CASE STUDY MR A
Mr A was referred to the Warwickshire Specialist Benefits Service after he had twice claimed Personal Independence Payment and been turned down.
Mr A was a man in his 50’s who suffered from severe depression and anxiety, breathing problems and also chronic knee and back pain from arthritis. In addition, he had suffered from addiction to alcohol and non-prescription drugs since he was 13 years old, which had impacted negatively on his mental and physical health.
When we saw him, Mr A was endeavouring to turn his life around and had managed to very significantly reduce his consumption of alcohol and drugs. However, he remained severely depressed and anxious and his anxiety was exacerbated by knowing that his home environment and the acquaintances surrounding him could cause him to relapse again.
During our conversations with him, Mr A explained that he really wanted to move to a different area as he felt this would help his recovery from addiction and lead to an improvement in his mental health, but he was financially unable to do so. Citizens Advice had previously assisted Mr A to reduce his debts, but he had a few remaining debts and his income was low.
We assisted Mr A to lodge an appeal against the latest decision refusing PIP and supported him afterwards when his low mood caused him to consider dropping the appeal.
We prepared a written submission to the appeal tribunal, setting out Mr A’s case for an award of PIP. When a date was received for the appeal to be heard, we represented Mr A at the hearing as he felt unable to go through it on his own.
The appeal was successful, with Mr A being awarded both components of PIP at the highest rate for a period of 5 years.
The award gave the client an extra £8,200 income a year, doubling his existing income. In addition, because it had taken nearly 18 months for Mr A’s claim to be resolved, he was also entitled to arrears of £14,400.
Mr A will now be able to clear his remaining debts and also move out of the area.
Mr A was very happy with the outcome of his appeal and the difference it would make to his life, saying in his feedback on the service provided, “You gave me a better standard of living with less stress and a smile on my face. Thank you so very much”
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