So much for the Tories’ claim to be ending ‘pointless’ PIP reassessments for pensioners
Ron Stevenson: He has motor neurone disease and, at 69, is a pensioner. So why did he receive a letter demanding that he submit to reassessment for Personal Independence Payment?
If the Tory work and pensions secretary, Amber Rudd, was serious about ending “pointless” reassessment of pensioners for benefits, why is this happening?
A terminally ill man with just six months to live was ‘devastated’ to be told he’d need to reapply for his benefits.
Ron Stevenson, 69, was diagnosed with motor neurone disease 10 years ago and relies on moderate weekly care payments to supplement his care.
But last month, Ron received a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), calling for him to reapply for his benefits because he is up for reassessment.
He says the letter told him if he did not reply his payments would stop on July 29.
Former special needs teacher Ron is almost completely paralysed, leaving him reliant on carers and his wife Gill.
Those in his position can claim up to £150 a week in Personal Independence Payments to ease suffering and care.
Grandfather Ron, of Staplefield, West Sussex, but originally from Lancashire, called the call for reassessment “devastating”.
Mr Stevenson will continue to receive his benefit after he and his family submitted further evidence to show what should be obvious – that his conditions cannot improve and he deserves to continue receiving his benefit.
But here’s the thing: The DWP has said it will stop asking pensioners to reapply for benefits from today (May 31). July 29 is nearly two months after that date, so Mr Stevenson should not have been threatened at all.
Source: Dad with 6 months to live ‘devastated’ after DWP ask him to reapply for benefits – Mirror Online
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well they HAVE to be seen to be complying with what was in at the time the letter was sent i suppose. question ..did DWP know of the pending changes soon to be announced at the time the letter was sent out? if yes then they WERE wrong to send it out (not taking into account they shouldnt have sent it in the first place on the grounds of it being perfectly obvious the man is in a bad way medically,physically etc….) if no.. then its a grey area… but still shouldnt have been sent on the above grounds. they should have first sent someone out as a check up initially.they often do that anyway. that should have been sufficient if that person did their job properly.
I have no time for the Department of Waste and Persecution but the new policy regards PIP and pensioners is thus. New claimants who reach pension age during their claim will qualify for the light touch in ten years and this is going to be rolled out to existing claimants who have reached pension age. How long the roll out will take is anybody’s guess,
Those stupid idiots that are knowingly making it very hard for people to get their benefits (especially ill pensioners that have no chance of working) should be charged and locked up. Just goes to show how much they are thinking of our country and it’s people. I just hope they suffer a lot worse when they get to pension age. WHY are pensioner groups not getting involved to put a stop to this abuse//
The changes only apply to NEW awards of PIP after this date. I am in the insidious position of losing a lifetime award DLA on migration to PIP, probably affected by the underpayment of ESA on migration from IB, and still waiting for my pension as a 65 yr old WASPi, and expecting more PIP assessments for the foreseeable future. My next PIP reassessment date was 2020, but of course they can call you in up to 12 months ahead of that date.
Oh yes, and despite having 51 years paying NI, my State pension will be reduced because I opted out for a few years, and the SERPs payments I made have simply vanished.
There is nothing they will not do to hammer people, and to expect any degree of common sense to be applied is simply missing the point about the system. It is designed to kill.
I had my PIP Assessment this year which I passed. A month later I received a letter informing me that my next assessment will be in 2029. I’ll be 79 yrs old June in that year. Do they honestly think that my health will improve by then?
how they can expect pensioners to go to work who have worked from the age of 14 or 15 , only taking tiime off to bring up their children (if a house parent) which are those whose children are currently bringing up the next generation of workers (assuming there are jobs to go to work to do by then, ) precious few for the present generation of workers who are having difficulty in finding and keeping jobs of which their are precious few. therefore making pensioners look for jobs, means more in the job market and on the dole, and if they or any ONE of them does find a job it will be taking that job while denying it to someone who has a young family to bring up. we oldies have done our share. working, bringing kids up, going back to work once all those kids are at school, looking after members of our families who are too ill or disabled to get work even if they could do a job, saving the country millions of pounds instead of using up hospital beds and staff or care home beds. which in a lot of cases would have to be paid for by local govt (or our families… some of which have very little to live on themselves/).. why take jobs away from younger people who are fitter when pensioners are too old too ill or too disabled to do those jobs? its not called old age for nothing. anything old has parts that are getting past their sell by date. no new parts will be given in exchange as they will be deemed too old for transplants…… i could go on. it is neither fair nor a good idea.