Sanctions overcome by WCA decision?

Hello,

Client found not to satisfy Work Capability Assessment (WCA) for Employment Support Allowance (ESA) so signed on at the Job Centre while awaiting Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) and subsequent appeal of ESA decision.  As time passed, client’s condition was such that he failed to keep to his Job Seeker’s Agreement and was sanctioned 3 times; all of which are currently subject to MR requests. 

Since these sanctions have been applied, client has won his ESA appeal with a decision pre-dating the claim to JSA and all of the 3 sanctions.

Now I think the favourable ESA appeal decision will render all of the JSA sanction decisions as void; but the way things are I want to know if anyone thinks I’m being too optimistic or, indeed, simply wrong.

Do you think a letter to the people dealing with the JSA sanction MR’s advising them of the ESA decision will do the trick? I think it might.

Thank you.

Patrick

If ESA’s been awarded starting on a date prior to the JSA claim, I don’t see how JSA sanctions can be applied to ESA as the rules are quite distinct. I think the only thing that will be taken into account iro JSA will be the payments made. So work out the amount of ESA the claimant should have got and deduct the JSA payments to give you the backdated ESA payable.

Or did I misunderstand the question?

I know about the payments and the like.  The only thing I’ve got a problem with is whether the JSA sanctions will still be live or otherwise.  I know also that the JSA sanctions won’t be applied to the ESA, the only question is whether the JC+ will drop the JSA sanctions now that the WCA is okay for the period of the sanctions?

Thank you.

Patrick

Does it matter? Either the sanction is lifted and the claimant gets JSA, which is set-off against any underpaid ESA or it is not lifted, in which case ESA is paid for the sanctioned period.

I feel that I may have misunderstood.

Sanctions aren’t for a fixed period on the calendar; they’re for a fixed period of time. If they’re not revoked they will be applied to a new claim as and when it is made. That’s my reading of it. See reg 69B JSA regs ‘96.

The JSA sanctions will subsist and be imposed on a new claim unless they’re reconsidered. If he were to make a new claim for JSA the sanctions will rear their ugly head at the beginning of the new claim; that would possibly mean a three year termination.

Best to advise the Dispute Resolution Team he had limited capability for work and that he had good cause for failure to do whatever it is he failed to do; that’s what I’d do anyway.

DManville - 16 June 2014 04:23 PM

Sanctions aren’t for a fixed period on the calendar; they’re for a fixed period of time. If they’re not revoked they will be applied to a new claim as and when it is made. That’s my reading of it. See reg 69B JSA regs ‘96.

The JSA sanctions will subsist and be imposed on a new claim unless they’re reconsidered. If he were to make a new claim for JSA the sanctions will rear their ugly head at the beginning of the new claim; that would possibly mean a three year termination.

Best to advise the Dispute Resolution Team he had limited capability for work and that he had good cause for failure to do whatever it is he failed to do; that’s what I’d do anyway.

I concur. This is what happens in practise. Clients simply cannot afford to let sanctions decisions go just because another benefit comes into play. I have had a small but significant number of cases where client found fit; claims JSA; gets sanctioned; wins ESA at appeal; goes back to work but then loses job or becomes sick again (and then found fit again) and ends up claiming JSA but getting nothing because they didn’t challenge the original sanctions. I think it’s one of the most critical things we can explain to claimants. Challenge every sanction or it will come back and bite you.

Good news about this.  The local MP’s assistant, who has been involved, has been assured that the JSA sanctions will now be overturned.  We did suggest that this be confirmed in writing of course.

Thank you everyone.

Patrick.

Tony’s comment above is what I was - less eloquently - getting at. Duly noted about the JSA sanctions affecting later claims, though.

I wonder how long they stay on the books. A year? Six years?