Assessment done. Now the wait….

My text came thru this morning so onwards and upwards…..

Good luck on yours.

So today I phoned for the assessors report - 50 mins wait to get thru then spoke to very nice lady. She said she would need to print it off and to stay on the line......

....10 mins later she was back confirming it would be sent in the post.

I did ask her if she could email it to me but she advised that they don't have that option.

It seems the DWP make work for themselves - and waste paper and postage.

This request is something that could and should be available online - thus freeing up the phones and call handlers for those who cannot use online or have other queries. If it was able to be emailed it would also save money and time.

With banks and everything else going to everything online I'm surprised the DWP are not moving some of the easier straighforward requests online.

Also - on the original PIP claim forms, and the review forms, they could include a tick box for claimants to select if they want the assessors report sent to them - thus negating having to ask for it at all.


Why are they so entrenched in the 19th century?

It is terrible isn't it? I had a similar conversation with a couple of people about the possibility of email. I can understand their logic is that it is not secure, but as you mention, other establishments with a far greater need for security seem to manage perfectly ok. Both people I spoke to at the DWP agreed and said they were about the only government department that insisted on paper. One did even try to see if it was possible to email but there was no way it could be done. As an ex civil servant, I know that it is certainly possible to send more sensitive info than a medical report via email, and I imagine most people would be prepared to sign an opt-in to say they would take the risk if given the option.

Our report took so long to arrive by post that I thought we were going to miss the deadline for a MR, in fact we ended up with two copies because they thought the first one must have gone astray (so really secure then??). It hadn't, it just took about three weeks to be delivered!!

It does make you wonder if this is all designed to put people off. I know that my son would not do all this by himself without the considerable support I give him. He doesn't have a printer so has to go to the library and pay to print everything. Again, it is an additional cost as well as an additional inconvenience and a lot of people stumble at those hurdles. He manages with considerable prompting, but it is not easy!

Anyway...good luck!!

Received my PA4 assessor report today. It was really quick as it was only a few days since I asked for it.

Anyway - I'm really not unhappy with my total scores as they would put me into enhanced for both daily living and mobility (14 and 22)

On reading the report I was given higher points than I expected on a couple of things and lower points on 2 things that I was actually aimng high on. So if it came to an appeal I would be going for those, especially as the HPs explanatory comments (using descriptor language) seem to indicate higher descriptors would apply.

Anyway - looks like this is swings and roundabouts for me as I have gained where I was not expecting and lost where I was really was aiming.

All in all, the report looks good however and does reflect the phone call. I can pick holes in a few bits but that would be where I was marked down on the bits I was aiming for , especially as the assessors explnatory comments appear to contradict her scoring.

I'm going to wait for the final decision from the DWP now but I'm cautiously optimistic and happy to leave things as they stand if I'm awarded as per the PA4.

Onwards and upwards....

Keeping everything crossed for a successful result