Written evidence from Anthony Martindale (HAB0163)
Thank you, Sir Stephen,
You asked me a while ago for my opinion on what could be changed for the better and the biggest problem we have, is that when the DWP say no (for whatever reason) the next course of action is to appeal. Unfortunately, (as in my case) if the DWP still say no because the DWP is still under no obligation to follow what the Tribunal suggests and the Tribunal has no power to enforce its decision, which leaves the claimant no re-course. They (like me) are left in limbo and this has produced a backlog that could take years to clear.
Perhaps it is time to change that stale mate. If the claimant has won his appeal and the DWP still says no, then the claimant should be allowed to pursue what would have been paid to him when the DWP said no - through the small claims court.
At the moment we're not allowed to do this. If the DWP see that a claimant can pursue his/her claim through the small claims court, then perhaps the DWP will take the claimants claim a little more seriously.
Or
Whatever the Tribunal says has to be enforced for 6 months. After that initial 6 months, a letter from his/her GP explaining that nothing has changed, entitles the claimant to another 6 months and so on and so on. Then and only then after 2 years can he/she be reassessed by the WCA at their local hospital
Whatever decision is reached there is one problem that has to change. The WCA assessments have to be taken out of the DWP's hands and into a neutral third party.
Yours sincerely
Anthony Martindale