Getting DLA but being independant (UK)

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Wandering_Stranger
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24 Sep 2012, 10:55 am

Filling in the forms on your worst days is fraud.

YellowBanana
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24 Sep 2012, 11:08 am

Wandering_Stranger wrote:

Filling in the forms on your worst days is fraud.

Not true. This is what the guidance says for you to do. It felt really odd to actually do it though because I'm used to focusing on what I am able to do on my best days ...

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Wandering_Stranger
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24 Sep 2012, 11:12 am

The guidance doesn't say that. You must do it on an average day. By doing it on your worst days, you're saying you need more help than you need. You have to sign a declaration at the end of the form stating that the information you've given is true. By doing the form on your worst day, you're saying you need more help than you really do.

TheDarkMage
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24 Sep 2012, 12:02 pm

YellowBanana wrote:

I filled in the form describing my difficulties at their worst (as I was advised to do). DWP have now written to my psychiatrist for further information. I await a decision but do not believe I will be eligible for it. I guess we'll wait and see. If I don't get it I won't be appealing that decision.

if you dont appeal then you have let them win. The way things are now they will may just fob you off. If you are entitled to it then appeal. People hate it when the word entitled is used as its become a dirty word thanks to the daily mail readers of the country. im sure the people who moan about "entitlement" are the same people claiming tax credits etc. If you are in need of it and believe you qualify then take everything you can get as i can assure you that if the shoe was on the other foot - the government would throw you in jail if you owed them money.

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YellowBanana
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24 Sep 2012, 12:10 pm

Wandering_Stranger wrote:

Guidance says:
"If you have good days and bad days, or your disability varies over time, you may want to keep a record of your needs over a good day and over a bad day. Start from the time you get up in the morning, through 24 hours, to the time you get up the following morning. You can send in the record with your form if you want to."

My form describes what I am like on my worst days, and also states the average number of those days I have a week. It does not misrepresent anything. It is not fraud. If I did not indicate that I also had better days and represented my worst days as my only days, clearly that would be wrong. However, to fill it in on a good day or an average day and suggest those are my only type of day would also misrepresent the amount of support I require as much as claiming my worst days are the only kind of day I have (although at the moment, they pretty much are).

I signed the declaration quite happily knowing that the information I provided is an accurate representation of my difficulties "I declare that the information I have given on this form is correct and complete as far as I know and believe. I understand that if I knowingly give false information, my benefit may be stopped and I may be liable to prosecution or other action."

Anyway, it's largely irrelevant because I honestly don't believe I'm eligible, I filled it in because the social worker, psychiatrist and GP were all hassling me to do it to try to help me get the support that has been recommended for me.

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xmh
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24 Sep 2012, 4:27 pm

TheDarkMage wrote:

well having little money gives you two things. stress and worry. the more stressed and worried i get, the more angry and volatile i become.

I would think this applies to the majority of the population.

According to the UK Government Website

Quote:

Disability Living Allowance (DLA) is a tax-free benefit for disabled children and adults to help with extra costs you may have because you're disabled.

Saying that you need more money to avoid becoming stressed is the type of comment that the Daily Mail would love!

TheDarkMage wrote:

There seems to be a common consensus that the tax payer has the right to dictate to us what money we should and shouldnt get and what we should and shouldnt spend it on. Maybe if the tax payers out there were a bit more accomodating, then maybe there wouldnt be so many of us on disability benefits and more of us doing jobs that we can actually do.

Welfare policy is determined by the government, which is chosen by elected members of Parliament. Since the majority of the electorate is employed then the majority of the votes cast in an election will be made by taxpayers (assuming they use their democratic right to vote).

So the taxpayer does have a say in welfare policy, as would be expected in a democracy.

The current economic situation is not being kind to most of the population.

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24 Sep 2012, 4:41 pm

Callista wrote:

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I am a little concerned sometimes about our tendency to "police" each other, to question whether this person or that person really needs this or that sort of assistance. It seems to be a manifestation of self-directed prejudice. Society often says we ought to be grateful for whatever scraps we can get, because our disability makes us innately inferior. Insisting on our rights as human beings is often seen as "taking advantage" or "giving up"... We're supposed to hate every bit of help we get, reject it as much as possible, be slavishly grateful for what we get. In a more realistic, just world, we would get what we needed simply because we needed it, and that sort of help would be a matter of course rather than something we're taught not to expect, to be grateful for when we do get it.

There are people who "cheat the system", but there are far fewer of them than it seems. For every one that makes the news, there are hundreds who are honest and trying to get by; and those honest people don't make good news stories. Plus, "cheating the system" doesn't really benefit you that much. It's life below the poverty line, with the bare minimum of necessity and none of the luxury.

