My overall Benefits journey from 2013 to date - and on going still!!

[scousegeezer]

Hi All,

If it makes anyone feel any batter, ATOS are not just obnoxious, objectionable and obstructive to benefit claimants; they are to everyone one. I am disabled and work for a government body. I required an up-to-date workplace assessment. Someone from ATOS rang me to arrange the assessment. They wanted to do it on a schedules day off. When they were told I was off that day, they requested I go into work for an hour to carry out the assessment. Then I advised the person that I would be several hundred miles away and would be unable to "just pop in for an hour". The following working day the line manager for the person from ASTOS who contacted me, rang my line manager. My line manager approached me and asked "Why have your REFUSED a workplace assessment". There is a world of difference, I am sure you would agree; between being unavailable and refusing - but hey that's what they are like to EVERYONE.

 

Cheers - Scousegeezer

[Guest]

thanks scousegeezer (love the name lol) yeh that made me feel better, and i know i am not being paranoid lol

[RaeUK]

Hi Ruby, reading the thread through, I'm assuming the 2005 and 2007 medical reports you received came from the DWP archives and not from atos. Have I interpreted what you've said correctly?

Rae

[Guest]

lol well its like this, i requested them from the dwp, the manager of my dwp emailed saying they had contacted atos for them and would forward on when received, then when i chased it up i got an email from another dwp person saying she wasnt sure where to go for them lol she said she was waiting to hear back from a recruitment advisor (?) to find out, she then emailed that she knew where to go lol their "remote storage".... dunno know if this is the "shared" system they have with atos .... was told it was dwp forwarding them to me, so make of it what u will lol i dont believe any of them i think they saw the 2007 report and make their minds up b4 i even got to the medical centre.

[RaeUK]

I can't comment on what they may or may not have seen, lol, but I know the DWP has off-site archive storage - my medical details ended up there, accidently apparently, and nobody noticed until something like week 40 of my 13 week assessment...

Take care hunni.

Rae

[Guest]

oh god lol thats crazy

[scousegeezer]

Ruby,

So much for the Governments crackdown on I.B. claimants. Have you seen thew Daily Mail from yesterday. Page 18. Apparrently there are now 20,000 more people in receipt of IB than there were 12 months ago. Just thought you might like to know.

 

Cheers - Scousegeezer

[Guest]

i bet they werent all straight through claims? maybe its an indication of how many appeal/tribunals are won by the claimant? havent read it yet but am on my way now lol

[Guest]

oh my god, well that got me bouncing off the walls, i have written to the daily mail.

[Florence Z]

22nd November 2009 10:58

Hi Ruby, Scouse, kelcou, Patrickq1, Postggi, jimmylesaint, MKB, Leahkins, mazbck, george1961, et al.

 

Just been thinking re 20,000 new claimants...

 

Haw many of us have been on "Long Term" IB?

 

The reason I ask is that I'm wondering if Atos/DWP are trying in the main to get long term benefit claimants off, whilst at the same time allowing new ones to come on, knowing that this alone will save many millions and be a feather in their cap. Also if you are a new claimant you will be possibly easier to remove at a later date. Long term claimants with genuine disabilities will be well versed in the "ways" of Atos/DWP and also harder to successfully remove because of the well documented injuries/disabilities etc.

 

In addition, I am asking for a little bit of help. Can we all do a little bit of research and try to find as many cases as possible that have gone to litigation because of the proven falsification of records/reports.

 

I believe that eventually if successful cases are brought against Atos then this will help to prevent this again!

 

Coogaah

Edited November 22, 2009 by ErikaPNP
Please refer to section 3.12 of the forum rules

[Guest]

hi Florence Z, i am a long term ib claimant, was diagnosed with anxiety/depression 10 yrs ago, i was initially on sickness benefit via gp sick notes, then onto incapacity benefit, i wasnt referred and was on repeat scripts, living with what i thought was depression/anxiety, pretty much a loner etc etc, in 2006 i was diagnosed with acute anxiety disorder, nothing helped and tried to manage best i could, my gp thought i was bipolar all along but i didnt get that properly diagnosed due to a problem at that time with the lack of mental health services in my area, its taken until this year to get the formal diagnosis of bipolar affective disorder, and took me until september to get full treatment in place, so i guess you may have a point, about the long term theory, they are putting me through the tribunal system, the stress is making me more ill by the day, but i cant give up, thankfully i have good support from my mental health team and one of them is attending the tribunal with me. How can we find out about cases that have gone to litigation? i have tried online searches but not really got anywhere.

[ErikaPNP]

There is a member here who is considering legal action. Type "ATOS" into the search box and you will find it.

[Guest]

yes there is and i for one am watching it with interest, its any past cases i was trying to search for, to see if any have been succesful in any way.

[Surfer01]

We do not know any one around us and have often wondered who I could ask to attend an interview with me. I am hoping to come off ESA within the next two months that is if I my mobility improves as I would prefer to be in work. I am not due to an ATOS interview but obviously there is a concern as I will have been on ESA for 3 months.

