Incapacity and Benefits Mess

[chloectu]

I have been sufffering from ME/CFIDS since 2000 prior to that I worked as a qualified nurse for 26 years. I have been receiving IB since 2001. I went for a medical in July 2010 and scored zero points from , in 2007 I scored over 30. The medical was farcical since 2000 I have never had a pulse rate less than 100 and my BP is always low reading never higher than 110 on a good day .The doctor took my pulse and as 62 and told me I need to see my GP as I was severly hypertensive, I later found out she got my BP to be 140/80. There were alot of things lost in transalation the doctor who examined me was Roumanian and her English was appalling she didn't understand a lot I said.

 

My money stopped in September as I have savings and CAB told me I couldn't claim anything, I went to the Job Centre to try and claim JSA and had a horrible experience there and they actually told me I was too ill to work because I couldn't comply with the rules of signing on etc, plus I doubt I could have claimed JSA due to savings again???

 

My appeal was 13th April, that in itself was awful the doctor was asking me things from 2001 and 2008 constantly and I just couldn't remember the answers. CAB were too busy to represent me and it was juts a doctor and judge on the panel.

 

I have found out since that the doctor on the panel his surgery doesn't even have disabled access (this according to NHS Direct) website, so I wonder how much he knows about M.E/CFIDS

 

My appeal failed, I asked if they were saying I was fit for work , they said NO we are saying on the day in question of your medical you were fit for work

 

I had a long supporting letter from my GP expalining my symptoms. I am still putung sick notes in , my current one is valid until 12th July

 

I wrote on the 15th April for a statement of reasons , I have still not received it even though I wrote to the Tribunals board again and they said it is in hand and can take 35 days which has since passed

 

My savings are taking a serious hammering , worst still as prior to the medical I left my husband and am now living in privaely rented accomodation and my only income is my £150 pension per month

 

Can this be right that a GP's sicknote means nothing anymore?

[gatecrasher007]

I dont understand your last para? Who told you that a doctors sick note means nothing anymore? Have you tried to claim HB?CTB?

[chloectu]

I dont understand your last para? Who told you that a doctors sick note means nothing anymore?

 

Just the fact that my GP says I am unfit for work but I am not entitled to any benefit anymore as an ATOS doctor who examined me for 20 mins and an appeals doctor who saw me for 15 mins deem me fit for work?

[chloectu]

I cannot get HB or CTB die to savings , obviously in a couple more months I will be entitled to it but at the moment cannot get anything

[honeybee13]

Hello there. If you didn't get through the tribunal, I think I'm right in saying that you will need to reapply for ESA. You can only argue with the tribunal on a point of law, not because you don't like their decision, however unfair.

 

Hopefully someone who knows will be along with some comments for you.

 

Now you've found us, we can help with the paperwork and Atos assessment or tribunal hearing. Have a read of the stickies in the yellow section of the forum titles page, Leemack and I both have ones that should help you.

 

My best, HB

[doktorjohn]

It's a shame you didn't win your appeal chloectu and it sounds like you should have won it.

 

It is a farce, I had my incapacity benefit stopped after Atos tried to screw me over, luckily I won my appeal.

 

Like you I was always awarded more than enough points in the past, then suddenly I get 2 points.

 

It proves that it's not just ESA that is at fault, it proves Atos have an agenda to fail everyone across the board since this "welfare reform" was announced.

 

And you are right about the GP having no power in this too, it's all part of the governments plan to stop benefits.

 

You do need to make a claim for ESA but it is a long rocky road and I wish you luck; I fully expect to end up on JSA myself as soon as they migrate me to ESA.

 

- dj

[chloectu]

I was told I cannot do a new claim for ESA because I have savings and until these dwindle I will not get anything

[chloectu]

As per my reply to the previous poster isn't ESA means tested?

[honeybee13]

As per my reply to the previous poster isn't ESA means tested?

 

From memory, I would say it isn't, but we need a forum guru to arrive and say what the case is.

 

My best, HB

[leemack]

As per my reply to the previous poster isn't ESA means tested?

 

 

Yes it will be means tested for you as your new esa claim will not link back to your incapacity claim in order to qualify for contribution based benefit. But it is still worth applying to protect your NI contribution towards state pension, and then when you're under the savings limit, you should be entitled to some benefit. Any amount of income based ESA entitles you to full housing and council tax benefit (subject to any applicable deductions and LHA rates).

[Nystagmite]

If you've failed to get IB, it's very unlikely you'll get ESA.

[Life-Goes-On]

How much savings do you have?

