To be delighted PIP assessments are to be face to face?

[PAYE]

The only good thing about the budget is that Rachel Reeves announced that face to face assessments for PIP and disability benefits are being brought back. AIBU to think that this is a great thing?

It will make sure that the money goes to those who need it. It is madness that such face to face assessments were ever stopped.

The “wonga” is your income tax, @zov🤣

You have to notify pip too. No more than 4 weeks out of the country.

She’ll be in huge trouble.

Exactly this. Such a goady, baiting thread, designed to cause outrage and froth. And I fell for it.

"No it's not. It will hopefully put off some of the chancers from applying. Taxpayers money shouldn't just be handed out on the basis of a phone call."

It's a waste of time when someone already has continuing care funding for their disability and extensive care agency care plans.

So have you reported her?

Did RR even mention PIP Today? I never saw it reported in the news.

You must surely know if your close friends own their home or rent? What kind of work they have done, and if that comes with an occupational pension?

Anyway, you seem quite angry and combative, so I’m going to bow out of this thread now.

Yep this. I am waiting for the OP to come and post the link to this story she said she heard about in the budget. No-one else seems to know about it. I can't find it anywhere.

Why are you not saying if you reported this woman?

It's very clear you HAVEN'T reported her. Thanks for clarifying.

I'm off too as I'm going out for a bit. I'm not going because I can't and won't answer questions aimed at me.

Have a fab evening. 😎

I kind of hope there is some comeback, I do. It’s morally wrong.

I mean, you’d hope posters like this had the balls to report benefit thieves. Otherwise they’re part of the problem.

I receive PIP and have no issue whatsoever with face to face, providing my carer can get me there obviously.

Ah - seeing OP is skirting the interesting questions. Tells me everything.

I will use one example. A family member has just been awarded higher mobility (car has been ordered ofcourse). She claims (on facebook) to be waiting for emergency surgery for a spinal condition. She claimed (to a mutual friend) one of her kidneys no longer works so she can't walk far. She claimed (to her ex) she has rheumatoid arthritis in her hip so can barely walk. She works as a community carer...

She has just returned from benidorm and has happily showed me photos of her jet skiing, clubbing, windsurfing etc. She openly says she exaggerated her claim and her Dr just wrote her a letter about walking pain. She has also been convicted of £64000 benefit fraud before so has form. I don't begrudge her it. The system is shit and she took advantage 🤷‍♀️

I am not against disability benefits. I have a severely nuerologically disabled child who will forever be a toddler in an adult body with high personal needs. The fact is that PIP in its currenty form is easily defrauded if you know what to say. The rates are insanely unfair as someone who has no physical disability but "anxiety" get the same amount as someone experiencing lifelong severely debilitating conditions such as MS, Cancer, SLD, Blindness, Limb loss etc. It's madness.

@PAYE Can you clarify that this was mentioned in the budget Today?

Report her or zip it.

After 28 days being out of the UK she not entitled to anything and is committing benefit fraud

So she has been done for benefit fraud before, and is doing it again? Unbelievable!

Yeah this comment should be pinned at the top of every thread like this as a public service announcement!👏 👏 👏

Good in theory, but I'm sure there will still be oscar-worthy performances from some cheating scumbags. There should be more of a requirement for medical records though.

This is the same as my south-east Asia traveller acquaintance. It’s a spinal condition, but one that doesn’t cause problems (yet, at the moment; it may well do, in years to come). This is part of her reason for going. She’s mid-50s, fit and well and mobile right now, but understands she may not always be.

But this is true for all of us, if we are lucky enough to be in decent nick now.

I have severe agoraphobia and won’t be able to attend an interview so I’m screwed.

Regular?

Why? Do you think people like me with denerative conditions and genetic defects will magically get better?

Do you think people with missing limbs or dwarfism or sight loss will suddenly improve?

People on the maximum amount of benefits for lifelong conditions absolutely do not need regular interrogations!

People on the lower level, who may deteriorate should, yes, but they should be able to just put in a change of circumstances with new evidence that is reviewed alongside the results of their original face to face (assuming it was face to face)... they too should not need someone to come out and see them (or be forced to come into somewhere).

Do you realise many of these assessment centres are hard to get to and not particularly accessible and they are so on purpose to try to catch people out?

The people assessing them have next to no understanding of medical conditions or disabilities their job IS to catch people out.

Do you have any idea how stressful it is that, given the back log of cases you can be informed of your next review pretty much immediately after your previous one (if you're on a two yearly review).

IF the people assessing actually had a clue and looked at the evidence submitted, spoke to peoples consultants, it wouldn't be a big issue. It is however a massive deal when we're being lied about (my partner apparently turned up clean, tidy, well presented, talkative and made great eye contact. That'll be a first and a miracle as he went out of the house in three day old clothing and food down his front and hasn't made eye contact with me for almost a decade!) and evaluated by people without the first idea. I had one ask me what Ehlers Danlos was and what Cardiomyopathy meant!

Me too.

Good i always have paper assessments apart from my original claim

What is the point if the assessment tools/criteria are such a blunt instrument?

My daughter's face to face assessment was a joke. He was a physiotherapist- she was claiming for autism. He took one look at her - she was 16 at the time and very pretty - and decided that she must be able to do everything because she looked so capable. She got 1 point, I think. We appealed and it was overturned at mandatory reconsideration. The guy had no relevant expertise and didn't even do the basics like asking her to do a sum or read. It is just going to cause huge distress for disabled people, cost a fortune to implement, and in the end they will still have to pay out.