On the 2nd May 2012 I had a reply to a FOI Request from the DWP, one of the questions I asked was – (Can you confirm or deny that claimants who have requested a home assessment have also been granted the request to have their home assessment audio recorded)? The reply I got was very interesting because in the first instant the DWP told me an outright lie, you might think I’m stupid for thinking they would do anything else but on this particular matter I thought they would be much more careful, here is their original reply to that question?
DWP Reply to that particular question
In reply to Q5, I can confirm that a Work Capability Assessment has never been recorded by Atos Healthcare during a home assessment
I knew this to be a lie but we’ll move on.
I then contacted the DWP Again to give them another opportunity to look again at the question I had asked them, today I got another reply from them after they conducted an internal review? Click on link to see their response – http://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/confirmation_of_facts#incoming-288529
Whether a Atos Home Assessment has been Audio Recorded is I believe a very important question, the revised answer as far as I’m concerned sets a precedent for future claimants who request “Home Assessments”? I think this is a very important admission from the DWP, they tried to deny it but I warned them I would publish details to contradict them. I sincerely hope this proves useful for future claimants…..
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well well well caught out lying no no they dont lie they tell big ones well done caught but do they admit it jeff3
not enough people understand that recording of assessments/medicals whatever you like to call them. Is essential for more than just one reason. When the brown stuff hits the fan, and somebody is called to book for all this ATOS shite.those recordings are going to be very useful.
I WILL KEEP SHOUTING THIS,GET YOUR WCA RECORDED,if its at home,medical center or on the bloody moon…Get it recorded.
rant over mate.
Weeelllll I’ve always had a recording device in my bag when these assessments are conducted and at the subsequent, and inevitable, DWP Tribunal hearings appealing against ATOS’s decision!
As the Tribunal chair put it recently, “…up until now your claim has been assessed by a civil servant…”. Still trying to work out whether he meant it, or if it was a Freudian slip!
;-D
I would like to make as many people aware of the latest scam.
A friend who has a professional career who works for leading charity wrote to atos with supporting hospital consultants letters of ill health and unable to visit assessment centre.
Frightened by previous information on internet about atos they decided to call atos and covertly record it. When asking why they were asked to attend after it was perfectly obvious that they were house bound-atos do not read any supporting information.
When explaining it was impossible to attend, they were told it was a refusal, they countered this and made the call handler aware that they were recording call.
Call handler screams it is illegal and friend says it proves they are liars.
Next two letters come one for an appointment and one printed the same day cancelling apointment, concerned calling atos out would not be the end of it letters saved.
3 months on longer than you would expect, no letters except landlord angry housing benefit not paid- threatened notice to quit, court and ccj.
After many fruitless calls it turns out atos waited 3 months to tell dwp did not attend (cancellation letter proves otherwise) dwp disallow claim so no ESA or housing benefit.
Friend contacts dwp 14 days to sort out itf they do, at this point friend has spoken to key worker and if they could get to an atos centre would seriously consider setting it or themselves on fire.
Atos are inhumane fraudsters who care not about who they stitch up