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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Disability benefits  →  Thread

Quick PIP decisions

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Karina K
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Northwards Housing

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There must be a General Election in the offing and a desire to reduce the PIP backlog.

That’s four PIP claims I’ve submitted in the last month that have been carried out on scrutiny and Enhanced DL PIP awarded for a minimum of 18 months based on mental health issues. Decisions have been received in 2-3 weeks.

Anyone else seeing this?

Dan_Manville
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Mental health & welfare rights service - Wolverhampton City Council

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Nope but I reckon you deserve a prize…

Are you in an ATOS area or Capita?

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Tom B (WRAMAS)
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WRAMAS - Bristol City Council

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Some similarly speedy decisions in Bristol at the moment. Our record is 35 days from date of claim to date of decision (non special rules)

Sharon M
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Derbyshire County Council

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Yes, seeing the same thing. I can’t fail to get quick enhanced rate daily living at the moment. All paper decisions, no medicals. Still struggling with the mobility side on mental health grounds, but, you know, hey-ho.  In an Atos area.

At this success rate I may even apply myself for the mental anguish of Universal Credit.

wr4
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Lewes Citizens Advice Bureau

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ATOS area.. can confirm quick decisions.

miket
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Welfare Advice Team, South Gloucestershire Council

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Had a couple of quick PIP decision in the Bristol area too.

Also seeing it for child DLA. Had a decision back within 14 days of submitting a brand new claim twice last month!

Catblack
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Benefits specialist - South Somerset District Council

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It’s a shame they can’t make quick decisions for all my ESA clients awaiting their ESA medicals. Waiting times of over a year and counting….................

Ben E Fitz
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Welfare Benefits Caseworker, Manchester CAB Manchester

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A couple of PIP decisions within 6 weeks of application. As you say, all scrutiny decisions with no medical assessment. I echo the comment about it being harder to get mobility comp on mental heath grounds.

Also echo the frustration re ESA re-assessments. 9-12 months wait not unusual, sometimes longer!

Manchester is an ATOS area.

1964
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Deputy Manager, Reading Community Welfare Rights Unit

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We’ve only had one ‘quickie’ so far (my colleague nearly fell off his chair bless him. And not as a result of THAT sort of quickie I hasten to add!) It went through on scrutiny and we have no idea how as we thought it was a borderline claim at best. No rhyme nor reason to it.

And yes- the WCA delays are still in excess of a year in these here parts.

benefitsadviser
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Sunderland West Advice Project

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Got one yesterday that was awarded on paper after 4 weeks

Amazed.

Nearly spat me coffee out!

Dan_Manville
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Mental health & welfare rights service - Wolverhampton City Council

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ATOS are obv doing loads of paper based assessments to get the backlog down.

SharonM; re mobility for mental health; ask your Tribunals this… how can someone be prompting or encouraging a claimant to follow a journey if that person is not “with” them.?

There’s some nonsense in the guidance about people with mental health needs not needing someone with them; just requiring prompt/encourage. It’s contradictory but we’re stuck with it for now. I expect lots of easy wins, a revision of the assessment guidance and probably the descriptor eventually.

Peter Turville
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Welfare rights worker - Oxford Community Work Agency

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So what happened to IDS/freud’s argument for introducing PIP that to many people were awarded DLA without a face to face assessement? Not forgetting the days of EMP visits/reports for DLA/AA/MA!

Will more awards on ‘scrutiny’ mean that PIP decisions in some cases will be rather generous and when it comes to renewal (assuming Atos / Crapita can by then cope with demand) many claimants will find they get a reduced / nil award following a face to face assessment (or further ‘scrutiny’)? Arguably this has happened with DLA awards in the passed when the DWP was under pressure due to delays.

Given the DWP resourses now going into PIP does this mean the same may be happening with renewal claims for DLA (especially those that would have been migrated to PIP but for the delay with ‘migration’ role out)?

‘Nothing short of a fiasco’ [Chair of the Public Accounts Committee’].

I merely ask out of curiosity!

Dan_Manville
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Mental health & welfare rights service - Wolverhampton City Council

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Despite all the rhetoric it’s just the same old same old.

Although I did note from the recent stats that the spend seemed to be roughly 20% down; probably from depriving all the MH cases of their low rate mob!

Sharon M
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Derbyshire County Council

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Dan Manville - 04 March 2015 02:03 PM

ATOS are obv doing loads of paper based assessments to get the backlog down.

SharonM; re mobility for mental health; ask your Tribunals this… how can someone be prompting or encouraging a claimant to follow a journey if that person is not “with” them.?

There’s some nonsense in the guidance about people with mental health needs not needing someone with them; just requiring prompt/encourage. It’s contradictory but we’re stuck with it for now. I expect lots of easy wins, a revision of the assessment guidance and probably the descriptor eventually.

Thanks, Dan. Yes, that’s a very simple but obvious point. I hadn’t even really thought of putting it that way. I’ve got some LM awards, but they are very hit and miss and tend to be people who are more of a risk or combined mental health with something such as asperger’s. The others with no mobility have come along with enhanced daily living when there’s no basis for it to be awarded. Honestly, it’s almost like a bonus prize. Those people don’t want it taken any further, even when I’ve suggested a MR.

The decisions I’m getting at the moment are all over the place which makes it sort of disorientating. It’s difficult to actually get a grip of what is required. Like you, I work in secondary MH services, so DLA was pretty much paint by numbers with good supporting evidence.  Maybe after the election and the backlog things will settle. At the moment it feels as though they are being assessed with a shovel.

[ Edited: 5 Mar 2015 at 08:32 am by Sharon M ]
JoW
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Financial inclusion manager - Wythenshawe Community Housing

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I’m surprised (although not complaining) at the length of awards too. I’ve had a couple with 10 year awards and both had conditions that I would have thought had the potential to improve.  I know they can reassess earlier but just wondering whether that will happen in reality when there are backlogs to get through.

Fran Maloney
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East Sussex Welfare Reform Project/BHT

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We’re in an ATOS area and are getting quite accustomed to decisions being made in 2-3 weeks. A colleague holds the record though - 7 days!

Meanwhile, people who applied last summer are still waiting ...