Disabled man gets PIP back after newspaper story got DWP to change decision
Shaun Howard was lucky: he had family who managed to attract media attention after the Department for Work and Pensions stopped his Personal Independence Payments.
What about people who don’t have family members who can step in when the DWP picks on them?
Mr Howard, 29, has a condition called global development delay. He is unable to read or write, struggles to socialise and cope with everyday tasks, and lives in sheltered housing in Clacton.
His financial affairs are handled by an organisation called Essex Guardians, that helps people who do not have mental capacity to handle their own money.
He was called in by the DWP for a PIP reassessment last month, and a decision was made to stop his benefits.
Essex Guardians was told – but Mr Howard didn’t receive a letter and did not know his benefit had been cancelled until that organisation informed him.
The DWP didn’t even have the courtesy to let him know it had cut off his lifeline.
Fortunately for him, his parents spoke to a local newspaper and when the DWP realised its decision had attracted media interest, the decision was magically reversed.
A spokesperson said his case had been reviewed.
But would the DWP have reviewed his case and restored his payments without the attention?
Of course not.
This story has a happy ending.
But it also shows why we need to elect a Labour government, close down the DWP and built a better benefit system.
Source: DWP does U-turn after stopping Shaun’s benefits | Maldon and Burnham Standard
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The DWP has become a law unto itself, a runaway train. It is completely unfit for purpose, as are the Tory Government.
I absolutely agree, the DWP is a robot no human compassion for sick people. PIP is a torturing people that are entitled to make life easier. It’s like battling with the devil to get the help that’s deserved. The Tory Government have shamed and pushed people aside instead of listening to each individual case. It’s like begging for help. It’s inhumane disgraceful.
The dwp is a joke it has left us in financial trouble from the switch over from dla i never thought i would have to ask my parents for help it is so degrading and hard to ask for help.
It would be easy to put it down to mere incompetence, but it’s much more than that because it’s all deliberate, all done on purpose and by design by the Tories. They are trying to kill off as many poor, sick and disabled as they can. Anyone who has served their purpose and are economically inactive are dispensable. Remember that on voting day.
DWP is NOT Tory run. It is a civil service department. Stop blaming the current failure on the current government when many of the policy decisions were made years ago.
The policy decisions were all made by the government – the CONSERVATIVE government.
Like all government departments, the DWP carries out the orders of the government of the day.
If the DWP is harming people – and it is – then the Tories are directly to blame.
Alex, don’t you remember the Tories introducing their Welfare reforms? They’ve been in power for nearly a decade now, you can’t blame anyone else but them.
Hi my name is Matthew and the story is about how governments for years have killed is country ..how my girlfriend die and my wife die too and got no help form council or help form dwp… They left me with my too kids and no help or money to help my mental health problems and my kids too …I struggle for the last too years and still no help….. This country has gone bad and vote for liars… 40 years ago and still f****d the people of this…world so sad god bless the human people in the world….. Governments r bad…
It’s the same for thousands of claimants across the country.. I was reading an artical yesterday where a man left a comment about 8yearz of benefit freezes.. And after April 2020 dwp are ending the freeze and applying 1,7 rise in benefit rates.. This man was aggitated about 1,7 increase wen his Wrk rises are not that high.. What he dosent realise is he has had 8years of increased wages.. Benefits have been frozen all this time.. And the cost of living has quadtrupled.. Claimants going without a lot of basic things due to cost of living riseing over 8y
Also dwp seem to be draging out confirming to suppliers the claimants are qualifying for the warm home discount.. And its now that we need this help..heat.. And may well not even be issued until March 2020 for many..
Also I ha e been on direct payments from my esa to Thames water.. Which dwp failed to send t. W. From june – Oct I have been chaseing this up for months.. Still haven’t recieved a refund from t. W. As dwp is now dragging it’s heels sending mthly payments every couple of weeks.. Not any good to me.. My bill is payed till March 2020..dwp is a disgrace accross the board.. In this day and age.. Appalling
Yes Dwp are not human they hate disabled people and do not want you to live. I have been disabled for 17 years now since I was 29. I was a unpaid carer at the time claiming carers allowance for looking after my brother who was schizophrenic he got low rate flat and I appealed for high rate because I was constantly looking after him and was hard work! Lost my mum in 2002 and with being bullied at school and living with my mum at the time with no central heating and no hot water and living in a 2 up 2 down house later on when I lost my mum I started suffering from depression because I never had any money in my pocket and no family to help me I lost them all. I got really bad in 2010 after being in hospital the previous year pinderfields in wakefield with deep brain thrombosis and had to take warfarin. in 2010 i lost my mind and felt I was possessed by a demon. It went after a year but for a further 2 years I lost my mind I did not know where I was right up to 2013 I was under baghill house at the time for mental health and physical problems. I cancelled my own carers allowance back in Feb 2010 because I was too poorly and could not look after him anymore the outreach team did not like this but I went ahead and at the time claimed ESA which I only hot the assessment rate for the first 16 weeks at 64.30 a week it was nothing and I could not live because I did not have enough money and nobody to help me my dla at the time was only low rate about 40 pounds a week and when my ESA went up in may I was living on about 115.000 a week. I could not manage and I had to keep reapplying every 2 years because they only gave it to me for 2 years everything rang quite smoothly until 2016 feb when they the Tories abolished dla and I had to apply for pip when I went to the assessment centre i was really poorly and did not want to go so i went with my girlfriend at the time. The acesser used my girlfriend to lie and used her report against me so I could not get pip I had dvt at the time and an ulcer on my right angle that iwas taking painkillers for at the time the asscer at the assessment treated me worse than a dog and said I could work with a ulcer on my right leg depression dvt a history of suicides trying to take my own life and told lies about me so I did not get pip all I had to live on was 125.00 per week and no disability money. I went to dial and got it reinstated and this time I have got fat worse I cannot now do anything for myself and I have full time carers told my social worker because I could not walk at the time dec 2019 I needed more money to get around because in may 2010 I could not get around and needed carers Imy social worker knew i was poorly and got me this care company and i was paying them out of my pip. They asked me to go to a face to face assessment in may 2019. Then told lies about me and stopped my claim I cannot walk and I am only getting 128.45 esa a week to live on they have stopped all my pip 87.65 enhanced rate and my severe money which I got paid with my esa as I live alone. I think it is a disgrace they treat me like a piece of rubbish i went to the assessment with a friend in a taxi and got paid expenses from them and they said i walked to the assessment centre. All lies to stop my benifit again I have had to have dual help me again. And the council have had to pay for my care while my finances are sorted the doctors think it is a disgrace my social worker does my carers do all the mental health team at baghill house do. They have had to up my medication because it is not working anymore and it looks while I will have to wait while april 2020 before I get an appeal date at the county court in april. Before I get my money back I will ha e been waiting a full year! And then when I get it back they will give my it for a out 4 years and I will have to go through this process again. They are devils the dwp not human I hate them!