Backdating ESA claim when full service for UC

Thoughts anyone?

We became full service for UC from 13/06/2018, a clerical claim form ESA1 was handed to DWP staff locally on 11/06/2018 requesting back-dating of said claim to mid May 2018. All necessary supporting evidence attached including consent forms.

Today we are informed that as the form was not received by the processing centre until 13/06/2018 it now has to be a UC claim….....

As ESA can be back-dated for up to three months, how can DWP state it must be a UC claim and therefore only one months back-dating can be considered?

Where was the form handed in on 11/06/2018? The date of claim is when properly completed claim received by “an appropriate office”, so arguably 11/06/2018 was date of claim.

Alternatively, date of claim can be when you notified of intention to claim, provided claim received within 1 month. I So you could argue that the DWP was notified of intention to claim on 11/06/2018 and then received claim within 1 month, making date of claim 11/06/2018.

Correct me if I am wrong but back-dating wouldn’t qualify as a new claim for benefit, would it? I think your client would remain on ESA (regardless of whether the area is now full service)

It’s been posted on here previously that you can’t circumvent UC by presenting an old-style ESA claim within the first 3 months after UCFS commences, and asking for it to be backdated to before UCFS kicked in. So, the date when the form was properly received by DWP is crucial. E.g. see
https://www.rightsnet.org.uk/forums/viewthread/12035/

Income Max - 21 June 2018 12:10 PM

Where was the form handed in on 11/06/2018? The date of claim is when properly completed claim received by “an appropriate office”, so arguably 11/06/2018 was date of claim.

Oddly enough, the phrase “appropriate office” isn’t used in reg 4H of the C+P regs, where you might expect it to be. I’m not sure if that’s significant, but just for the avoidance of doubt, the reg does specify that the claim should be made in accordance with the instructions on the form. Here is an ESA1:
https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/596135/esa1-print.pdf

The form says two (conflicting!) things about where to send the form:
page 1 says post it in the freepost envelope that came with the form, (probably to Wolverhampton)
page 55 says “To find out where to send your claim, please click here”, which takes you to the page where you find your local Jobcentre Plus office.

I presume “handed to DWP staff locally” in the original post would meet this second method for properly submitting a claim.

—

EDIT: actually nevermind, ignore all that - being received by the “appropriate office” is covered generally in reg 4(6)(b). Unless the handover of the form to JCP staff took place in the pub or something, instead of their office, then it should definitely be arguable that that set the date of claim.

The problem may often be, what does the claimant live on while resolving this dispute?