If PIP assessments are now being audio recorded, can claimants have copies?
Days after This Site noted that the Department for Work and Pensions is running trials of video assessments for Personal Independence Payment – and other benefit – claims, we find that the Tories are already recording telephone assessment interviews.
This is very interesting because the recording of assessments has been a roasting-hot potato ever since it was first suggested.
The most recent statement of the situation was that, in order to have an assessment recorded, a claimant needed to bring a piece of tape-recording equipment worth around £1,400 to the interview, capable of recording on two tapes at the same time, with one to be held by the interviewer and one by the interviewee.
The DWP – and by extension, assessors at Atos and Capita – has a small number of these devices, but their scarcity meant it was hard to be sure of securing one for an interview.
This led to some charitable people buying the equipment in order to lend it to benefit claimants who needed it. I’m sure it also led to less charitable people renting the same equipment out for money.
With the announcement that Atos is recording telephone assessments, though, hasn’t that situation changed?
If the assessment company is making recordings unilaterally, does it still have to use the same equipment as in previous stipulations?
Will it have to provide claimants with copies?
If it doesn’t have to use the prescribed equipment, why not? And does this mean claimants don’t have to use it either and can make their own recordings? If not, why not? There must be a level playing-field for these matters.
Here’s Benefits and Work on this:
IAS (Atos) have begun recording telephone assessments for personal independence payment (PIP) Therese Coffey, secretary of state for work and pensions, told the Work and Pensions Committee on Wednesday 30 September.
Coffey told the committee that IAS had begun recording the assessments on 21 September.*
“But that has not yet started with Capita. That is under, I can assure you, active management to get Capita going quickly on this”
claimants must ask to have their assessment recorded, it will not be done automatically.
You are likely to need to arrange this in advance. The earlier you request a recording the better, as a new appointment may need to be arranged.
I note that the website’s authors say the DWP will not give permission for claimants to make their own recordings – and say they should do it themselves, clandestinely, if they feel they need to:
You may still consider it sensible to record the assessment yourself just in case the DWPs recording goes astray. Though you will need to do this covertly as the DWP will not give permission.
We would still strongly recommend that claimants consider making a covert recording of their assessment, just in case the DWP’s copy goes astray when you challenge a decision.
The suggestion that copies of assessors’ audio recordings can go “astray” indicates that the DWP and its privately-contracted assessors are as untrustworthy as ever (75 per cent of benefit refusals are now being overturned at appeal).
This is worth chasing up. I’ll ask the DWP what’s going on and let you know the answer.
Source: PIP assessments now being audio recorded
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Ask the question before the interview starts is this being recorded, if the answer is yes then i want a copy of the recording sent as soon as this is over under data protection or gdpr
Given that the DWP, many SMEs, and ANY large business, use VoIP (voice over internet protocol) technology to make their calls; then as with the “all calls may be recorded” (i.e. will!) message we hear any time we call e.g. a building society, it stands to reason that Atos/Capita/Maximus and whoever else are conducting these assessments will also be using VoIP, and will also be recording the calls.
Therefore, other than to put the claimant at disadvantage re any appeals (surprise?!), there is no reason whatsoever (and certainly, not a technical one) why the DWP/Atos/Capita/Maximus etc cannot make the recording available to the claimant in a suitable format e.g. an mp3, for their own evidence at an appeal tribunal.
Hi Mike, in my experience ATOS were recording person to person interviews for ESA way back it was only if the claimant wanted to record/have a copy of the interview recording that the nonsense about having to supply police interview style equipment came up. Both I and a friend of mine took a dictaphone to an assessment and told the interviewer that as they were recording the interview I would as well. They then dissappeared to “consult with management” and came back half an hour later to say that the interview was concluded !!!
Well we been hear before if one doesn’t record it you find that the lies will stop you cold has we now these very very highly trained HCP lie and it doesn’t matter to them has they don’t accountable to no one has their unions only smack their wrists if proven so record record record
I am afraid your article is incorrect concerning the price of recording equipment. This is not to say that I defend having to spend anything to get your assessment recorded. When I went for my assessment two years ago I had to get hold of two recording devices that came to I seem to recall £150 for the two of them. It was still a pain to get them, but not quite as bad as the even more eyewatering figure that you mention. Really speaking it should be that the devices are made available by the people doing the assessment.
Interesting!
But just have a look at my article about this from November of last year. It correctly details the situation at the time. If you were not put under the same strictures then I think your case may have been a lucky exception rather than the norm.
You can buy two tape recorders from Argos, along with batteries and tapes.
That’s nice. The DWP will refuse to allow you to use them.