DLA Tribunal / over turning of indefinite award a year ago

[Kitty]

Hi All,
I AM a disabled person and have been since birth (im 26 years old) . . . i have no fingers on my left hand and a malformed thumb, its more of a stump. I have been in reciept of dla lowest care component for nearly all my life, up until last year when i applied for a review in light of the issues i have faced (and have been turned down on several occassions in the past) concerning my legs. I fall, i have constant pain and generally cannot walk very far. But still they say i dont have mobility issues!!! In applying for the review a year ago, they sent out a doctor to my home to assess me and upon his report they decided that i am not at all disabled, so i dont need DLA at all, at any rate. And so stopped my lowest care component! I appealed, and appealed and still they would not change their decision, so i took it to tribunal. Which after a years long wait, i had today! I now have to await thier decision which should have been posted today also. I feel i was treated poorly there today, I was spoken to like i was a liar. My friend who helps me almost daily was told not to speak! And most of what they asked me was about how i cope with my son and why i chose to live alone! I am annoyed as when i originally appealed i was told my son doesnt factor into the decsion process. and i feel it was wrong of them to question me about it today. And i was appauled by them basically questioning my right to have my own home! They made me feel like i shouldnt have had a child nor a home of my own. Disabled people have rights and deserve as much independance as everyone else in this world!! YES we have a disability and need help but doesnt mean we shouldnt be as independant was we can be. Im furious. I know i fit the criteria, and yet they pick holes in the life i lead and why i dont have certain adaptions etc. I dont have them because i have never been given them and never been told how to go about getting them! Im not one of lifes complainers. I cope as best i can.
I mean they ask "can you prepare and cook a cooked main meal for yourself?" i told them no, i cannot, as i cannot peel veg safely, chop veg nor drain it nor can i lift pans or trays from the oven. When asked why, i pointed out that i have only one hand, and the other has poor dexterity and my legs give way without warning. I was told off for bringing my legs into it! I explained that it really wouldnt be safe for me to deal with hot pans or stand at a cooker even IF i had better grip as my legs are likely to give way. They couldnt seem to grasp why this was dangerous!!!! The kitchen is hardly the safest place to fall! especially when cooking.
Anyway, Im sorry to have ranted on, I would just like some glimmer of hope that i am not crazy, I was BORN with a disability of the hand, and it hasnt got any better and is never going to, so i will always be "disabled" right? and that the weakness and pain in my legs IS an issue and DOES mean that i am at risk of harm on a daily basis. (their one letter to me states "you are not at risk of harm when performing potentially dangerous activities" . . . surely if something sis "potentially dangerous" anyone who is performing such a task is at risk?! haha. Would love to know how i am exempt from this! LOL)
THANKS SO MUCH X

[Stepheninleeds]

This angers me so much. Anything that affects your ability to function is relevant. It is as simple as that. From what you say your ability to care for yourself is much less than mine-I got the Middle Rate Care. You need help to deal with them. I would suggest a local advocacy group, CAB (If you have a good one), a disabled or benefits advocacy group, etc.

As to adaptations, contact your local Social Services for an assessment as to your needs.

I have heard stories like this on the news. If you can walk 2 steps you are not disabled, if you have one arm you are not disabled. Sadly this often comes down to what I have said before about civil servants, hearing/appeals panels-it all depends who is dealing with them.

[Kitty]

I am absolutely furious about it. I went thru CAB, they were lovely but my case worker doesnt work on tuesdays and so i had to go with my friend. She helps me and when she spoke up, they told her not to!
Ive checked online and the criteria for Lower Care is " for people who need attention with bodily functions for example eating, washing and dressing for a significant portion of the day. OR Be unable to cook a main meal if over 16 years old" . . . i fill this in BOTH ways.
The mobility lower is " for people who are able to walk but need someone with them to provide guidance and supervision for most of the time when outdoors on unfamiliar routes" . . . . i dont go out alone. . . And so i feel i fit this too. Its hardly a good idea to be out alone when i know Im at risk of falling! Only a few days ago i fell off the last two stairs at home because my legs gave way.
I cannot wait to recieve their decision and i WILL be fighting until i get what i deserve!

