Will I Be Another ATOS Victim ??

[Fiddler]

Hi All
I am due to attend a medical assessment a week on friday the 7th of sept to be conducted by ATOS i have been on DLA since 1997 which was awarded for life i was also on incapacity benefit for about 2 or so years from nov 1996 when dwp wrote to me to inform me to stop sending in sick notes my benefit changed to income support so in a nutshell i have been on dla and income support for about 14 years i have previously attended 2 assessments the last 1 was in 2006 and i scored over 20 on both occasions however they were not done by ATOS but by the company that delt with the medicals prior to ATOS and i have to say the examiner on both times was very friendly and understanding, on the 1st 1 i went to the doctor even commented after the discussion was over and said "off the record you have nothing to worry about" now from what i can gather it looks to me like because the income support benefit has been replaced by ESA this assessment is to see if i would qualify or could it be to take the lot from me, to be honest the last 2 i had didn't worry me at all but from what i keep reading about this so called assessment the more i think about it the more i convince myself that in the not too distant future i will be looking for work, for which i have not a chance in hell sat here with me coat on because the leccys been cut off eating left overs from next doors bins.

[seriouslyfedup]

Certainly the assessment is deliberately designed to be tough, as the government is determined to get as many people classed as fit for some sort of theoretical work as they can.

However thousands of people have successfully migrated to ESA from long term incapacity or equivalent benefits, it's just that we tend not to hear much from them. People who need advice after encountering problems are more likely to post on forums.

And again of the people who have failed assessments or been put in the wrong group, a large percentage have successfully managed to overturn the decision on appeal. So all is not lost!!!!!!

It's a good idea to take someone with you, and be familiar with the descriptors the assessment is based on. It's a functional assessment or capability assessment, which tries to establish what you can do/are capable of doing. I'm sure someone with experience of an assessment will be along with more info to help soon.

[brokenbritain]

just got my atos medical date mid september i feel i'm in the same kind of boat as fiddler & NOT looking forward to the medical cause of atos & all the bs on tv & on forums i have been on incapacity since jan 1999 my gp who knew me retired about 5 yrs ago my gp now don't no me much i get codeine phosphate repeat prescription so we don't speak much, i just go every month to local chemist for my repeat prescription,i have arthritis from neck to toe among other things,i am basically a cripple but there were people on tv who were in a bad way & stamped ''fit for work'' when it was clear to everyone bar atos that they were not capable of work,,i was wondering if i get my letter back from dwp 'fit for work' during my appeal process do i still get my housing & council tax benefits & money to live on?? i just cannot afford to go in arrears,going into debt could get me really depressed you see all this bs is getting me down now right now

[davewhit]

Hi All
I am due to attend a medical assessment a week on friday the 7th of sept to be conducted by ATOS i have been on DLA since 1997 which was awarded for life i was also on incapacity benefit for about 2 or so years from nov 1996 when dwp wrote to me to inform me to stop sending in sick notes my benefit changed to income support so in a nutshell i have been on dla and income support for about 14 years i have previously attended 2 assessments the last 1 was in 2006 and i scored over 20 on both occasions however they were not done by ATOS but by the company that delt with the medicals prior to ATOS and i have to say the examiner on both times was very friendly and understanding, on the 1st 1 i went to the doctor even commented after the discussion was over and said "off the record you have nothing to worry about" now from what i can gather it looks to me like because the income support benefit has been replaced by ESA this assessment is to see if i would qualify or could it be to take the lot from me, to be honest the last 2 i had didn't worry me at all but from what i keep reading about this so called assessment the more i think about it the more i convince myself that in the not too distant future i will be looking for work, for which i have not a chance in hell sat here with me coat on because the leccys been cut off eating left overs from next doors bins.

many people over 1,000,000 go through the atos system with no problems and many more who dont make it through the system get through on appeal

the numbers not getting through and talking about it is less than 20,000 on all the forums 100 or so here same again on B&W

dwps own research shows that them that dont get through but do on reconsidiration before appeal do by giving more information

all you can do is give as much information as you can answer all the questions on the form and see what happens

people ARE filling in the form sending no other info and getting support group

only time will tell, might be worth seeing your GP and filling him in on how you have been in recent years so your notes are up to date

[seriouslyfedup]

i was wondering if i get my letter back from dwp 'fit for work' during my appeal process do i still get my housing & council tax benefits & money to live on?? i just cannot afford to go in arrears,going into debt could get me really depressed you see all this bs is getting me down now right now

Yes you will as long as you have no other income which would affect the HB etc being paid and inform the office which pays the housing benfit that you stll need it.

[Stig]

Every form you fill in is a lottery as no matter what you put on the form or additional information you may send with the form it all boils down to who's desk your form lands on

[spudmonkey]

Every form you fill in is a lottery as no matter what you put on the form or additional information you may send with the form it all boils down to who's desk your form lands on

I can totally agree with that comment Stig....been there recently...got the T-shirt!

[davewhit]

Every form you fill in is a lottery as no matter what you put on the form or additional information you may send with the form it all boils down to who's desk your form lands on

there are some bread and butter problems that seem to get through no problem if the problem is bad and well documented IMO

But ME CFS FIB Back problems seem to be the ones you see on foums the most. Also early stage MS

The DWP A to Z Medical Guide is a good starting place to compare your illness and problems with what the DWP think will be your problems

http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/s...al-conditions/