DWP denies blind woman ESA and PIP because she attended interview with mum

A blind woman has been denied benefits because she attended a Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) interview with the help of her mother. Charlotte Easton says she was told that as she had been able to travel to her assessment, she must be able to work.

Easton applied for the Employment and Support Allowance as she cannot leave her home without help. She is blind and has a hearing impairment and was diagnosed with Pfeiffer syndrome, a genetic condition affecting her skull, and hydrocephalus.

“They asked how I got there,” she said. “My mum said we’d gone by train, and she’d had to guide me and make sure people didn’t bump into me and all those sorts of things. Because mum was able to get me there, they basically said that that, and the fact that I used to have dogs and let them in the garden, meant ‘you’re more than capable of working’.”

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“It does frustrate me,” she told the Guardian newspaper. “My mum tried to appeal against [the ESA decision] but nothing came of it. I said I couldn’t keep going through things like that. Much as life might be easier with the money, my life would be easier without the stress of trying to battle for it.”

Richard Kramer, Sense’s chief executive, said: “Our research has exposed serious flaws with the benefits system – which disabled people are paying the price for. It is unacceptable that people with complex disabilities are feeling humiliated and scared, and having their condition deteriorate because of their benefits assessments.”

A DWP spokesperson said: “Millions of people rely on our welfare system every year and it is vital that it can be accessed by all who need it. That’s why we will work closely with disabled people to reform the current system so that it provides the support they need.”