I have just received the following request from Job Centre Plus.

" I understand that you/ your organisation regularly act on behalf of DWP customers as their 'representative'.

I am writing to let you know that from 1 April 2010, the consent/autorisations form which a representative completes must include a form of words which allows DWP to disclose customer information to you.

An example of acceptable wording would be

I.....................
of...............

NINO.............

DOB..................

Have asked.....(Name of rep/organisation)
To represent me in connection with my claim with DWP.
I authorise DWP to supply the above representative with information about my claim.

Ant requests for information not in this format or similar from 1 April 2010 will have to be returned to you and we will not be able to accept you as a representative until a suitableform of authority is received.
I hope by providing you with advance notice that thiswill enable you to manage the transition and continue to help our customers."

I have 2 questions,

1. By what legal authority do they have to make this demand. ie Statute, regulation etc

2. We send an authority every time we correspond with them, and most of the time they do not enter the authority on their computer system, so when we phone, they have no record, and we have to fax a copy to them (And they still lose that sometimes)

Oh they are SO tedious about this issue. This issue crops up with such serial monotony that one can only conclude that such local initiatives are deliberate attempts by some DWP staff to obstruct access and advocacy by claimants' advisers.

I am not aware of any legal or policy change which requires DWP to impose a form of words, nor any consultation nationally about this. Also the implied consent concept in their policy "Working with Customer Representatives" still stands.

I think you should send a formal complaint to the office manager in question, ask how this has come about and also raise it with Roger Pugh in DWP Corporate Customer Affairs who is responsible for the Working with Customer Representatives Policy: ROGER.PUGH@DWP.GSI.GOV.UK

Thanks Neil,
I have already raised it with the local office manager and asked if they will meet the extra cost involved in producing the forms.
I will post the response.

I will also raise it with Roger Pugh

I can only agree with Neil's comments, this has, was and probably will be on the agenda until the day a bunch of keys tastes like a box of chocolates........

probably related to their total inability to read, comprehend, and act on a client's authority to disclose all records to solicitor (in context of PI claim) and send them to client... who then has to pay a fortune in postage to send it on...

Not sure if I have missed the point but, as Roger Pugh has been mentioned, why has no one suggested that the DWP should accept Implicit Consent as per the 'Working with customer representatives' manual.

A lot of the time the staff say that they don't know what IC is or that they don't like using it (too bad) or they say that the customer has to be with you (wrong).

IC is supposed to help with less paper and if the DWP accept who you say you are and if you can provide enough salient detail about your client and pass their random security questions - then they should accept your query. I have spoken to Roger Pugh and he is interested in situations where they will not accept IC and would like feedback.

Any help? Try googling the Rep's Manual. I have it hanging on the wall!!

"I have spoken to Roger Pugh and he is interested in situations where they will not accept IC and would like feedback."

Oh I am so ready to give him feedback! Admittedly I have very few cases where I contact DWP regularly because I work in a small Student Union based advice centre but those clients that I have, provided: our own Form of Authority faxed and attached to each letter, letters stating that they consent to me giving and receiving information on their behalf, telephone confirmation from client that I am their rep, YET EVERY TIME I CALL THEY HAVEN'T GOT ME ON THEIR SYSTEM.
Currently I have a client who is in hospital.....you can only imagine how much she needs me to speak to DWP on her behalf.
Belfast BDC is in my crosshairs first and foremost.

I've just come off the phone to a BDC manager, following a complaint about IC. They told me that the problem with their ESA claims is the security system that sits on top of it, CAM, cannot be bypassed, and that the staff therefore have to ask the rep 3 of the 14 set questions to pass security. I questioned this because we don't have the issue with our other BDC. I also mentioned the WWCR guide, as it makes it clear we shouldn't have to go through this level of security. He says nothing his staff can do to get around this. ()(). .
He also said that telephony management is being taken away from local offices at some indeterminate future date and handled centrally by contact centre management. Can we expect the situation to get worse?

Yes, we've been told that too. We have a good arrangement with the local BDC which works for everything bar JSA issues, where the telephone call answering has been farmed out to Stockport (who can rarely be pursuaded to give us any info at all regardless of authority). We tried to negotiate an arrangement with Stockport but were told it was pointless due to the plans for all calls to be handled centrally in future. So yes, I think it will definitely get worse unfortunately.