Published on 12, July, 2020
Hi,
I am new to the forum as my daughter was only diagnosed with Austistic Spectrum Disorder last summer, after a year and a half of assessments. We applied for PIP last April (I am her appointee) and have just been sent a letter saying she will not receive it, despite never going out alone and not being able to cope with communication with people other than her immediate family, and that is limited. She scored 4 points for 'engaging with other people face to face' and 4 points for 'planning and following journeys'. Zero points for everything else, despite a face to face assessment where I explained that she goes out on average once a week, sometimes less, and is always accompanied. She has lots of sensitivities, particularly with food.
Has anyone else experienced this? I am preparing an appeal. It says on the covering letter ' I realise you have a disability or health condition and receiving this decision isn't the news you were hoping for'. It's a joke.
So glad to hear that other people are winning. We are now going through the process of applying for ESA. Just waiting to hear if my daughter needs a face to face assessment, which I am sure she will. I have found the ESA process slightly less stressful, so far, and our doctor was very understanding and happy to give out the sick notes. I would say again that the appeal process for PIP is worth it in the end. I am prepared to repeat the process as often as necessary. It is just wrong that this is what it takes though.