FW: PIP claimants mobility payments to end at pension age?

[Guest guest]

Support

group and DLA awarded before appeals heard

“I have had a really stressful time with both benefits for over a year

now as some of my previous posts have told.

“With the help of the guides and the people of this site I can finally

say that hopefully it is all over (until 2012 anyway). After finally being

placed in the support group before my appeal was heard and now had the DLA

awarded indefinitely, once again before the appeal was heard.

“I am so grateful for the guides and the people on this site because I really

believe without this site I would have given up long ago.”

Sue615

More feedback from the Benefits and Work forums at the end of this newsletter

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PIP

claimants mobility payments to end at pension age?

Dear Subscriber,

There is a real possibility that claimants who are forced off DLA and onto its

planned replacement, personal independence payment (PIP), will lose

all mobility payments on reaching pensionable age. (Members

only)

It isn’t certain that this is what will happen, the welfare reform bill

is deliberately unclear about a number of vital issues. But at the moment

it’s hard to see how else the system could work, given that, for most

people, when PIP ends at pensionable age the only possible replacement benefit

will be attendance allowance (AA). And AA has no mobility component.

The changes should not affect current DLA claimants who are over pensionable

age. But it is an issue which needs urgent clarification and which

younger claimants may wish to contact their MP about.

It also appears that PIP may apply to children, not just adults of working age,

although again this is left uncertain by the bill.

Elsewhere in the bill, compulsion for employment and support allowance

claimants in the work-related activity groups is to be increased. Private and

voluntary sector advisors are to be given the power to force

claimants to improve their appearance and to undertake work experience or face

cuts in benefits. (Members

only)

On the positive side, the threat to cut JSA claimants housing benefit by

10% after 12 months, as highlighted in our last newsletter, has now

been dropped by the coalition and appears nowhere in the bill. We’ll be

providing more information about what’s in the welfare reform bill over

the coming weeks.

Elsewhere, two media stories have caught our eye.

The first is that there is an award winning Guardian

journalist who would like to attend your ESA medical with you.

The second is that the Radio 4 are doing a programme on the WCA and would like

to hear from Atos health professionals who carry them out. We know that

some of our readers are indeed Atos doctors. So, if you’re one of them, follow

this link for the opportunity to tell the BBC about the work you do.

Still on the subject of the WCA, one of the ‘experts’ who created

ESA has said it is not working and is causing

an enormous amount of anguish.

His calls for the new harsher test not to be inflicted on claimants, including

incapacity benefit claimants, have clearly not been listened to, however.

The new tests is still scheduled to apply from March 28th and the first 1,000

letters to current IB claimants informing them that they are

about to be assessed for ESA went out this Monday.

There is, however, one small glimmer of hope as genuine concern about the new

WCA has led an influential House of Lords Committee to begin a process which

could, in theory,

result in the new test being prevented from becoming law.

And, in case you feel that we are being in any way alarmist about the current

threats facing claimants, the Chief Executive of Action for Blind People has

warned that ‘Blind

and partially sighted people are right to be terrified’ about the

proposed changes to benefits.

Finally, we’ve hunted through the forums to find you a few cheery tales

to end this newsletter.

GOOD NEWS FROM THE FORUMS

0

to 18 points on ESA appeal

From

lower rate mobility and lower rate care to indefinite middle rate care and

higher rate mobility

Client

went from 6 to 18 points on ESA appeal

Scary

DLA supersession succeeds

Lower

rate care and higher rate mobility for 12 months to higher rate care and higher

rate mobility indefinitely on appeal

Higher

rate mobility and higher rate care renewed indefinitely

Mystery

payment

From

lower rate care and lower rate mobility to higher rate care and higher rate

mobility

Support

group and indefinite DLA both before appeals heard

High

rate mobility backdated to May

Lower

rate mobility and middle rate care for 5 years

Lower

rate mobility DLA and WRAG ESA

Good luck,

Steve Donnison

Benefits and Work Publishing Ltd

Company registration No. 5962666

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© 2011 Steve Donnison

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