Back on the roundabout

[hobbbllliiingaround]

Well here I go again , have decided to try again and re-apply for ESA. Was quite a day trying to get an answer from the benefit help line to ask advice.The advice was sign on or re-claim. Then I rang up to put a claim in and it was the day of the strike....I get very confused over all this on-line and telephone claim rubbish......But the girl on the end of the phone asked me when my current claim ran out /when did I want to claim from ???## I said I didn't have a clue ..I was told the forms will be sent and I have to do some course and gave me another number to ring to find out when to claim from..................................................OH for the days when we just went to see one person ..who HELPED fill in the form..and sent it off for you............I did not have any problem back then and their wage bill must have been a lot cheaper I am sure. It must be costing the country BILLIONS UPON BILLIONS to torture the sick and needy...............................

[Hidden]

Wishing you the best of luck this time Hobbling (sorry couldn't type it all lol!) - I hope it all works out for you.

Have you considered popping along to your local CAB (Citizen's Advice Bureau), they can give you lots of advice regarding ESA and can even help you fill in your forms. They will advise you to submit information from your worst days not one of your better days etc.

Also there is the Benefits And Work website which has an abundance of info on completing forms, they tell you how to tackle this. Unfortunately at the moment I don't have the link to the sheets with this info on, but hopefully I will have soon. However, if you register on this site you should be able to download them. Any problems just shout. Take care Hobbling!

[Davlad]

if thers one thing i've learnt about this benefit is that from day one i've and no help in fact i'd go as far as to say they would rather hinder you from claiming it... this trecherous corrupt goverment have thought long and hard how to stop you from getting anything from it... even if your deserved of it.... i'm waiting for a whistleblower who works for them to come out and tell us how they were trained in how to distract us from claiming.... it will be interesting and will show how utterley heartless this "i'm alright Jack" goverment is...... my advise is take no advice off them and go to C.A.B. or Age Concern depending on your age.... good luck !!!!

[Ruth14]

I went to CAB yesterday and they are putting in a new claim for me. It was such a relief to just sit there and let the woman fill in the form on the computer. =)

Saw a job online today and it's only 4 hrs a week, thinking to myself that perhaps I could at least manage that and claim income support. I wouldn't have all this stress of applying and probably have to re-apply in 6 months time like some of you on here have had to do. Any benefits experts on here? Is that how Income Support works?

Got hot iron rod in my spine today.... haven't had it in ages, you forget how REALLY BAD, it can get sometimes.

Healing to you all xx

[hamble99b]

go to FibroAction site,

click on fibro and benefits

this should take you to the benefits and work link where you can download the pdf booklet that helps you fill in forms for ESA & DLA. good luck. sandra

[bumblebee57]

Hi, Im doing the same. I failed my medical, appealed,failed that too (but only just) and was told to sign on as my ESA would stop that day. I did that and have gone to hell and back with it. They are so infuriating at the jobcentre. I was told "You have to be fit for work or to look for work". I got so stressed with it all, my Dr signed me off for 2 months.I gave the sick note to the jobcentre and they closed my claim for JSA. So I am not sick enough for ESA and too sick for JSA. So Ive re-applied for ESA and Im on the same roundabout as you, but I wana get off!! I was on the phone for an hour, non stop, yesterday and 15mins today, just trying to get through. When I eventually got through, it took 50 mins to get my details over to claim. The man I spoke to sounded like a robot, just read things to me as if it was a script. Well I suppose it is really. He didnt really know what the hell he was doing. good job its a 0800 number. As Davlad said, they do everything they can to put us off claiming. Well Im doing everything I can to make them understand the nature of my illness prevents me from working and that I have to live on SOMETHING, so SOMEONE has to pay me what is rightfully mine. Its rightfully YOURS TOO, so good luck and keep fighting.x