[RaeUK]

Thankyou Erika I will do that search. I'm afraid the more I think about Atos the more I realise they are Atos by name and a t*ss by nature.

I'm a relative newbie Florence, this coming week will be my first anniversary in the ESA assessment period - party anyone?

I can't speak for any other illness but Atos are not geared up to assess pulmonary disease and how it can affect your work ability.

Surfer, I'd check with a local CAB who should be able to help / point you in the right direction. I don't know what your problems are, but - if your not there already - wouldn't you be better off with the support group of ESA as that's designed to help you find work within any health parameters you may have?

Edited November 22, 2009 by RaeUK
typoo

[RaeUK]

Oh! Searched 'Atos' and got back 58 threads. Having gone through the titles I can't identify any particular one that may be collating / thinking of legal action

Not wanting to sound too lazy, Ruby, what is the name of the thread you're watching with interest?

Rae

[mkb]

Try this one:

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/legal-issues/229619-atos-health-care-postggj.html

[RaeUK]

Try this one:

 

http://www.consumeractiongroup.co.uk/forum/legal-issues/229619-atos-health-care-postggj.html

 

Oh cobblers! I swear that did not come up in my search! The clue, after all, is in the title!

 

In mitigation, I note it's in the legal issues forum and I suspect I just searched the benefits forum. I guess if you're to do a search it's better to do so higher up the forum chain...

 

Thanks mkb

[Surfer01]

Thankyou Erika I will do that search. I'm afraid the more I think about Atos the more I realise they are Atos by name and a t*ss by nature.

I'm a relative newbie Florence, this coming week will be my first anniversary in the ESA assessment period - party anyone?

I can't speak for any other illness but Atos are not geared up to assess pulmonary disease and how it can affect your work ability.

Surfer, I'd check with a local CAB who should be able to help / point you in the right direction. I don't know what your problems are, but - if your not there already - wouldn't you be better off with the support group of ESA as that's designed to help you find work within any health parameters you may have?

Thanks for taking the time to reply. I have no experience of ESA support at the moment. I was doing temporary work when my RA problem escalated and was off work for about a month and then I was told that my services were no longer required. I then signed onto ESA in mid October and have been on it ever since with no other contact except to say about ESA payments. I am hoping that within the next two months that I will get the all clear to look for work not that there is much out there at present. I have all the necessary adaptions, i.e. orthopaedic chair, mouse etc to work in an office. Shaw trust generally assist me.

[RaeUK]

Ok surfer, I don't want to hijack Rubys thread. If you're happy with what you're doing no worries. If not, start a new thread about it and I'll chip in a little or PM me.

Rae

[MIKEY DABODEE]

Ruby,

So much for the Governments crackdown on I.B. claimants. Have you seen thew Daily Mail from yesterday. Page 18. Apparrently there are now 20,000 more people in receipt of IB than there were 12 months ago. Just thought you might like to know.

 

Cheers - Scousegeezer

 

IB and I.S are not going as quietly as first thought and lots of new Clerical IB ! are being put into payment

ESA is not taking over as yet

Edited November 23, 2009 by MIKEY DABODEE

[Florence Z]

Hi Ruby and all

 

I have posted on the legal thread re "GG's" litigation, hope he "stuffs them!

 

Ruby re your tribunal appeal, I think you will win as you have good case and evidence. Tribunals tend to be far more objective than Atos/DWP etc.

 

In addition, as I have said before and on the other thread, there was a BBC documentary in 2006 about falsified medical reports which removed valid claimants from benefit. Has anyone any info re litigation that followed, as there was very clear evidence that the reports had been deliberately falsified.

 

Has anyone else viewed that documentary of the report about the programme? It was very enlightening. The link is:

BBC NEWS | Programmes | Errors block benefits to disabled

 

Good luck to all.

 

Coogaah

[Guest]

thanks for that link Florence, i cant understand why something hasnt been done about this situation before now, it really is disgraceful, all i can do is hope the tribunal finds in my favour, and getting back dated benefit is all very well but this has been my daily nightmare and added stress since june this year and i am unlikely to get a hearing until january, and living on £51.44 pw while its dragged on, there must be so many people without the support and help some of us have to live through it, that just cant cope with it and its so unfair and unjust.

[cantsayinhere]

am going for a tribunal in march after them dwp say am not disabled Enough.the medical was a sham not same as you get from your own doctor,i been in a disable school from young age to 16 and now 38,am takeing them all the way and going to win,i have a bus pass as well,thye are picking on a lot of disabled people for the hell of it and nt the **** bags who are geting of with it

[Guest]

I am still awaiting a hearing following my appeal for IB after a much rattled on about (by me) atos test last year, the tribunal have written to me updating me on info etc but i note that the heading now doesnt refer to IB Appeal its saying extinct/rare benefit.....is this to do with the ESA taking over? and what position does that leave me in? how can i appeal against something that doesnt exist? i dont care what they call the benefit as long as i get the help i need, i am just puzzled by this extinct bit. not online at home now so only able to get on here at the library so if i dont reply immediately to any help please dont think i am being rude. This has dragged on now since june last year and its just ridiculous.