Thanks Stephen for your input, its good to know Im not losing the plot!

[Kitty]

Also, Ive just looked online at the adaptions i could really benefit from, Its approx £800 worth minimum! ouch!

[Jen66]

When did they say you will get a decision ?

I understand your frustration, I've battled with the DWP and Tribunals service for years. The worst I've had implied against me was from an ATOS Dr. Who questioned the disparity between the way I live and my DLA claim. In other words, I've a nice house that I once worked hard to furnish and fill with nice objects. Something us poor disabled people shouldn't own. I think the Dr. didn't realise DLA claimants can actually work !

I have also been on the end of a particularly hostile tribunal in which I could see the disabled member of the panel feel very uncomfortable over the direction it was taking. It pains me to say it, but in recent years I've witnessed tribunals that appear to be less than impartial to say the least. They often resemble a DWP enquiry fraud squad.

[andypandy]

I wonder if they told you not to mention your mobility issues because this appeal was for your care component and not the mobility part of DLA ?

[Stepheninleeds]

We all have to keep fighting, & it is never easy. You need better advice on this, & on how the appeals panel treated you. Not sure, but you may have a case for complaint against them Kitty. What you can get awarded is very subjective these days, so much depends on who is looking at your claim, it really comes down to the person/s at the time.

YW Kitty. You are not losing it, just feeling the strain. We have all been there.

Contact Social Services Kitty, get an assessment, see what you can get & what you cannot. It costs nothing to have an assessment. Well it may cost time as you can wait a while for the assessment.

We can neevr win Jen. If we work we are not disabled, if we do not we are spongers.

I would agree with you Andy if it were not for one point, the care needed is based on the inability to perform certain mobility tasks, so that should mean it is relevant.

[Carneucopia]

So much of the appeals system is wrong - not least the differences in the way Tribunal members themselves perceive disability. I firmly believe that people in your situation Kitty should have some type of lifetime award which can never be taken away. There is such provision for example for people who have been vaccine damaged - and there used to be Severe Disablement Allowance. Did you ever claim that by the way?
Non of this helps your present situation though. Don't give up. It should be clear to anyone with half a brain that you will be unable to cook a full meal, safely or not, you only have the use of one hand - end of story.
As far as your mobility is concerned though I do think you might have gone for the wrong level. From what you have said about the falls, and not being able to walk very far, perhaps the high rate of mobility would be more appropriate. But the Tribunal would have been looking at your appeal based on what level you had claimed.
Then there is the issue of CAB representation (or lack of) which is disgraceful. This is where CAB as a whole really let themselves down and lose credibility. They took on your case - presumably helped you through it all - only to fail to provide you with a rep where it mattered most. There should be no excuse for that - there should be back up and cover from CAB when needed. So you were left to take a friend with you who wasn't recognised as a rep by the Tribunal, and they were unfortunately within their rights not to accept evidence from your friend.
The Tribunal then put you through hoops because they assumed you were able to safely take care of a child on your own. They knew they weren't up against a seasoned rep who would have been able to put the relevant arguments to them.
Personally I would be asking for the Tribunal decision to be set aside - but get help first. Much as it might go against the grain to do it, but I would start back with your CAB so called 'rep' and demand some help to get you out of the mess they have landed you in. Try these three little words to them - 'duty of care'.

[Stepheninleeds]

It is rare for the CAB to accompany anyone to anywhere for anything now. There have so many demands on their dwindling funding, they have cut back to the bone in many areas. Anyone who wants someone to speak for them, to advocate for them, to support them, needs to seek another professional person these days.

[andypandy]

My point was Stephen that the OP firstly applied for care and then mobility so that the tribunal was for the care part and not the mobility part. Thats how I read the OP anyway