Tribunal

[ajen99]

Has anyone one been to a tribunal because they "failed" their medical? Have got to say if I want to go to one, but don't know if I can face it, makes me feel worse just thinking about it. I just feel if I DO go they will think I am well enough to make it so I can't be that bad, but if I don't then they'll just judge against me anyway.

[vicki0191]

hi there, sorry to hear that you have failed an esa medical and are now in the position of deciding whether to appeal or not and whether to attend a tribunal.I`ve failed the last 2 medicals I had and on both occaisions went to tribunal and won. Personally, i would say go for it, many people are winning their tribunals ( think the stats are that between 40 and 70% of claimants win with those who have help from welfare rights workers having the best chance) .The most important thing to do now if you haven`t already is to get an appeal form and send it in, as this needs to be done within a certain time after the decision to stop your claim( think you have about 1 month) It is also very much worthwhile trying to get some help from someone who is an expert in welfare benefits- either your local council, CAB, or local charities are worth approaching.You may well have a long wait til you get a date for a hearing- i waited about 7 months between my medical and tribunal last year. I won`t pretend that going to he hearing isn`t a stressful experience, but I personally didn`t find it any worse than going to the medicals. I felt that I was actually listened to and given time to answer the questions i was asked, unlike some of the experiences i have had with atos interviews, and was treated with respect and dignity.The hearing takes place around a table and there are usually 2 members on the panel.One is a doctor and the other a person with a legal background who is an expert in welfare benefit law. You are allowed to take someone with you for support which i did on both occaisons. It is often possible to get the decision on the day, but sometimes this is sent by post and usually within a week.I received the decision on the day after both my hearings, just a few mins after leaving the room, but I am aware of cases where this was not possible due to hearings overrunning. Please dont be frightened that they will assume you are fit for work because you were able to attend the hearing, in fact the success rate is higher for those who choose to attend tribunals in person than those who opt for a paper hearing. In some ways coping with the long wait and the feaar of the unknown is worse than the day itself, in fact in my case my reaction to my last tribunal was eh! is that it?! as the whole experience from entering the building to getting the result was done in not much more than half an hour!!!!! good luck!

[ajen99]

Thank you so much for responding. I've contacted both Welfare rights and MIND now to ask them for help with this as, like you said, I guess I will stand more of a chance if I turn up and am just honest about how my day to day life can be affected. It's ridiculous that we have to respond to anything sent within a month but they seem to be able to take as long as they like. I think I've been waiting since the start of the year to find out my appeal failed, and it looks like it will be at least the same amount of time before I get the tribunal. So I know I'm going to be worried about this for some time to come, but your advice and info has helped, so thanks again.

[ajen99]

Have heard back from welfare rights, said it will be around Oct before I get to see them because they are so busy with appeals-surprise! But since it looks unlikely that my appeal will be this year it should be ok, and they also said to contact them if I have any questions in the meantime. So I'd really recommend anyone in the same situation to get in touch with them.

[rainack]

I am in the support group~ is this what you are going for?

[mckeo5514]