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Complaint to Capita, 2nd letter!
- Anji
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1 month 3 weeks ago #294861 by Anji
Complaint to Capita, 2nd letter! was created by Anji
Hello all, hope you all had a good summer...
After the DWP overturned the decision re my son's PIP and he now receives enhanced rate daily living and standard rate mobility, I complained to Capita about their assessment. They sent a letter stating that because there was no recording of the assessment (we asked for one but they failed to record it) they could not prove or disprove our points of complaint.
I asked for this to be reviewed and they have replied with a lengthy letter that states that their original response to the complaint fell below the standard expected and they have offered my son £50 as a 'good will gesture'. However, they have failed to address in any detail the actual complaint about the assessment.
For example, one of our complaints was that the assessor was making statements about my son's abilities that she was not qualified to make, which were key to the original DWP decision to award him 0 points across the spectrum. She wrote, for example, that there was no evidence of poor working memory during the assessment as he could remember events from childhood and that he had achieved academically. The assessor was a pharmacist and my complaint was that she was not a clinical psychologist and so how could she determine in a 50 minute phone call that he had no working memory issues. The report by an actual clinical psychologist stated his working memory was 'very poor'.
The answer to this in the 2nd letter was all about the training the assessors are given and how the assessment is not for making diagnoses it is a general assessment about how the disability impacts people's lives. But nowhere have they actually addressed the point that her saying he had no working memory problem influenced the original decision by the DWP. They haven't addressed this at all, just said 'we hope that having an understanding of the training our assessors' receive has reassured you about their competency'...!!
There are several examples of things like this throughout where they have repeated my concerns but not actually stated whether they uphold the complaint or not, just spoken about their first response not being as thorough as it should have been.
The next step is to ask an 'independent case examiner' to have a look. These people are employed by the DWP so not sure how 'independent' they will be, but I am going to do this.
I just want someone to admit that it was a crap assessment, full of errors, falsehoods, inaccuracies, and misinterpretations and that this led to us having to go through the appeal process. I want to be able to say to the DWP that when they review his claim in 4 years time (if PIP still exists then) that this assessment report will not form part of their review.
Thanks for all your support
Anji
After the DWP overturned the decision re my son's PIP and he now receives enhanced rate daily living and standard rate mobility, I complained to Capita about their assessment. They sent a letter stating that because there was no recording of the assessment (we asked for one but they failed to record it) they could not prove or disprove our points of complaint.
I asked for this to be reviewed and they have replied with a lengthy letter that states that their original response to the complaint fell below the standard expected and they have offered my son £50 as a 'good will gesture'. However, they have failed to address in any detail the actual complaint about the assessment.
For example, one of our complaints was that the assessor was making statements about my son's abilities that she was not qualified to make, which were key to the original DWP decision to award him 0 points across the spectrum. She wrote, for example, that there was no evidence of poor working memory during the assessment as he could remember events from childhood and that he had achieved academically. The assessor was a pharmacist and my complaint was that she was not a clinical psychologist and so how could she determine in a 50 minute phone call that he had no working memory issues. The report by an actual clinical psychologist stated his working memory was 'very poor'.
The answer to this in the 2nd letter was all about the training the assessors are given and how the assessment is not for making diagnoses it is a general assessment about how the disability impacts people's lives. But nowhere have they actually addressed the point that her saying he had no working memory problem influenced the original decision by the DWP. They haven't addressed this at all, just said 'we hope that having an understanding of the training our assessors' receive has reassured you about their competency'...!!
There are several examples of things like this throughout where they have repeated my concerns but not actually stated whether they uphold the complaint or not, just spoken about their first response not being as thorough as it should have been.
The next step is to ask an 'independent case examiner' to have a look. These people are employed by the DWP so not sure how 'independent' they will be, but I am going to do this.
I just want someone to admit that it was a crap assessment, full of errors, falsehoods, inaccuracies, and misinterpretations and that this led to us having to go through the appeal process. I want to be able to say to the DWP that when they review his claim in 4 years time (if PIP still exists then) that this assessment report will not form part of their review.
Thanks for all your support
Anji
The following user(s) said Thank You: denby, Sheila 966, Wendy Woo
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- BIS
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1 month 3 weeks ago #294872 by BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
Replied by BIS on topic Complaint to Capita, 2nd letter!
Hi Anji
I'm glad that you have the energy to keep fighting. The response you received is what I would expect and sounds like an HR or low level legal expert. You're right to be sceptical of the independent advisor - but I will keep my fingers crossed that they will at least address the specific issues raised.
I know you're more than capable of writing another hard-hitting letter - and I'm loath to give any advice (when you didn't ask for it and certainly don't need it), but I will say this: - make sure at the end of the letter you summarise your arguments with a numbered list of exactly what questions you want answered. I know you will have already said all this - but it's very hard for them to ignore the final list, especially if you say that you look forward to them answering in full - questions/points 1 - 10, especially in light of the fact that the previous response "deliberately" failed to address them in your letter (dated....).
Will they still ignore some points? Yes - but you just want to make it as difficult as possible for them to squirm out of it. Best of luck in the next stage of your fight. Look forward to hearing how you get on.
BIS
I'm glad that you have the energy to keep fighting. The response you received is what I would expect and sounds like an HR or low level legal expert. You're right to be sceptical of the independent advisor - but I will keep my fingers crossed that they will at least address the specific issues raised.
I know you're more than capable of writing another hard-hitting letter - and I'm loath to give any advice (when you didn't ask for it and certainly don't need it), but I will say this: - make sure at the end of the letter you summarise your arguments with a numbered list of exactly what questions you want answered. I know you will have already said all this - but it's very hard for them to ignore the final list, especially if you say that you look forward to them answering in full - questions/points 1 - 10, especially in light of the fact that the previous response "deliberately" failed to address them in your letter (dated....).
Will they still ignore some points? Yes - but you just want to make it as difficult as possible for them to squirm out of it. Best of luck in the next stage of your fight. Look forward to hearing how you get on.
BIS
Nothing on this board constitutes legal advice - always consult a professional about specific problems
The following user(s) said Thank You: denby, Sheila 966, Wendy Woo, Anji
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1 month 3 weeks ago #294891 by Anji
Replied by Anji on topic Complaint to Capita, 2nd letter!
BIS
That is great advice, thank you so much! I will definitely do that, I am so tired of being fobbed off!! Thanks for taking the time to answer, it does spur me on 😃
Thanks
Anji
That is great advice, thank you so much! I will definitely do that, I am so tired of being fobbed off!! Thanks for taking the time to answer, it does spur me on 😃
Thanks
Anji
The following user(s) said Thank You: BIS, Sheila 966
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