Assistance with DWP Decision making for a disabled person

[RB68]

A friend in need has been falsley accused of fraud by DWP and they have reviewed her claim and fined her £xxxxxK being the monies they say she falsley claimed. However it is clear from their letter that they are not taking into account specialist reports and medical history which the people making the initial deicisons saw and have on file. She has provided evidence of this but it doesn't appear to be being considered. They have made a decision and she now needs to make a mandatory appeal on their decision. Where can she get some assistance with her appeal and fighting this decision. Just looking for pointers not opinions etc. We need someone who knows the process and how to get the right information in the right words in front of the right people. There is a whole shed load of other stuff behind this BUT this is the key thing for right now.

Citizens Advice Bureau

Local city council welfare rights advisors.

Benefits advisors at any charities for the specific illness she has.

www.benefitsandwork.co.uk for all the info on how to do a successful mandatory reconsideration request or appeal (needs a paid subscription, but well worth it).

Disability Rights Handbook for an explanation of all the laws, regulations, time limits etc. Book available from Amazon etc, but you get a big discount if you buy direct from www.disabilityrightsuk.org.uk

They must have evidence that she has been wrongly claiming the benefit to suddenly stop it like that. have they been watching her for a while? Does she know what evidence they have and why her benefit has been stopped?

It doesn't really matter about specialist reports and medical history as there is always an ongoing requirement to report an improvement in abilities.
For example, if the original claim said that they were unable to walk at all, that they needed assistance to get out of bed, get dressed, go to the toilet etc and the investigators have seen then walking without any problems or assistance. If they have been seen to be doing something which would negate their other statements (whatever they were on the original claim) then they should have reported an improvement.

Additionally if they have evidence that the statements on the original claim were not correct the whole claim can be treated as false.

I second CAB they are trained to help with the appeal process OR if your friend has an association for her medical issues they can also fill in forms for appeal and provide support, good luck

If your friend rents from a housing association, they may have someone who can help?

Fined or are they saying it's an overpayment?

Phrase she used is fined, but as cognition is one of the effected areas she maybe misunderstanding (Brain injury and subsequent health issues). There has only been a worsening of her condition and this is evidenced by medical treatments and progression of her issues and reports from top UK Consultants. The information "provided" which is not evidence it is hearsay and has not been evidenced in any way and they have ignored the actual hard evidence which is exactly what they awarded it on in the first place. There is a complex history behind this which is why I said no opinions as frankly they are just not relevant in this situation which I just can't go into. We just need to be pointed in the right direction to allow her voice to be heard for which she needs assistance.

CAB can help if it's an overpayment but if it's fraud (she would have had interviews under caution) then it's a solicitor she needs.
Don't be swayed by a friendly approach, their terminology can be sneaky and confusing.
Hope it's just an overpayment, good luck.

What sort of Solicitor though

Ring around and ideally get one with experience in benefit fraud cases. She could end up with a criminal record and a ban on claiming or admitting to a crime she didn't commit.

From what you’ve said, it sounds like you’ve not actually read the letter. That might be a start, then you can look at whether she has been overpaid or fined first.

So it was a fine BUT recently was the tribunal following appeal - not easiest to find out how to do this or find people with experience to help but our first step was an experienced advocate and he has been the key here. (they are entitled to an advocate as a vulnerable disabled person, they have a brain injury as one of their significant injuries). Utter exoneration and hopefully back paid what she was refused for 6 months.

oh and there is no chance of improvement - ever - its a death sentence basically although not treated as terminal.