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Original poster

pip assessor lies

154 replies

1littleduck · 10/12/2018 11:16

Hi all.
I have read a lot of your posts regarding lies made by the pip assessors and I am joining your club.
My rejection letter was received on Friday and is a total fabrication to which I am going to fight all the way.
I had an assessor pointing, shouting and threatening me because I had a panic attack. They stated that I demonstrated good power and movement in my legs when I spent the whole duration of the assessment sitting with my feet up on the couch.
Could I make a suggestion. Is anyone familiar with starting a campaign and raising signatures for the government to make a new law stating that 'if an Employed assessor provides deliberate false and misleading information relating to any part of an assessment they can be personally sued for liable whether or not they are working on behalf of any company employed to carry out the task. If the company responsible for supplying the information requested deliberately alters the report, then the officer making the alterations should be named and is therefore also guilty of a criminal act and can be sued as an individual'
I am sure this, providing false documentation, is a criminal act but not clear weather an individual can be sued for it, but saying that, If we manage to get such a law passed through parliament then the days of the sheer fabrication, dishonest reporting and dam right lies of the PIP reports would be a thing of the past.

I know we will need 10,000 signatures for this to be debated in parliament and would think we could well exceed this if we tried.

OP posts:
Fairylea · 12/12/2018 17:43

I know from experience with my (child) sons dla claims (he has severe autism and learning disabilities) that they always say there’s a backlog and 12 weeks wait... but on all of the disability forums there’s a lot of people who hear back within 2-3 days and some who wait 20+ weeks. I think in reality the assessors just pick and choose which cases to do first.

When we renewed dla for ds we heard back within a week. The day before I heard I had rung for an indication of how long claims were taking and was told “there’s a backlog and it will be about 12 weeks”. So I don’t think anyone know what’s they’re talking about.

cherrytree63 · 12/12/2018 17:49

I've just got back from my assessment, the nurse seemed very nice, but I was a bit of a wreck. Just starting a flare up of my illness which wasn't a bad thing to be seen.
Time will tell.

toolazytothinkofausername · 12/12/2018 18:01

Initial assessment: 0 points filled with lies.
Mandatory reconsideration: 2 points.
Tribunal (9 months after initial assessment): 14 points, awards enhanced rate PIP.

If you are on Universal credit you're in trouble. You get back paid a lump sum that completely screws you over :(

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 18:31

I heard much faster when it was a yes as they agreed with the assessor etc, wonder if it takes longer for more complicated or cases where there is a disagreement? as with mine they had to go back again to the assessor. They also said renewals can take longer. That could explain things, possibly.

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 18:33

Ah no, that is unfair (UC). Especially when they got it wrong. With tax credits, there is a premium due to the PIP. but they quickly take it away when they take the PIP. They do reinstate it though if you win the appeal and you get a small lump sum payment.

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 18:37

The things that seemed to help a lot with PIP-

being in the care of a specialist / some kind of ongoing specialist input
being on some strong kind of meds
having a care plan

it is being discharged from some of this (mainly due to family support ironically) that is causing them to change mine. Nothing else has changed

Also, with tax credits, PIP is not considered as income in their calculations, is that not the same with UC then? It should be the same really.

MilkyCuppa · 12/12/2018 18:45

They are disgusting and never get punished for their lies. My neighbour can’t use her hands because of severe arthritis. She was assessed as having no problems using her hands. At the appeal hearing she just held up her hands wordlessly, the judge looked at them and ruled in her favour.

And MIL was assessed as not having incontinence because her clothes were clean and she didn’t stink of piss. Of course it didn’t occur to them that an elderly lady with some pride might take a shower and wear her best clothes to be examined by a doctor!

GirlsBlouse17 · 12/12/2018 18:46

This is scary. My pip is being reviewed at the moment. Christmas is being spoilt with the worry and anxiety I am having over this!

Theoryofmould · 12/12/2018 19:36

Last time I heard in 10 what my award was after assessment. It's now nearly six weeks. I'm under more than one consultant with lots of paper evidence and am on biologic meds and dmards so I'm not sure what that says about my wait Confused

Theoryofmould · 12/12/2018 19:37

Girls yes same here.

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 19:50

It says here PIP only affects the UC payment if it's for a child?

How does Universal Credit affect PIP and DLA?

If you’re an adult and getting either Personal Independence Payment (PIP) or Disability Living Allowance (DLA), it will continue to be paid along with your Universal Credit payment.

