Advice on taking a benefits appeal to the Tribunal Service

My personal care rate has stayed the same, but my mobility payment has gone from low rate to nothing at all.

I have submitted an appeal and it is currently with the Tribunal Service, but I am worried about losing the personal care component if I appeal.

A. When you appeal to the Tribunal Service, it will make a decision on the whole claim, including both the personal care and the mobility components.

It could put you back onto the mobility component and leave your personal care component as it is, but there is also the chance that things could be reduced or stay the same.

You could benefit from speaking to a benefits adviser regarding your likelihood of success and whether or not you want to continue with the appeal, or stick with what you have been awarded so far.

Q. I was claiming Employment and Support Allowance until a failed a medical assessment.

I am appealing the decision and I think I can support myself on my savings of about £1,000, but my Housing Benefit and Council Tax reduction has ended.

I don’t really wish to make a claim Universal Credit to cover my rent. Do I have any other options?

A. Your Housing Benefit claim will have been suspended due to your Employment and Support Allowance stopping, as the local authority does not know what your current financial situation is, they just know that you are no longer claiming Employment and Support Allowance.

You can provide evidence of your income to the local authority to have the Housing Benefit restarted.

You can either provide a bank statement or complete a ‘nil income’ statement for the local authority to confirm that you do not have money from anywhere else.

If you are still within the mandatory reconsideration stage of your ESA appeal and the decision remains unchanged, you can then submit an appeal to an independent tribunal (within one month of the decision letter date of the mandatory reconsideration outcome).

Once you receive the notification letter from the Tribunal Service you can contact the Department for Work and Pensions to request your ESA is reinstated (only at the assessment rate).

Notify the council also and once your ESA has been reinstated your Housing Benefit continues as before.