[gatecrasher007]

If you have failed to obtain ESA because of a medical, you should be claiming JSA as they think you are capable of getting a job. I note that JSA© or JSA (IB)is also means tested and it looks like ESA © or ESA (IB) is based along the same lines. As memory servces me JSAIB was based on savings as for Conts based Erika please put me right. From what I understand you get a bit more on ESA than JSA as ESA is classed as a sickness benefit but whereas Incap was not means tested the government (this and the last) have now decided it should be means tested. I would gather that if you cannot claim ESA because of your savings then you will not be able to claim JSA either until they are reduced. I would definitely check that out though as you would need an awful lot of savings not to be able to claim JSA along with HB/CTB. Please Erika am I correct.

[leemack]

The OP is certainly entitled to claim ESA, - tribunals don't always get it right, and the scenario where the appellant is asked about two different dates is almost always guaranteed to fail, especially with a poor caseworker who's not adequately prepared them - and the case. There is no requirement to claim JSA and make themselves available for work if they are sick.

 

As I said, any cont based claims won't be an option due to too much time having passed to link back to the previous cont based claim. That only leaves income based.

[chloectu]

I was told in the Job Centre that I am too ill to claim JSA because I cannot get to appointments in the Job Centre at specified times and I cannot attend interviews at specified times. This is because of my permanently low BP and being unable to get up in the morning unless I do thingd very slowly and drink lots of fluid.

 

This was all put in my medical evidence from my GP for the tribunal ..... just don't understand how the medical evidence wasn't taken into account. The doctor said there were no clinical findings there but of course the problem with M.E./C.F.I.D.S is that you don't get clinical findings

 

I have checked with govt Gateway and I have enough stamps paid for a full pension but I am not entitled to this for another 10 years. I had 26 full working years plus my IB has been giving me a stamp for the last few years

[maestro451]

You are obviously in the situation alot of folks are in, saying that you are fit enough to work but not fit enough to claim jsa, handy that isnt it?

 

Read everything you can on tribunal appeals process, i lost a tribunal in march 2010, identified errors in law that they made, asked permission to appeal - denied but then appealed to the upper tribununal myself and they accepted it and now will have a fresh tribunal sometime.

 

Can you claim housing benefit?

 

you need to claim something, I would take reapply for jsa temporarilly and explain that you have an illness and it needs accomodating, i.e afternoon appointments etc if you ill in the mornings

[chloectu]

You are obviously in the situation alot of folks are in, saying that you are fit enough to work but not fit enough to claim jsa, handy that isnt it?

 

Read everything you can on tribunal appeals process, i lost a tribunal in march 2010, identified errors in law that they made, asked permission to appeal - denied but then appealed to the upper tribununal myself and they accepted it and now will have a fresh tribunal sometime.

 

Can you claim housing benefit?

 

you need to claim something, I would take reapply for jsa temporarilly and explain that you have an illness and it needs accomodating, i.e afternoon appointments etc if you ill in the mornings

 

 

How long did it take for you to get your statement of reasons back? I have been waiting now since 15th April and still nothing back from Tribunal Services

[leemack]

I was told in the Job Centre that I am too ill to claim JSA because I cannot get to appointments in the Job Centre at specified times and I cannot attend interviews at specified times. This is because of my permanently low BP and being unable to get up in the morning unless I do thingd very slowly and drink lots of fluid.

 

This was all put in my medical evidence from my GP for the tribunal ..... just don't understand how the medical evidence wasn't taken into account. The doctor said there were no clinical findings there but of course the problem with M.E./C.F.I.D.S is that you don't get clinical findings

 

I have checked with govt Gateway and I have enough stamps paid for a full pension but I am not entitled to this for another 10 years. I had 26 full working years plus my IB has been giving me a stamp for the last few years

 

At an appeal, your health and symptoms need to be described in the format of the ESA descriptors in a submission to the tribunal - this helps them score you points. On the submission, the atos medical report is also shown to be unreliable. Was this done for you by your caseworker?

[leemack]

You are obviously in the situation alot of folks are in, saying that you are fit enough to work but not fit enough to claim jsa, handy that isnt it?

 

Read everything you can on tribunal appeals process, i lost a tribunal in march 2010, identified errors in law that they made, asked permission to appeal - denied but then appealed to the upper tribununal myself and they accepted it and now will have a fresh tribunal sometime.

 

Can you claim housing benefit?

 

you need to claim something, I would take reapply for jsa temporarilly and explain that you have an illness and it needs accomodating, i.e afternoon appointments etc if you ill in the mornings

 

No as long as she has a med cert from the gp, she can apply for ESA and get credits, if her savings are too high ie over £16, 000, then she won't be paid any means tested benefit, and there's no point putting herself through JSA requirements for no money. Anyway in order to claim JSA she needs to be actively seeking and available for work.

[chloectu]

Anyway in order to claim JSA she needs to be actively seeking and available for work.

 

Exactly what they said to me and that I am in no fit state to be actively seeking work Seems I'm not the only one that had entered the Job Centre here with my diagnosis and in my position benefits wise