How long to receive first ESA50?

[gmboy]

I applied for ESA for the first time (and not transitioning from other state benefits) dated mid April and am currently receiving assessment phase payments. Should I have received the ESA 50 form yet? I know officially assessment phase is meant to be up to 13 weeks, but not sure to what extent this matches reality.

 

How long have other recent applicants waited i.e. those receiving their first ESA50 recently, when did you apply? Has anyone else applying around April for the first time received their ESA50 form yet?

 

Thanks.

[antone]

The time can vary a lot between different ESA processing offices. It seems like you've been waiting about six weeks - this is not out of the ordinary. I'm sure others will let you know what their experiences have been, but based on what I've read here, and my knowledge from working on ESA, I'd say anything from a few weeks to several months would be normal.

[Apple19]

Well I applied around the same time as you but moved from JSA. I got my ESA50 very quickly after, about 2 weeks then filled everything in & sent along support documents too. Currently still awaiting my outcome for the assessment date. I'm not 100% positive but they might be looking to take applications from those on benefits already & deal with them first but who knows given the waiting times for assessments & medicals. It's something of a lottery I guess, you will be contacted soon hopefully.

 

When sending it back, make sure to send it recorded delivery or if you can afford Special Next day delivery. They sometimes tend to lose documents in the post . Also make copies of the form & any support docs you send. Keep these for your own records.

[sillygirl1]

When sending it back make sure you have copies of it and take it to your local jobcentre, they will scan and send it directly to the right department for you.

[Jedicris]

Hi gmboy,

 

The answer really is "how long is a piece of string".

Eventually, they will send you one.

Meanwhile, until they do, make the best use of the time and start to gather all your evidence, who (if anybody) are you going to get to support your claim.

Visit your doctor, ask what do they have on their records about your illness's. (Did this with my wife when see transferred to ESA from IB, learnt about two things that we weren't aware of and got one thing put on her record that hadn't been on there before. Also "casually" mention to the doctor that you're applying for ESA. This way when they get the letter from the DWP they will be expecting it.

 

When you get the form, if you can, download one of the .pdf ones to fill in (make sure you get the right version) and allow a week to fill it in. Do a bit and come back to it.

 

The best piece of advice I can give is not to use the tick boxes unless they conform 100% to your situation and even then write something more. It is FAR better to use the explanation boxes and use continuation sheets. Don't just say "I can't do this", explain why and give details of why and how it affects you. This will take some time, hence the take a week to do it.

 

I speak from personal experience having to have done this twice for my wife and also for myself.

 

Jedicris

[gmboy]

I am very aware of general tips such as keeping copies, recorded delivery etc. While I appreciate good intentions to help by posting general advice, which may be useful information in the future (if/when the form arrives), please keep in mind that my request was relating to how long you have waited to receive the form, (rather than for tips on its completion or giving a prediction of when I will receive my form,) so keeping to this topic would be most useful for me on this thread at this time, especially as i didn't find this by reading other threads and to minimise the need to filter out information which does not answer my questions. If I am looking for tips on form completion in future I will get back and post to that effect. I hope you understand. Thanks to all who have posted so far.

[honeybee13]

I am very aware of general tips such as keeping copies, recorded delivery etc. While I appreciate good intentions to help by posting general advice, which may be useful information in the future (if/when the form arrives), please keep in mind that my request was relating to how long you have waited to receive the form, (rather than for tips on its completion or giving a prediction of when I will receive my form,) so keeping to this topic would be most useful for me on this thread at this time, especially as i didn't find this by reading other threads and to minimise the need to filter out information which does not answer my questions. If I am looking for tips on form completion in future I will get back and post to that effect. I hope you understand. Thanks to all who have posted so far.

 

So are you saying that you only want to hear from people with direct experience of submitting the form recently?

 

I think the timing will vary depending on which office is dealing with you, so even if someone else had their ESA50 back within 13 weeks,it could be different in your area.

 

HB

[gmboy]

So are you saying that you only want to hear from people with direct experience of submitting the form recently?

 

I think the timing will vary depending on which office is dealing with you, so even if someone else had their ESA50 back within 13 weeks,it could be different in your area.

 

HB

 

I'm asking for replies to relate directly to my questions, stated towards the end of my original post. I can't see the wording right now, but do recall recent-ness being indicated. Thanks for clarifying.

[honeybee13]

This is your OP.

 

HB

 

I applied for ESA for the first time (and not transitioning from other state benefits) dated mid April and am currently receiving assessment phase payments. Should I have received the ESA 50 form yet? I know officially assessment phase is meant to be up to 13 weeks, but not sure to what extent this matches reality.

 

How long have other recent applicants waited i.e. those receiving their first ESA50 recently, when did you apply? Has anyone else applying around April for the first time received their ESA50 form yet?

 

Thanks.

[gmboy]

This is your OP.

 

HB

 

Yes, so the relevant questions are:

1) to those receiving their first ESA50 recently, when did you apply?

2) Has anyone else applying around April for the first time received their ESA50 form yet?

[gmboy]

For the record, in case anyone in future is wondering similarly to me, my form arrived yesterday. So it's around 8 weeks from the date of my claim. Also, the letter was dated the same as my most recent payment date, though I'm not sure whether this is by design or coincidence.

[antone]

For the record, in case anyone in future is wondering similarly to me, my form arrived yesterday. So it's around 8 weeks from the date of my claim. Also, the letter was dated the same as my most recent payment date, though I'm not sure whether this is by design or coincidence.

 

Thanks for letting us know. The dates are coincidental - the team that sends out the ESA50 has nothing to do with issuing payments on your claim.