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Dept of Social Security

Answer

Mrs. Ewing: To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what is the average length of time taken for an appeal to be processed where an applicant has been refused disability living allowance. [23652] Mr. Keith Bradley: The vast majority of Disability Living Allowance appeals are heard by Disability Appeal Tribunals. In July 1997, the average time from date of appeal to date of decision-issue in an appeal heard by a Disability Appeal Tribunal was 30 weeks based on information provided by the Independent Tribunal Service. There are a few cases, however, which are heard by Social Security Appeal Tribunals and the average clearance time for these was 37.3 weeks for the quarter ending 30 September 1997 according to data provided from Departmental statistics. There are some difficulties with the robustness of the base data used for both sets of statistics. This is the best estimate available. It is not possible to distinguish from available data whether the appeals are from applicants who have been refused Disability Living Allowance or are on other grounds such as the rate of benefit awarded.

Secondary information

Type

Written question

Reference

23652; 305 c108-9W;305 c109W

Session

1997-98

Subjects

Disability living allowance Appeals Applications Administrative delays Social security Social security benefits