You get these benefits if your condition is severe enough for you to qualify for them. They won’t affect the amount you get in Universal Credit.

However, if you’re claiming DLA or PIP for a sick or disabled child, the rate of benefit you’re getting can affect your Universal Credit payment.

www.moneyadviceservice.org.uk/en/articles/universal-credit-for-disabled-people

MrMeSeeks · 12/12/2018 19:54

Yanbu:in one of my appeals they even said that there were ‘contradictions’ it what had been said, and it weren’t with what i had said!
Id wait nearly 18 months too

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 19:57

My MP got in touch with them to say it took 12 weeks for the result and please can they try and do the MR more promptly. They wrote back to her quite dismissively to say they don't know how long it will take! She has been very helpful though.

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 19:59

My last appeal was done on paper and it just said they used the appeal bundle to decide. I hadn't added anything new, so basically they used their own stuff to decide they were wrong.. (they're now ignoring this decision but didn't appeal against it)

MyfanwyMontez · 12/12/2018 20:07

I applied for PIP because I have a brain tumour which causes seizures. The seizures come on without warning, I can have as many as 8 one after another when I have one.
The meds I am on make me tired and I have constant headaches.
I cannot have a bath or shower without supervision because of the risk of seizures. I cannot make a meal without supervision.
I have anxiety to such an extent that I don’t leave the house without having someone with me.
Guess what? Zero points because I don’t have enough seizures! No matter that the risk is always there.

Babyroobs · 12/12/2018 20:28

Myfanwy - You should try re- applying for PIP as there has been more recent caselaw regarding epilepsy. My friends daughter did not get PIP a few years ago in the switch from DLA but has now applied again ( after me encouraging her to) and has a standard daily living award.

Absentwomen · 12/12/2018 20:32

A friend of mine was claiming UC (and in the middle of the waiting period for LCWRA element of UC)

After being on DLA for donkey years, migration to PIP occurred. Lost her mobility car. MR upheld home F2F assessment.

During this time, her UC LCWRA element was awarded by paper assessment only. An RGN completed an excellent report for her LCWRA element.

On the PIP tribunal, with a raft of evidence, and the UC RGN medical report, the Judge and GP at the panel stated that two different departments of the DWP had assessed her at the same time and the PIP assessor was an OT. Therefore her findings on friend were incorrect and the medical report for UC was a true reflection without seeing my friend based on the evidence sent with the claim.

Tribunal won in her favour. How could they argue? Evidence was all there

It's also down to the skill of the report writer.

MyfanwyMontez · 12/12/2018 20:32

Thanks roobs, I look that up and go from there.

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 20:52

Absent that is interesting, as have similar but mine is with ESA Support group which is based on my GP 113 form, all done on paper, now PIP OT report saying the opposite and ignoring paperwork. ESA is recent, since previous PIP tribunal. So all contradictory. What a mess.

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 20:55

Just to check is an OT not as qualified as a nurse then?

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 20:57

Yes, about the risk / epilepsy, as far as I know they have changed this to be better aware of risk, previously people with epilepsy were not getting awarded but that has definitely changed. Wonder if is possible to get that backdated to the change?

Orangeblossom1976 · 12/12/2018 21:02

as medically qualified I mean

BlueUggs · 12/12/2018 21:08

I am so so sorry that so many of you have horror stories.

I did this job for almost two years. I did not lie. I did not twist people's issues or try and minimise them. I am a proud professional and took my job incredibly seriously, as do all the people I know who do this job.

Unfortunately, I was often pulled up by the DWP who did not agree with what I had written.

It started to get me down and I left.

MrMeSeeks · 12/12/2018 22:20

BlueUggs not all are as honest as you! All have lied or omitted things from every one of mine.
Then i go to a tribunal and end up winning so i have no idea why they don't simply do the job in the first place Confused

sobeyondthehills · 12/12/2018 23:07

as have similar but mine is with ESA Support group which is based on my GP 113 form, all done on paper, now PIP OT report saying the opposite and ignoring paperwork. ESA is recent, since previous PIP tribunal. So all contradictory. What a mess.

I had my ESA withdrawn and won it, then PIP assessed straight after, I sent them paperwork from the ESA assessment that highlighted what I could and couldn't do.

The problem that I don't think a lot of people get is how much PIP affects different benefits and as someone else has said, a backpayment for PIP, CTC, HB and council tax is going to really screw you with universal credit, when it shouldn't do because its money you should of been getting all along.