Disability Living Allowance

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I have been on the lowest rate of DLA (Disability Living Allowance, a disability benefit in the UK) for three years and now I finally get the courage to appeal for medium rate (totally justified in my situation according to my mental health team) and I get turned down, remain on lowest rate DLA. Now I have to appeal to the panel. Grr. I have so many difficulties day to day and I cannot look after myself like the average 22 year old can so I live in supported housing.

Has anyone else had this sort of grief from the government about disability benefits?

I am on ESA and DLA. The DLA people (I get middle rate care for DLA) have been quite good but I had to appeal the ESA when I had the first medical as they failed me. It went to tribunal and they awarded me ESA in the Work related activity group. 6 Months after that I had to have another medical again! This time I passed it though so did not need the tribunal.

I am on ESA as well and am also in the Work Related Activity Group. My ESA gives me more than twice as much money as my DLA gives me.

It would be nice if you posted your rate.

I get 1305/month I use to get 1025 a month. Now I might be getting less but on a more secure basis or I'll stick it out with what I have now and hope they don't try and pry me off for any reasons...

Am just on ESA on the back to work group after having be on IB, I hope to put in for DLA soon.

Do your know that DLA (Disability Living Allowance) is a British disability benefit?
The figures you qutoed WhiteWidow are they in Sterling or in Loonies?

I get £99.15 a week on ESA and around £40 (can't remember the exact figure) a week on DLA. I also get £88.50 a week housing benefit, but that gets paid straight to the carers of my supported housing.

i think im about to, i recieved the dreaded tan envelope arrived this week. (transfer from the old system to ESA/JSA)

my living allowance is in loonies. Seeing as how Edmonton, Alberta is located in Canada.

Thats terrible. that's like under 700 loonies.

I think I get about $250-$300 AU each week for a disability support pension (I don't manage said funds).

I didn't have a problem getting on it.

There are different types of DLA, so at the moment I'm on basic rate IB (not yet switched to ESA) and middle-rate DLA, which comes to around £709.16 (C$1,117) per month I have to pay around £217 (C$342) per month to my mum for food and lodgings - probably not enough but I chip in a little more too sometimes and always pay my bills on time. So I'm left with around and about £492 per month (C$775), or, translated, around and about £113 (C$178) or so per week.

i get nearly £400 pound a month lowest mobility and highest care rate.

In the U.S there's SSDI (Social Security Disability Insurance) which is granted based upon how many credits you've earned by paying into the system, or granted if you were disabled before a certain time (age 22) under the Disabled Adult clause. I believe it pays much more than SSI, which is a needs base program, scaling on your income and available assets. SSDI credit amounts needed to qualify vary by age. I am currently applying for this program.

To qualify for SSI you need to be under about $1,100~, which is called significant-gainful employment. You can still work and receive benefits, it will just be scaled down according to your paycheck.

Thank you White widow, I came on the forum pretty depressed this morning but your loonies comments have made me giggle inside!

Has anyone applied for DLA after the changes the Coalition put in place to make it harder to qualify? I get DLA at the moment and I'd find it very helpful at uni, but I'm doubting whether or not the new means testing system will let me keep receiving it.

Yes, I have been having trouble with this since earlier this year. I get the lowest rate mobility DLA, although I appealed but they came to the same decision. I was on IB until the summer when I got the letter about having to be assessed again because they are phasing out IB. They found me to be not elligible for ESA, so I have appealed and heard this week that they came to the same decision so it is being sent to tribunal. This is worrying me because I don't think I can attend a hearing but apparently the chances of winning an appeal are doubled if you do go (as opposed to having it looked at on paper). In some ways I can see why but it doesn't entirely make sense to me.
I have been considering making a thread about it actually. I feel that the medical assessment I had was rather incompetent, they didn't really listen to what I was saying.