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Wednesday, 3 October 2023

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Money, tax and benefits

Attendance Allowance medical examination - what happens next

After your Attendance Allowance medical examination, Medical Services will send the report to the Disability and Carers Service, who handle benefit claims. Your claim is confidential and you have the right to appeal if you want to.

The decision about your claim

Already claiming Attendance Allowance and want to report a change in your circumstances - find out more

Attendance Allowance - your circumstances

A non-medical person within the Disability and Carers Service (the 'decision-maker') will consider the report along with all the other information provided for your claim. They will decide whether to approve your claim and whether you're entitled to the higher or lower rate of Attendance Allowance. You will receive a letter stating their decision.

Confidentiality

All the medical information related to your claim, including the doctor's report from the medical examination, is confidential. It will not be released to anyone outside the Department for Work and Pensions.

However, sometimes the doctor may want to send some information about your medical examination to your GP. In that case, Medical Services will write to you and ask if you're happy for them to do so.

Finding out about the benefit decision

It normally takes about 22 working days to process a claim, from the day the Department for Work and Pensions receives your claim form. You can check on the progress of your Attendance Allowance claim by calling the Disability helpline.

Telephone: 08457 12 34 56

Textphone: 08457 22 44 33

The helpline is open from 7.30 am to 6.30 pm, Monday to Friday.

Email: dcpu.customer-services@dwp.gsi.gov.uk

If you're not happy with the medical examination

If you're not happy with the way the medical examination was carried out, you can complain to Medical Services. The complaints procedure is outlined in the letter you received about your medical examination.

You can also complain to the doctor at the time of the examination. If they can't resolve the problem, they will give you a brochure explaining the formal complaints procedure. You can also call the Disability helpline for advice on making a complaint to Medical Services.

If you're not happy with the benefit decision

If you think the decision about your Attendance Allowance claim is wrong, or you disagree with the rate that you've been awarded, you can:

ask the office who made the decision to explain it
ask to have the decision reconsidered by another decision-maker
appeal against the decision to an independent tribunal

How to appeal against a benefits decision

The doctor's report

You can ask to be sent a copy of the doctor's report at any time. If you appeal against an Attendance Allowance decision, you will be able to see the doctor's report as part of the appeal process.

Repeat medical examinations

Your Attendance Allowance award will be for either a fixed or an indefinite period. The decision-maker will set the length of your award depending on whether your disability or illness is permanent or your needs may change.

If your award is for a fixed period, you'll be invited to make a new claim six months before the award runs out. This is called a ' renewal claim'. Renewal claims are processed exactly the same way as new claims, so you may be asked to attend a medical examination.

If your benefit award is for an indefinite period, you will not usually have to make a renewal claim. However, indefinite awards can sometimes be reviewed and you may need to have another medical examination as part of the review.