DLA award wrongly cancelled?

Forgive me if this has been discussed before, or even if I have posted on this before and forgotten…...

Situation is; client refused DLA in July 2013, appeals and appeal successful in March 2014 - he gets HRM and LRC. After we win he tells me he made a claim for PIP whilst waiting for the appeal, no assessment yet - I advise him to withdraw it.

He comes back in April 2015 with an immanent PIP appeal hearing - says he withdrew PIP claim on the phone like I advised, they said fine, then referred for a medical in December, he queries this as thought he had withdrawn his claim, they say he has to go - he goes and gets a subsequent PIP award of SRM only, hence his PIP appeal.

I write to PIP with a formal complaint and get appeal postponed to give PIP time to respond - my grounds are after successful appeal he became a DLA entitled claimant from a date prior to his PIP claim, we were not in a transfer area, he was not a designated person nor invited to claim PIP, hence his withdrawal of PIP claim was valid and his DLA award should be re-instated.

Have just had a curt response saying, according to “PIP guidance “, if he had withdrawn his PIP claim after his successful appeal his DLA would have been terminated anyway.

Is this correct?

Many thanks…...

Sorry should have made it clear ( though you probably guessed ) that his DLA award was terminated in January 2015 after he was awarded PIP.