'Obscene' 18-Month Delay for DWP Complaints Points Out BBC

BBC - The BBC Money Box programme has been highlighting the long weighting time for complaints to be decided by the Department of Work and Pensions. This can be as long as eighteen months to have cases adjudicated, and in some cases as long as four years.

BBC Radio 4's Money Box has also learnt that nearly two-thirds of investigations miss their target of being cleared within 20 weeks.

There is another issue – that of Mandatory Reconsiderations. By not making decisions within a reasonable period, or not at all, people cannot take their case to the Independent Case Examiner.

Long delays wear down all but the most determined complainants, and it is a way that the DWP benefits as many people will give up. Unless a claimants case is rigorously documented and vigorously pursued, claimants can find that their memory of events can grow weak waiting this long to have their cases adjudicated. All of which is good news for the DWP. 

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