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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Disability benefits  →  Thread

Deterioration

1964
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Deputy Manager, Reading Community Welfare Rights Unit

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Stupid question I expect, but if anyone has a quick answer I’d be most grateful. Am repping client later. He has a degenerative condition. Claim was made in Sept 2013- decision made in April 2014. Are tribunal constrained to consider client’s difficulties as they were at the date of claim or the date of decision?

Dan_Manville
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Mental health & welfare rights service - Wolverhampton City Council

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They can take the situation into account between claim and decision. Advance claim rules are very different from DLA as between date of claim and date of decision and three months thereafter if conditions are met then an award can be made. DLA advance claim rules were pinned to the date of claim.

It’s almost as though they expected there to be massive delays is decision making!

Edmund Shepherd
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Tenancy Income, Royal Borough of Greenwich, London

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Yes. It’s curious because PIP can work in someone’s favour. E.g. claim in January because you’re sick. Assessment in October by which time you are a lot worse, entitlement based on how you were at the assessment and backdated to January.

As with ESA, though, the relevant date is the date of the decision.

1964
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Deputy Manager, Reading Community Welfare Rights Unit

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Thank you both. That was the answer I was looking for. Thank goodness for the ability to do the equivalent of ‘phoning a friend’.

Peter Turville
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Welfare rights worker - Oxford Community Work Agency

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Don’t forget the 9 month ‘forward period’ test and its relationship to the date of claim (Regs 7, 14 & 15 from memory - I’m away from my desk). This, in effect, requires a DM/tribunal to ‘speculate’ on the descriptors that might apply throughout this forward period. Because there is such a delay in practice this means the 9 months may well have passed by the time of a tribunal (or even a decision)!

I had a hearing last week where the date of hearing was at the end of the 9 month period almost to the day. An interesting discussion with the judge about how to approach this question given the ‘down to the date of decision’ principle and how to apply foresight for the 9 month period when in practice hindsight was available with accompanying medical evidence (and the date of decision was part way into the 9 months)! This was not just academic as a heart attack had led my client to claim PIP. During his spell in hospital several pre-existing conditions were diagnosed which significantly impacted on the application of the 3/9 months qualifying period.

Simplification!

1964
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Deputy Manager, Reading Community Welfare Rights Unit

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Total Posts: 1711

Joined: 16 June 2010

Thank you all for your contributions.

Appeal succeeded without any bother- one very happy client!