hello all, have been waiting since jan 3rd when my initial form was submitted, still waiting does anyone know whats going on? thanks sam
PDF version hey sam ive been waiting since 7th jan. the dwp kept telling me that they were waiting for a reply from my specialist, i kept asking him if he had heard from them, he kept saying no, i kept phoning dwp they said that they would send it again 4 times i was told this, then on the 5th attempt they told me that they would write again, 1 week later i received a letter from dwp saying thank you for returning the initial enquiry form that they recieved on 10th jan, and informing me that they were now writing to my specialist,from what i understand they should send a letter when they write to your specialist, so it seems they hadnt written to him at all on the 4 previous occassions, i have spoken to my specialist and he has told me he has now recieved the letter and has replied, now i am just waiting on the dwp to get back to me, its just the way they obviously dont know what they are doing that annoys me, 9 months of stress but hopefully an end is in sight one way or another
I returned my form (DBD551) in January and heard nothing until this week. I have received a letter apologising for the delay and advising me: "we are now in a position to forward a report to your hospital......I will write to you again when the information has been received." I'm not sure what they mean by 'report'; I imagine it is their usual request for information.
I suspect others who have been waiting this lengthy and difficult time may soon be receiving a similar letter.
Just to let you know what should happen.
All forms sent and used by the DWP are given a reference number.
You get the initial enquiry form - DBD551. When the DWP get this back from you they submit a HFR(TI) form to your doctor (there is a copy of this form in the documents section). This form is the medical report. When the DWP get this back from your doctor it is sent to ATOS medical services. ATOS are the doctors for the DWP. They complete a DBD520SR form giving a view on whether you are likey or not to die in the next six months.
The decision maker then determines whether you should, on this information, remain the same or be reviewed again under the "Normal Rules". It is likely you are going to be reviewed and they send you a DLA556 to complete. Again they may seek further medical evidence from other doctors you have mentioned here. I am bound to mention here that they will accept the information requested on the DLA556 in another form i.e. detailed letter and you can get an extension to the timeframe for returning this document. In both cases speak to the decision maker named on your letters.
The DLA556 is then considered and further investigations are undertaken if the DWP deem it necessary.
You will then receive a decision. Based on that decision and how you feel. If it is not what you expected you enter the re-review & appeal process.
There are "bottlenecks" in the system. Filling in the medical reports for your doctors is an extra burden on there time and they are not paid for this. There is no resource in the NHS to deal with it. This means, given the amount of time all the reports your medical doctor will have to write for all their patients. It is taking time.
Speak to your consultant, as mentioned, by the previous poster if you have any concerns.
Hi John,
I also had my first letter in January and have heard nothing since. Did you get a letter from the DWP telling you they were now contacting your consultant?
My review finished some months ago. However what I notice of late is that after many months of people not hearing anything back it seems as if the DWP are catching up albeit that some claims have been running since January of this Year.
Sam, the DWP are quite behind in this process. I have just posted current statistics. Some of the delay can be related to medical reports.