40 miles from appointment based on the fact they won't make it easy to get there.
It's ok i'm not with it today, surgery on Tuesday. Tony
Tony_L
Posted
Still didn't get it right it should read 1mile in 4 hours living 10 miles away.
Maybe I should just start again or forget it, it seemed funny to me at the time. Tony
lynb
Posted
You almost got there but you didn't take into consideration the constant breaks every ten paces. My maths is rubbish so could you work it out again?
Have you considered taking up a position as an 'expert' on the Tribunal Panel? They seem to forget things like the stopping and starting when deciding on a claim. Worth a thought maybe?
Take care
Lyn
Tony_L
Posted
The timing is correct as it would take him 40 hrs to cover 10 miles at a speed of 1 mile in 4 hrs. Stopping dosn't count as Janner said he was walking at that speed with the stops every 10 paces. However if you wish to include that time as well the calculation is:- the average person takes about 2000 steps per mile at an average stride of 2.5 ft. as he is struggling to walk we will assume his stride is half the average, therefore he will take 4000 steps per mile. If he stops every 10 steps then he will stop 400 times each mile, if he stops each time for say 10 sec's he will take an exra 4000 sec's [66 min's]to complete each mile. So you then have to assume on average he is really walking at a pace equal to 1 mile in 5 hrs 6 min's so to cover 10 miles would take 51 hrs. So to arrive for an appointment at 3pm on wednesday he would have to leave home at 12 noon on the monday.
Hope thats clearer Tony
lynb
Posted
Take care
Lyn
Tony_L
Posted
Take care Tony
Guest
Posted
I've had a letter from the Upper Tribunal and I need your help to understand what they're doing now, because it doesn't make any sense to me.
They've got all of my file which now amount to a staggering 356 pages!!
which obviously contains all of what has gone before but read this:
The Tribunal Procedure (Upper Tribunal) Rules 2008
Case Management Directions
1. I direct that, as requested by the appelant, there be an oral hearing of the application before me in person in London on the date to be arranged.
2. Thr Secretary of State should be notified of the date, time and plce of the oral hearing but need not be represented at the hearing.
3. I do not expect the hearing to take longer than 30-40 minutes.
4. I remind the parties that I shall not be haearing evidence. At this stage the Upper Tribunal is limited to considering whether there is an arguable case that the First Tier Tribunal got the law or the procedure wrong in reaching it's decision.
5 . As the Upper Tribunal jurisdiction is confined to issues of law, the matters involved can become quite technical. Applicants are perfectly entitled to represent themselves, but they my find it useful to obtain assistance such as the local Citzens Advice Bureau or welfare rights agency, even if such an organisation cannot actually provide representation at an oral hearing on the day.
I'm not understanding this letter - how can they decide if the First -tier Tribunal got the law or procedure wrong if they dont look at the evidence?
Question:
Has any of my friends had any experience of the Upper Tribunal?
And does anybody know what the rules are concerning. The Upper Tribunal procedure Rules 2008?
I wish a lawyer would come on this site to help us all - they could make a name for themselves, because someting surely is going to happen regarding the way the State is currently treating claimants of DLA Mobility.
I read a piece on the web by a scottish Lawyer who says that in his opinion the Upper Tribunal system is illegal - if lawyers are fighting lawyers as to what is right - what chance is there for us normal people?
I'll keep in touch. Alan
PS
I'm going on holiday to Norfolk next Saturday for 2 weeks ( fishing) from my riverside garden absolute bliss.
lynb
Posted
Great news that things are eventually moving even if very complex. I would presume that they are not looking at evidence of your application for DLA but, are looking at the way the Tribunal handled your case! As you said, your submissions were overlooked, important details were omitted from their decision and the fact that their overall decision was based on lies. This is how it reads to me but I could be way off mark? No.5 states that they are confined to issues of law so are they there just to ensure that Tribunals are handled legally? You have made a serious complaint with regards to the lies told and the way you were ignored on many levels so, is this Hearing just to identify what went wrong?
What will happen if the hearing goes in your favour? Will you be granted another Tribunal? I would presume from the wording that they are not there to make a decision of whether your DLA award would or would not be granted but whether you have a case for claiming?
Sorry if I have confused you more! Have you spoken to a Solicitor? It might be worth giving someone a ring just to have things explained in a clearer way. You need to know where you stand in all this or you're up the proverbial river, again!
Enjoy your holiday and chill out for a bit. There will be stress enough on your return.
Good luck and take care
janner
Posted
Alright, alright what have I started. I did not mean to start a mathematical debate although the DWP would be very interested in the outcome. They will probably now issue all claiments with tapemeasures and stop watches. To make things easier, and to save more money, I expect the government will site the new NHS Job Centres in the middle of motorways or some other danderous or inaccessable place. This will reduce the number of claiments and may even kill a few off, which would save more public money. No doubt Ministers and MP's will be sent on a six month fact finding mission to Barbados.
My local Jobcentre in on the right track. They have pedestrian access via a very sharp and narrow S bend, this is to deter people in wheelchairs or on crutches. On entering the building, a large open plan office where there is no privacy, you have to run the gauntlet of \"bouncers\". Large tattooed skinheads in uniform block your path, when you make it to the reception desk you are sent away with a long list of telephone numbers. You then have to phone some department or other and make an appointment to go back to the Job Centre. Phoning any DWP number is a challenge in itself. You wait up to an hour to get through, while waiting you are interupted by a recorded message every fifteen seconds telling you that all their advisers are busy and to either continue to hold or sod off and phone back later when the office is shut.
