Disability Living Allowance (Hansard, 24 March 1993)

§ Mr. Scott

The administration of disability living allowance is a matter for Mr. Michael Bichard, the chief executive of the Benefits Agency. He will write to the hon. Member, and a copy will be placed in the Library.

Letter from Mr. Michael Bichard to Dr. Tony Wright, dated 23 March 1993: As Chief Executive of the Benefits Agency, it is my responsibility to answer questions about relevant operational matters. I am therefore replying to the points raised in your recent Parliamentary Question to the Secretary of State for Social Security asking how many Disability Living Allowance (DLA) claims have gone to review during the last year; and in how many reviews the claim has been allowed. A customer can request a review on any grounds within 3 months of the original decision; outside this period, a review can still be requested but on limited grounds, for example where the Adjudication Officer has been ignorant of a fact which would have affected entitlement or where there is an award of benefit and the customers's condition has changed. Generally speaking if a customer is dissatisfied with the original decision on his claim, then a review request is likely to be received within 3 months. I assume from the wording of your question, that it is this category with which you are particularly concerned. Between February 1992 and the end of February 1993 a total of nearly 81,500 reviews both within and outside 3 months have been received. Of decisions given on these applications almost 22,000 related to reviews requested within 3 months of the original decision notification; and nearly 9,600 were in the customers favour. All figures are provisional and rounded and may be subject to amendment. Finally, I hope you find this reply helpful. A copy of this letter will appear in the Official Report and a copy will also be placed in the Library.