[joss]

Someone asked about PIP assessments over the telephone. This is a long winded post, but should help you understand what will take place and your rights.

All PIP face-to-face assessments have been suspended for three months from 17 March 2020, due to coronavirus. Claimants will have a paper assessment or a telephone assessment instead.
Legal notice of a telephone assessment
PIP regulations state that if you are to have either a face-to-face assessment or a telephone assessment you must be sent written notice of the date and time at least 7 days in advance.
While there have been some legal arguments over what ‘sent’ means, in CIB 4012 2004 the upper tribunal held that the DWP need to show that they posted an appointment letter so that it would normally arrive at least 7 days before the appointment.

So, if you don’t get 7 days’ notice in writing and this going to cause you difficulties, contact the assessment provider straight away and explain that you need proper notice.
If they refuse to give you a new appointment, in writing, make a formal complaint and contact your MP.
However, you will need to think very carefully about whether, in these circumstances, you refuse to take part in the scheduled assessment.
If you do refuse, it is likely that your case will be returned to the DWP. It will then be up to you to prove that you were not notified correctly. It is very likely that in order to win the argument you would have to go to Tribunal, which is likely to be a long drawn out process.

When is a telephone call from a health professional not an assessment?
You may get a call out of the blue from a health professional asking questions about your condition and how it affects you.
This is not necessarily a telephone assessment. Instead, it may be a that a paper assessment is being carried out, but the health professional needs to clarify a small number of points before they can complete their report.
In these circumstances you do not have the right to 7 days’ notice.

However, it would still be perfectly reasonable to ask the HP to call back at an agreed time. You might, for example, be feeling unwell or expecting an important call from someone else or find calls without notice very unsettling.
You could ask the HP how long the call is likely to take and what issues they need information on, so that you can be properly prepared.
The call itself should only be a short one. If the health professional needs to ask a lot of questions then clearly a paper assessment is not appropriate.

1.4.15 Where necessary, HPs may seek further information from claimants by telephone. Such telephone calls should be made by approved HPs, not by clerical staff.
1.4.16 HPs should identify who they are and the purpose of the call. A written record should be taken of any telephone discussion seeking further information, using the claimant’s own words as precisely as possible. This information should be included in the assessment report provided to DWP or via the PIPAT [software]. The HP should always ask if there is anything else that the claimant wishes to say before concluding the call. The call should conclude by reading back what has been documented and advising the claimant that this information will be added as evidence to the file.
It is clear then, that this is very different from a full assessment which will last much longer and would not include having the evidence read back to the claimant.

Having someone with you at a telephone assessment
It’s really important that if you need someone to help you with your telephone call, that they are able to take part. The fact that this is a telephone assessment should not in any way prevent you getting support from family or friends. Yet we have heard from members who have been told by the assessment provider that they can’t have anyone else take part in the call.

The PIP assessment Guide Part 1: The Assessment Process says for face-to-face consultations: 1.6.51 Claimants have a right to be accompanied to a face-to-face consultation if they so wish. Claimants should be encouraged to bring another person with them to consultations where they would find this helpful – for example, to reassure them or to help them during the consultation. The person chosen is at the discretion of the claimant and might be, but is not limited to, a parent, family member, friend, carer or advocate.
It goes on to say:
1.6.53 Consultations should predominantly be between the HP and the claimant. However, the companions may play an active role in helping claimants answer questions where the claimant or HP wishes them to do so. HPs should allow a companion to contribute and should record any evidence they provide. This may be particularly important where the claimant has a mental, cognitive or intellectual impairment. In such cases the claimant may not be able to give an accurate account of their health condition or impairment, through a lack of insight or unrealistic expectations of their own ability. In such cases it will be essential to get an accurate account from the companion.
We would argue very strongly that this applies equally to telephone consultations.

If the person you want with you lives in your household then this is very straightforward. Make sure you introduce them when the call begins and explain why they are there.
If the health professional objects, read out the guidance above to them.
If they still object, suggest that they ring Capita or IAS for advice before they continue with the assessment.
If the person lives elsewhere they are unlikely to be able to join you because of the lockdown. It should be absolutely no problem for Atos or Capita to arrange a conference call to include your accompanying person.
Contact them as soon as you receive notice of the call and ask for this to be done.
If they refuse to do so, make a complaint immediately and tell them that you will be contacting your MP and getting advice on bringing a claim for breach of the Equality Act 2010.
Just in case of technical problems on the day, you might want to look into whether you can join a third party into a call yourself when it has already begun. There are some phone providers that make this possible.
Alternatively, if you have two telephones, you may be able to have them both on speaker phone and get round the problem that way.

We would not advise you to refuse to go ahead with a call if your accompanying person cannot be joined in, unless the health professional is happy to agree to rearrange for a different date. If you simply refuse to take part, your claim is likely to be returned to the DWP and you will then have to try to show that you had good cause for not taking part in the assessment.
It is likely to be safer to take part in the assessment and make a formal complaint afterwards. If you do not receive the correct PIP award, one of your grounds of appeal would be the failure to allow you to have your accompanying person at your assessment.

 

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