Disability Rights 2 Know

If you reference my previous article What to Do Before Your First PIP Assessment, you’ll know that recording the assessment is important. This creates a contemporaneous audio recording of the assessment. You are not legally obliged to obtain the assessor’s consent beforehand, but it is good practice to do so. You are permitted to record the assessment as long as it is an audio recording for personal use. The audio cannot be shared publicly or distributed.

With the existence of an audio recording, any discrepancies in the PA4 will be more challenging for the DWP to defend. You will also have the opportunity to compare what you said verbatim with the medical reasoning for refusal. Collating this argument in your Mandatory Reconsideration bundle is far stronger than simply arguing the decision letter based on subjective disagreements.

Important: It is not advisable to submit an audio recording to the DWP or any other third party unless they can provide confirmation of secure evidence handling procedures for special category data. Submitting the recording is lawful, but to protect yourself legally there are certain protocols that should be adhered to. These procedures include chain of custody, analysis and preservation, and also confirmation of persons authorised to access the data. An audio recording of a PIP assessment constitutes Special Category Data under GDPR.

The DWP and Health Assessment providers have a duty of care. There is no statutory basis upon which they can demand an audio recording as a condition of your complaint resolution. They can invite you to submit it safely, which is acceptable. But pressuring a claimant would be unacceptable, representing a departure from ethical standards and guidelines.