Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

I am ex-military and ex-civil service, so I have got the habit of keeping perfect records, or as best as the situation allows.

Failure to do so can open you to comebacks, even years later. :(

The DWP has the habit of asking "On what date did you first become a Carer?" or something equally memory-blasting.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

From the benefits and work website:

TRIBUNALS SERVICE OVERWHELMED BY PIP APPEALS

A report by the Tribunals Service admits that they can’t keep pace with the number of PIP appeals.

The ‘Senior President of Tribunals’ Annual Report’ admits that “the rapid rise in appeal numbers has outstripped our ability to recruit and train sufficient numbers of panel members to keep pace”.

Appeal numbers plummeted in 2013, from a high of over half a million, after the DWP introduced its cynical mandatory reconsideration hurdle.

However, numbers are on the rise again, more than doubling from 112,000 in 2014 to 238,000 in 2018.

To try to cope, the Tribunals Service appointed 130 new judges, 225 medically qualified members and 125 disability qualified members last year.

They are also trying other methods to reduce the backlog, including cramming more PIP appeals into each session and trying to resolve more cases before they reach a hearing.

But the one thing that would really cut their workload - the DWP getting more decisions right - is unlikely to happen any time soon.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

More appeals doesn't necessarily mean more wrong decisions taking place.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

This would tell you otherwise...

https://www.disabilitynewsservice.co...-in-two-years/

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-42862904

https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/ne...-back-payments

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

That's all due to changes made to the rules and law. Not really "wrong" has such. Mainly down to interpretation of a few words/terms. Same sort of thing happens with other newly introduced benefits.



Still nothing to do with new demand for Tribunals.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

The DWP announced ages ago that it wanted to move all Tribunals online "to save money".

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Similar to what happened to me last year. PIP denied after missing out by 1 point. Skipped firsts steps and deaf blind Scotland rep that helped me requested tribunal right away. After a few months I got a call offering standard rate of living and mobility. I was only looking for living. Accepted the for and 4 months later I got the letter of invite to tribunal as DWP had not bothered yo contact them to advise it was settled. I had to call DWP to prompt them to send info to say it was settled.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

The social security system has never been in such a mess in this country.

Some good news for those with severely disabled partners. The supreme court has unanimously ruled that applying the bedroom tax on 'spare' rooms that are used to store medical equipment is a breach of human rights:

https://www.theguardian.com/society/...er-bedroom-tax

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Just as well we don't tax bedrooms, then.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

It only affects those on Housing Benefit or Universal Credit.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

So its not a tax then is it.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

It's a shame that you're more interested in nit picking over terminology than the plight of severely disabled people who have wrongly had their benefits reduced.

In any case, this has been covered before if you check further back in this thread.

---------- Post added at 15:25 ---------- Previous post was at 15:22 ----------

Yes, I saw this on the 1pm BBC news. It featured a lady who was bi polar who has had the extra stress and worry to obtain her entitlement, which won't have done her state of mental health any good.

At the end, she said something poignant as in "this could all be sorted out if they began to care".

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

It's a shame you're more interested in using a negatively emotive term which wrongly describes something than being accurate - you would be very upset (rightly) if someone described severely disabled people as "burdens on the taxpayers"; words have power, especially if used negatively and incorrectly.

Re: The state benefits system mega-thread.
 

I suggest that you take it up with the newspaper then.

This issue has already been covered recently in this thread, I see no point in going over old ground again, particularly when I suspect it's being done in order to deflect from the real issue under discussion.