Coronavirus pandemic ‘delays people receiving their disability benefits’
CORONAVIRUS has caused a backlog in the number of people facing delays in receiving sickness and disability benefits.
More than 260,000 vulnerable Brits have been forced to wait months for a response from the Department of Work and Pensions on their applications, reports the Independent.
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The figures were published by the DWP in response to a parliamentary written question on May 1.
It asked how many claimants were waiting for an assessment for personal independence payments (PIP) and employment support allowances (ESA).
According to the DWP, the number of people either with or waiting for a scheduled PIP assessment as of April 27 was 166,630, while 101,910 people were waiting on ESA claims as of May 4.
The delays are also believed to be experienced by people who are trying to appeal decisions to reduce their sickness and disability benefits.
The Independent says campaigners are linking the backlog to the Government’s decision to redeploy a large number of frontline staff away from disability benefits to handle the surge in universal credit claims stemming from the pandemic.
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Matthew Harrison, parliamentary co-chair of the Disability Benefits Consortium, told the paper: “The shifting of staff away from disability benefits, such as PIP, is without doubt having a knock-on effect in delaying people’s applications.
“We are also hearing of cases where people are waiting on appeals and are being left with little money during this period, and cases where successful appeal outcomes, correcting wrong decisions, are not being implemented promptly.
“This cannot be right and the Government must tackle this backlog immediately to ensure that disabled people, who are being disproportionately impacted by Covid-19, have the financial support they need to get through this period.”
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In March, the government announced a series of measures to help people during the crisis.
Working tax credits were raised by £1,040 to help families struggling in coronavirus lockdown.
Universal Credit claimants no longer need to call to start claim under new rules.
Meanwhile we’ve created a guide outlining what help you could receive under Universal Credit.