Halifax MP's anger over '˜appalling' wait times for disability benefit appeals

Appeal decisions for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) and Personal Independence Payments (PIP) are successful at tribunals over 60 per cent of the time according to the latest figures.

READ: Halifax man remains under investigation after fatal road crash in ClaphamHowever, the waiting time for an appeal, during which recipients’ payments are stopped, are locally as high as 40 weeks in some cases.

Ms Lynch has called on the Government to urgently act to bring down these waiting times which she says cause ‘real misery’ for claimants.

READ: Calderdale councillors slam progress on One Yorkshire devolution deal“These cases are about getting help for people with long-term illnesses and disabilities and it’s appalling that many are left in limbo for months while waiting for a decision” she said.

“It is hard to appreciate the distress faced by individuals who find they are without any income and must fight to overturn a wrong decision.

“I‘ve dealt with numerous cases in my office where benefits have been suddenly stopped, often resulting in motability cars taken away, and lives plunged into financial uncertainty.

“These are life-changing decisions, and it’s a disgrace that Government incompetence is creating such an agonisingly slow and difficult system.”

READ: ‘United to deliver the will of Yorkshire’: Region’s leaders’ message to Government over devolution sagaDisability appeals cases from Halifax are currently heard at a tribunal at either Bradford, Huddersfield or Leeds.

Figures for 2017/18 show an average wait time for a decision on PIP of 28 weeks in Bradford, 40 weeks in Huddersfield and 26 weeks in Leeds.

Decisions on ESA are taking an average of 25 weeks in Bradford, 39 weeks in Huddersfield and 24 weeks in Leeds.