As for the Upper Tribunal letter, I think I understand it. They are not concerned with your actual case just how the First Tier Tribunal conducted themselves and whether or not they broke any laws or rules. I wish you the very best of luck but I expect they will look after their own.
Careful with the fishing holiday, the DWP may feel that you are fit enough to work on a deep sea trawler.
]Cheers,
Janner
lynb
Posted
Alan, I have just had a nosey through the site on Upper Tribunal workings and I presume you have too, sorry if I appear to be teaching granny to suck eggs, but some of the things on there make it a bit clearer.
-The Upper Tribunal relates to the conduct of the Lower Tribunal and 'determines cause for eligibility to your original appeal'.
-To determine whether the outcome was based on 'legal findings'.
-To determine discrimination by not allowing documents to be used
-To give permission to appeal against previous decision
-To allow a new appeal to go to a different 'Panel or Court'
-To determine causes of outcome
-Arbitration where necessary
-To facilitate use of Lower Tribunal
-To determine if use of documents were allowed
-To determine documents issued were in legible form
It does not consider the original claim evidence and make a decision on the outcome of such!
The list is huge but these were the bits I picked out so it looks like they won't use evidence to support your DLA claim but will only use submissions of wrongdoings of the Tribunal.
It looks like your case fits into this criteria and you will be allowed another Tribunal with new Panel of so called 'Experts' but this time you know exactly what you will be asked so as they say 'forewarned is forearmed'. The lies told and the brick walls you met will all be disclosed and you will be a winner. Not that any of us 'wins' with this condition but hopefully you can make your existence a little more comfortable and less stressful.
Hope this is helpful
Take care
Lyn
Guest
Posted
I'll tell you something you're all making me laugh, there's a comedy sketch here!!! People who read these pages must think that we're all mad!! Maybe we should all make a new claim - claiming that we are?
That's the way to get the money that we're all entitled to. I think that I'll change my claim and say that I haven't got CS - I've got CSM?
(CONFUSED STATE OF MIND!!)
Well it's true these people have driven me mad!!
Best wishes
Alan the CSM sufferer!!
Tony_L
Posted
Tony
lynb
Posted
I don't mind having your version of CSM though. Sounds good to me and might make our claims a little easier.
Lets just hope that your Tribunal goes well for you Alan and glad I could help in some small way.
Righto, back to humour as we need to keep laughing or we could just give up completely. I have had a really bad week with constant muscle spasms leaving my skin very painful and terrible dizzyness which makes me fall over all the time. I was starting to feel that this is all there is to my life and there is nothing else for me but pain and humiliation - then I look on here and everyone can still laugh and joke! Why am I moaning? Everyone else is in the same boat so we should keep making each other laugh and lighten the load.
Take care everyone
Lyn (another CSM sufferer)
janner
Posted
As I have said previously, we have got to laugh as the DWP treat CS as a joke anyway.
With Cervical Spondylosis it is not only \"Myelopathy\" there is also \"Radiculopathy\", the last doc I saw at hospital said I also have Vertebral Artery Compression. He showed me on the images from my MRI scan. It is where the artery passes through holes in the cervical bones, the bones develop extra growth thus strangling the artery. The doc said that an operation for this is impossible as if they try to cut away the bone they will also cut the artery and will not be able to repair it. This artery compression restricts the flow of blood to the brain, which probably explains why I am potty, it is another cause of dizzyness.
It is interesting to note how other people react to the symptoms of CS which makes me wander if they all work for the DWP. You mention bones grinding and clicking in your neck, people say \"Oh I get that, it's nothing\".
You mention Vertigo and people insist it is as a result of an ear or sight problem. They have a different answer for every symptom and think you are just swinging the lead. My main problems are pains in my fingers, hands, wrtists, arms, elbows (thats apart from my left tennis elbow), shoulders, neck, head, upper and lower back. I also have vertigo and tinitus. I do get pains in my legs but, as yet, these are not as severe. Despite all the pain and discomfort I try do do what I can, albeit a little at a time, otherwise I would simply sit on my arse all day and vegitate. I live alone so I have to struggle to look after myself, cooking, cleaning etc.
People think that because you \"manage\" there aint much wrong with you.
It is difficult sometimes to convince people that to manage we also have to struggle. So it is not always just the DWP and Tribunals that we have to convince. The hardest thing is nobody else but ourselves can feel our pain.
Right got to go, eye test in an hour.
Cheers.
Janner
lynb
Posted
I also have all the usual symptoms as you stated and am waiting for the medical people to decide whether to operate or not. I agree, the pins and needles in the hands can be so painful they make me feel sick at times. Put pressure on the fingers and the arm goes numb meaning I drop things, a bugger when it's my dinner! I also have a lumber problem so my back is painful when standing for more than a few minutes. Mix that with the artery compression, vertigo and ear ringing and you have the massive problems with everyday tasks that people usually take for granted. Muscle spasms are the worst for me at the moment but when they settle, something else will start. I have widespread osteoarthritis just to add to my problems and this affects my feet, knees, hips, shoulders, wrists and my hand joints, especially my fingers. I find that on some days I can't do a bloody thing and it gets depressing at times. I am very lucky that I have an understanding family and my daughter is wonderful as she helps with almost everything. I used to be so busy with work and my family that they find it upsetting to see me now in so much pain and virtually useless to myself. It can be awful for her to have to shower her mum and help with very personal care but she does it with a smile on her face and never complains, bless her. My friends find it hard to accept that I have so many medical problems but I have to admit, they never doubt me. Pity the DWP have such doubts and disregard anyone with CS or CSM.
Anyway, enough about my trials and tribulations for now.
Take care and keep smiling
Lyn