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Late MR request
Just had PIP refuse to accept a late MR request. Client came to see us in mid April and we submitted (late) MR request against decision issued in mid Jan. They’ve refused to accept it it on basis the decision letter ‘clearly states what action should be taken to dispute the decision’ and that client (who is substantially disabled with a variety of conditions including cancer and who is on oxygen for 16 hours per day) has ‘no additional support needs’. What particularly gets my goat is that the DWP sat on the MR request for months despite us chasing up on it. Eventually, in late July, someone realised it had been wrongly not recorded as an MR request and had been filed away. Rather adding insult to injury to then reject the request for being out of time isn’t it?
Interested in whether anyone else has encountered the same. This is the first time I’ve known the DWP refuse to accept a late MR request (though TCO frequently do so) and I’m wondering if it is the shape of things to come.
I think I have never had a request refused. No, I tell a lie - I had a late appeal refused once, but it went through anyway when HMCTS accepted the reasons.
Hi Sam
We are looking for cases to challenge DWP and HMRC refusals of late MR’s so please get in touch.
Kind regards
Mike
Will do Mike. Am working remotely today and case belongs to one of my colleagues but will liaise with her and we shall forward you the details. Most kind of you!
Not quite the same, but recently I requested a PIP supersession based on a change of circumstances and received a reply saying “We can’t do a reconsideration because you are outside the time limit.”
Our supersession request was headed “supersession”, and explained that the client has a degenerative condition and has had a deterioration in mobility, and included new medical evidence stating unable to walk 20m etc. So the DWP can’t even have read the request properly before getting trigger-happy and sending out a refusal letter!
What particularly gets my goat is that the DWP sat on the MR request for months despite us chasing up on it. Eventually, in late July, someone realised it had been wrongly not recorded as an MR request and had been filed away.
Slightly off topic but I have a PIP adviser forewarn me that this happens quite frequently and another quite resigned to post getting scanned without being read so I always log the requst over the phone and follow up in writing
My thoughts are here as far as DWP benefits go. In short, refusing to revise out of time is considering whether to revise. Outside of the DWP’s own vocabulary, there is no additional stage of ‘admitting’ the request late.
Some thoughts from Mike Spencer at CPAG are also at page 49 onwards of this document from their recent conference - http://www.cpag.org.uk/sites/default/files/uploads/CPAG-protecting-appeal-rights-conference-notes-Sept2015.pdf
I had a good one today. Client rang to chase up MR request which was sent in July. She was told by DWP “we only got it on 8/9 so that’s out of time REQUEST DENIED”.