The Conservative government has changed its assessment process for disability benefits to make it harder for people to get a correct decision on their claim – it seems.
The Tory miniser for disabled people, Justin Tomlinson, revealed details of the secret change in a letter to the Commons Work and Pensions committee, after its chair, Stephen Timms, raised the issue on behalf of claimants.
It has been usual practice for claimants to request and receive a copy of their assessment report within days of the report being submitted to the DWP.
They have been able to request a copy of their report, check it thoroughly, raise any issues with the assessment providers and receive responses before they have received the decision.
In a fair, sane system, this is appropriate. So of course the Tories have changed it.
In a letter dated September 16, Tomlinson MP wrote:
“The department does not share assessment provider reports with claimants before they have been considered by a DWP Case Manager.”
This is because:
“Providing the report to claimants immediately after the assessment and before the Case Manager has made their decision could therefore give a false impression on the outcome of their claim.”
This will make it much harder for claimants to demand the mandatory review that the Tories insist they have to endure before appealing against a wrong decision.
It can take up to 15 weeks for claimants to receive the decision. Once they do, and if they disagree with it, they will have about three weeks – or less – to make a request for a mandatory review.
The 30+ page assessment report is a key part of the process and it will take about 10 days from requesting a copy to receiving it.
This leaves very little time for them to see the recommendations made, to analyse the report, to check it for accuracy, to see if there are any errors, and to prepare and send a request for MR if necessary.
Many people with disabilities are very weak, due to their condition, and do not have the strength of will needed to push through a dispute with the government that has a short time limit.
You can be sure the Tories had this in mind when they secretly made this cruel change.
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