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Forum Home  →  Discussion  →  Work capability issues and ESA  →  Thread

Waiting 3 APs for LCWRA element, over period of 2 claims due to incorrect claim closure

ZoeHBF
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Welfare and Housing, Helen Bamber Foundation (London)

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Total Posts: 79

Joined: 14 May 2017

Hello! Sorry for long message, getting a bit confused…

One of our clients claimed UC in February and submitted a medical certificate the same day he claimed, and we had supported him to submit the UC50 before he was even paid his first amount of UC, however seemingly because UC made a (later deemed incorrect) decision to close his claim later on, he has been told he will have to wait longer to actually receive the LCWRA element, which I am struggling to understand.

The dates are that on 04/02 he claimed UC and submitted medical certificate. Referral for WCA made, and he was sent UC50 on 10/02, which we emailed back to them on 28/02. On 10/03, he received first payment of UC for AP 04/02 - 03/03. After this was sorted, we had requested a revision of his commitments to include no work-related activity, whilst he was undergoing to the WCA process, which was approved. He was issued new commitments to accept, but did not do so in the timeframe requested (he has very limited literacy in first language and English, and no digital literacy other than WhatsApp), and so his claim was closed on 05/04, because he did not accept these new commitments.

On 07/04, we supported him to submit a reclaim and at the same time left messages on journal requesting MR into the decision to close his claim. On 13/04, DWP sent a MRN back that UC should not have closed his claim, and shortly after he received backdated payment of standard allowance for payment due on 10/04 (for second AP 04/03 - 03/04).

On 30/04 he was awarded LCWRA, and I left a message on his journal shortly after asking for confirmation that he would receive the LCWRA element in his payment due in June. In the meantime, he has received his next payment from UC (for third AP 04/04 - 03/05).

In response to my message asking for confirmation that he would get the increased award in June, UC sent the below. I think they are wrong, and have left a response on journal stating as such, because: the referral for WCA / to CHDA that led to his LCWRA decision was made only within his first claim for UC, not the reclaim; the DWP accepted in MRN that the decision to close his claim (requiring him to reclaim in the first place) was incorrect and revised their decision, leading to him getting paid soon after the reclaim, rather than having to wait again; and he has waited 3 full APs! Any thoughts?!

“Hi Zoe,
unfortunately this is incorrect and [he] is not due to receive the LCWRA with their payment due 10th June 2022.

“This is because, we have to wait 3 full assessment periods before we can include the LCWRA element with their payment. I have checked with my manager and they are not entirely sure whether the UC build would consider [his] first assessment period (4th April - 3rd May 2022) when calculating when they are due to receive their LCWRA element. This is because, the AP 4th April - 3rd May 2022 is a ‘notional period’, because this is the first assessment period of [his] new claim which was created on 7th April 2022.

“Therefore, if the UC build does consider the notional assessment period, 4th April - 3rd May 2022 when calculating when their LCWRA element is due, [he] should expect to receive their first LCWRA payment with their payment due 10th July 2022. This is because:

“1st assessment period 4th April - 3rd May 2022.
2nd assessment period 4th May - 3rd June 2022.
3rd assessment period 4th June - 3rd July 2022.

“However, if the UC build does not consider the notional assessment period when calculating when their LCWRA is due, [he] should not expect to receive their first LCWRA payment until 10th August 2022.

“This because:
1st assessment period 4th May - 3rd June 2022
2nd assessment period 4th June - 3rd July 2022
3rd assessment period 4th July - 3rd August 2022

“Unfortunately I am unable to check whether [he] will receive their first LCWRA payment on 10th July 2022 or 10th August 2022 as this is decided automatically by the UC build. Therefore they would be best checking to see if it has been included with their payment when it comes to 10th July 2022, if it has not been included they should expect to receive their first payment on 10th August 2022.”

Va1der
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Welfare Rights Officer with SWAMP Glasgow

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Joined: 7 May 2019

Spectacularly nonsensical! If you have contact details for your local partnership manager I’d get in touch about staff (and seemingly the manager they ‘checked with’) wasting time writing long, convoluted and erroneous messages.

Your client succeeded at MR, so there is an un-interrupted claim from 04/02 and the LCWRA element should be put into payment in the first AP 3 months after that date.

EDIT: Ironically, if the UC ‘build’ actually works as intended your client should get the LCWRA element correctly on 10/06. Not that bad IT has any actual bearing on legislation (other than where legislation is rewritten because that’s easier than reprogramming UC).

[ Edited: 30 May 2022 at 03:12 pm by Va1der ]
ZoeHBF
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Welfare and Housing, Helen Bamber Foundation (London)

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Total Posts: 79

Joined: 14 May 2017

Thank you so much Va1der! It’s good to have back up that I am making sense here! I have emailed the London partnership manager about this too, and hoping they will be able to escalate accordingly.