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Pip Tribunal Delays
Hi
Is anyone else experiencing severe delays with HMCTS?
It’s taken 8/9 weeks for my appeals to just be registered and sent to the DWP for their submission.
I’m also having lots of issues with appeal bundles and other correspondence being sent out and I’m now relying on clients to bring me their copies!!
Is it possible to get HMCTS to send stuff via email or is that too modern for them (haha).
Thanks Adam
Not my experience. Do you lodge your appeals online? I always do, and I get confirmation together with the HMCTS reference and the target date for the DWP response within minutes. It’s the DWP’s job to issue the appeal bundle and that takes 10-20 days to arrive by post from the date they issue it. Royal Mail strikes probably haven’t helped.
I always use email to communicate with HMCTS. I never send anything to Harlow. Response times to emails vary. They usually send documents by post, which can take a while.
You’re not describing anything unusual in the North West at present. HMCTS forward planning appears to have involved an increasing number of people with a decreasing level of competence. It constantly bewilders me why they don’t come out of their darkened rooms and talk to us on the ground outside of the show trial ambience that is a TUG nowadays. If we can see what’s coming down the line then people employed to do so really ought to be better than us at it. Let me see now.
- 8 weeks for registration sounds about right in my recent experience.
- just yesterday I had a direction from HMCTS because once again DWP had failed to comply with the timetable to produce appeal papers so that’s another delay.
- appeal papers to appellant only despite having been the rep. from day 1. Yes, that too.
I have had some success with brow-beating HMCTS into emailing appeal papers but that’s only because I’m entitled to ask for that as a reasonable adjustment under EA 10. It has to be said that the effort to obtain is disproportionate to the outcome I’m trying to achieve. The effort is a great recipe for disillusionment and exhaustion.
That said, getting stuff emailed has zero impact on the above time-scales. Stuff isn’t happening because there aren’t enough clerks to make it happen - something which most of us forecast 3 or 4 years ago when plans to move to contact centres started to slip into gear - and that’s not going to change until next year at the earliest I would guess.
Have just lodged a complaint against the failure to list an overpayment appeal which has been good to go since February 2022. If I’m being honest then I don’t expect there to be a response and, if there is one, I would be astonished if it’s inside 2 or 3 months.
Oh yes! What annoys me most is the email informing me that DWP has responded to our client’s appeal, followed by another, exactly a week later. The second message bears a bold heading with the client’s name in block capitals, saying XXXX’s PIP appeal: reminder, and which asks me to send any evidence asap. In one case we had the first email on 29 September, and we still don’t have the Secretary of State’s submission. I sent HMCTS a stroppy email but, of course, they didn’t reply.
Oh yes! What annoys me most is the email informing me that DWP has responded to our client’s appeal, followed by another, exactly a week later. The second message bears a bold heading with the client’s name in block capitals, saying XXXX’s PIP appeal: reminder, and which asks me to send any evidence asap. In one case we had the first email on 29 September, and we still don’t have the Secretary of State’s submission. I sent HMCTS a stroppy email but, of course, they didn’t reply.
I have a case where, for whatever reason, the automated material is being sent to me in triplicate.
So a couple of weeks ago, I received an email saying the DWP had submitted their response. A couple of minutes later, I received the same email again. Then a couple of minutes after that I received it again. Then my post the next day included three identical letters in the same terms (I assume sent in different envelopes…).
Same thing happened again last week with the “reminder” to reply to the DWP’s response.
Of course, the response didn’t turn up until yesterday (fortunately only one copy…)
I have a case where, for whatever reason, the automated material is being sent to me in triplicate.
Then my post the next day included three identical letters in the same terms (I assume sent in different envelopes…).
10 identical copies is my PB so far, sent to both myself and the appellant.
I have a case where, for whatever reason, the automated material is being sent to me in triplicate.
Then my post the next day included three identical letters in the same terms (I assume sent in different envelopes…).
10 identical copies is my PB so far, sent to both myself and the appellant.
A colleague is up to 15 duplicates of the same information by both email and letter (so I guess 30 copies of the same piece of information).
Oh wow, in my naivety, I hadn’t realised that there was a leaderboard (or that I was so low down on it…)
Thanks everyone! At least I know it’s not just me doing something wrong.
Can I be added to the leaderboard, please? Just received 10 copies of my own submission from HMCTS (and same to client)...
Have just lodged a complaint against the failure to list an overpayment appeal which has been good to go since February 2022.
Luxury!
I’ve got one outstanding from Feb 20.
When I were a lad we were lucky if they even sent us decisions, we’d work 20 hours before’t tribunal chair for ha’penny the year, only to be flogged before we got each determination.
But seriously, I ring them very 3 months and still no progress.
Is it possible to get HMCTS to send stuff via email or is that too modern for them (haha).
A question I’ve put forward for discussion at our forthcoming TUG:
“It is my understanding that as part of its digital/online roll-out, HMCTS has created a facility where DWP decision makers and presenting officers are;
a) able to access relevant notices (decisions, directions notices, statements of reasons etc) online by logging in to an online portal and that.
b) they receive an email alert when a new notice/document relating to a case they are involved in has been uploaded to the system.
c) able to upload their own responses to the above.
Is this correct? If so,
• What plans have been made to extend this facility to appellants and their representatives?
• If there are no such plans, given the requirements of procedural fairness and natural justice, what consideration has been giving to extending deadlines for appellants and their representatives (we are sent correspondence, even that to which a deadline applies, by 2nd Class post) – or shortening deadlines for the DWP?”
Others might wish to ask similar?
Is it possible to get HMCTS to send stuff via email or is that too modern for them (haha).
A question I’ve put forward for discussion at our forthcoming TUG:
...
Others might wish to ask similar?
I’ve been asking via our venue management. There seemed to be an expectation on the Judiciary’s part that we would be part of that at one point. I wonder whether Local Authorities are participating with their much valued gov.uk domain presence? It was once policy that it was only gov.uk accounts they’d email notices to.
Oh yes! What annoys me most is the email informing me that DWP has responded to our client’s appeal, followed by another, exactly a week later. The second message bears a bold heading with the client’s name in block capitals, saying XXXX’s PIP appeal: reminder, and which asks me to send any evidence asap. In one case we had the first email on 29 September, and we still don’t have the Secretary of State’s submission. I sent HMCTS a stroppy email but, of course, they didn’t reply.
Just had both. 2 minutes apart. Comic genius.