I strongly agree....

I'm applying for disability (in the Canadian system) soon too....so I may be a little biased in my opinion of this....but honestly, one doesn't know what another person goes through even if you have the same or a similar disorder, you may have different environmental/situational factors then another with the same disorder, or one has a particular symptom way more severe and debilitating than another - or one may have co-morbid conditions like learning disabilities, mental illness etc. I hate it when people assume that those on disability are lazy or cheating the system.

Wandering_Stranger
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25 Sep 2012, 1:17 am

YellowBanana wrote:

Wandering_Stranger wrote:

You've misunderstood it. It's saying "keep a record of how you are and how often". It's then saying you have to average this out. For example, if over a two week period, you need help getting dressed 10 days a week, you then write you need help on average of 5 days a week.

TheDarkMage
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25 Sep 2012, 2:32 am

xmh wrote:

I would think this applies to the majority of the population.

..but they dont start harming themselves.

Quote:

Disability Living Allowance (DLA) is a tax-free benefit for disabled children and adults to help with extra costs you may have because you're disabled.

How about running a car because i cant take public transport.

Quote:

britain is not a democracy. the whole system is rigged and the sheep that believe in it are idiots. also if you believe the taxpayer has any say in this country about ANYTHING then you dont know much about british politics.

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invisiblesilent
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25 Sep 2012, 11:13 am

TheDarkMage wrote:

britain is not a democracy

This. First past the post is an inherently undemocratic system and the dumbass British electorate threw away our chance to dispose of it so they could stick one to Nick Clegg... and people wonder why I am so misanthropic.

Joe90
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25 Sep 2012, 11:55 am

Did I mention that my friend has trouble repeating to other people what is said to her, for example her mum goes to doctors and hospital appointments with her so that she can know exactly what the doctor said, because although my friend takes it all in well and understands, she still has issues with repeating it to other people like her mum. I know how that is because I have those issues myself.

Also my friend did have extra support when finding a job, from a disability advisor, and she got anxious with certain jobs, also couldn't cope with the pressure from the job centre. Her disability advisor finally found her an easy part time job that she can cope with and involves no talking to people or working under strict pressure.

Not only finding a suitable job was a bit of a strain, it was also finding suitable hours. The rush hours (especially between 3 and 6) made her anxious because she had difficulty crossing the roads and so liked to avoid those busy times, also she was very vulnerable and so didn't want to end up walking on her own when it got too dark, so she's finally got an easy job where she's doing 3 mornings a week, reasonable, easy hours. This has nothing to do with laziness - she does do some voluntary work what she gets on a short bus ride to, which is unpaid so she doesn't have too much pressure and can come and go as she pleases.

She also finds it hard to make friends, which means she has to do a lot of things on her own, unless her parents are there for her. She has me, and a couple of other friends, but she doesn't live too near me, I usually just speak to her on Facebook (private messaging).

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TheDarkMage
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25 Sep 2012, 12:37 pm

Joe90 wrote:

sounds similar to me except my situation is rather more complex

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daydreamer84
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25 Sep 2012, 1:29 pm

I can relate to the OP's friend too....I also can't take jobs during rush hour because I get panic attacks if I go on crowded buses and subway trains. My mom is right now considering paying for a disability job coach to help me find a job too.

Anyways I'm glad she got DLA.....I think she absolutely deserves it and I wish her well.

TheWebbz
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25 Sep 2012, 2:58 pm

I receive DLA, and I'm fairly....independent I guess. I just suffer from extreme anxiety when doing mostly anything.

I'm only fourteen though, so my mother uses the money for bills and groceries and the likes...

Jtuk
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25 Sep 2012, 4:44 pm

DLA is a pretty low amount of money compared to many other benefits. It's also the only benefit that someone working with a disability is able to claim.

£51.85. gets you about 1 hour of care a day. Someone who is earning £14K a year, would be paying £54.74 in Tax/NI/PAYE. So even at this level it's tax neutral and a lot better value for the Government than having them unemployed and costing up to £26K (coming soon) in a mix of benefits including DLA.

Jason.

Wandering_Stranger
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25 Sep 2012, 5:27 pm

Jtuk wrote:

DLA is paid due to care and /or mobility needs. Many people (including myself) receive DLA and other benefits on top.

Would love to know how other people on the spectrum manage to get the middle rate. Despite having Autism and a few other diagnoses which mean I need a lot of help, (which they've agreed with) I can't get it. Yet, they seem to say that I meet the criteria.

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