Step by step advice leading up to, during and after your telephone Employment and Support Allowance assessment
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If you're applying for Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) you may be sent a capability for work questionnaire, also known as an ESA50. It's important you complete the form as fully as possible, answering all of the relevant questions.
Please make sure you return the form by the date on the letter you are sent. We will use the information you provide on the form to decide what type of assessment you may need.
You may also download the ESA50 form to your computer. If you use the online form, fill it out, print it, sign it and send it to DWP.
Need help filling in the form?
You can speak to a dedicated advisor on our helpline by calling 0800 072 0222.
Select option 1 for the English language service, then option 2 for our advisory team.
Interpreters
Please let us know at least two days before your assessment if you need a language or BSL interpreter for your assessment. This will help to make sure that we can have an interpreter available for you.
Appointment arrangements
We’ll send a letter with your assessment date. Your appointment letter will have a contact number and information about the assessment. Please read this letter before your assessment.
If you need help before your assessment, call our customer enquiries team on 0800 072 0222. You can call us about specific requirements, interpreters, an authorised companion, audio recording requests, and more.
What happens with your support before your assessment
Whilst you are waiting for your assessment to be completed, you will be paid the assessment rate designated under ESA. You can find more information about Employment and Support Allowance on the DWP website.
Please note there are different factors taken into consideration which may impact your benefit entitlement. For more information go to gov.uk.
The customer enquiries line is open Monday to Friday from 8am to 8pm, and Saturdays 9am to 5pm.
Further evidence
You will need to send in any medical evidence or other information you might already have, such as reports, care or treatment plans about you from GPs, hospital doctors, specialist nurses, community psychiatric nurses, occupational therapists, physiotherapists, social workers, support workers, learning disability support team, counsellors or carers.
Your ESA50 form may ask for details of the professionals or carers who know the most about your health conditions, illnesses and disabilities select the list below to see what these might be:
Remember – only send us copies of medical or other information if you already have them. Don’t ask or pay for new information or send us original documents. Please write your National Insurance number on each piece of information you send to us.
If you haven’t yet received an ESA50 it might be easier for you to gather some of your medical information in advance. This form allows us to decide what type of assessment you may need.
As soon as you have completed the form, you need to sign and date it, and return it in the envelope we provided. It’s important for you to return the form before its due date.
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) may not be able to continue to pay you benefits if we don’t receive this form in time.
If you cannot return the form in time, let us know as soon as possible. There is also a box that allows you to explain why your form was late. If you have any concerns at all about the form, contact Capita as soon as you can or ask a representative to contact Capita.
The assessment questions may include:
- when your illness or disability started
- how your condition changes from day-to-day
- how it affects your daily life
- how it affects your mood and the way you behave
- how you cope with things from day-to-day
The healthcare professional will record information about your pain, fatigue, and the medication you take.
We provide DWP with an assessment report which is impartial and provides justified medical advice about how you are currently affected by your medical condition. This is following government legislation and the processes agreed by DWP.
The healthcare professional
Our healthcare professionals are doctors, nurses, and physiotherapists registered with their governing body. They go through a specifically designed training course, approved by DWP on behalf of the Secretary of State.
A registered and qualified healthcare professional will carry out your telephone Work Capability Assessment. They will discuss your capability to do daily tasks with your disability, illness or health condition.
The healthcare professional will ask you questions and note down your answers. The telephone assessment should last between 20 minutes and 1 hour but could take longer if necessary.
Having a companion during your assessment
You are welcome to bring a relative, carer or friend with you. Although the assessment will focus on you, a companion can offer useful support to you. This would usually be the person who knows you best and understands you and your needs. For example, this may be a relative, support worker or friend but they must be 16 years old or over.
If your support worker or friend cannot be with you in person we can add them to the telephone call. We will ask you for their number and they will need to be ready to answer the phone at the time of your appointment.
Be ready for the healthcare professional to call you 10 minutes before the time of your telephone appointment. Ensure your phone is fully charged. Find a quiet place with good signal and no background noise. Think about what will make the telephone call more comfortable, for example using headphones and having a drink of water available.
The healthcare professional will introduce themselves and explain the assessment to you. They will record information on a computer. Some questions may not relate directly to your medical condition, but to daily activities.
Taking notes
You or your companion are welcome to take notes for your personal use. Your notes will not form part of the medical report that we send to the DWP.
After your assessment our functional assessor completes a report using criteria laid out by the DWP. This is to provide the DWP decision maker with an impartial, justified medical opinion about how you are affected by your medical condition.
The assessment report will describe your medical conditions and the activities you undertake in a typical day. It will also have the assessor’s observations, and the results of any physical examination undertaken.
The report is one piece of information DWP uses in deciding your entitlement. The assessor who carries out your assessment does not make any decision about your allowance, benefit or credits. The assessor will not know the outcome of your claim.
Decisions on claims
DWP will let you know of the outcome of your claim.
DWP makes decisions on claims. Direct any questions or concerns about the outcome of your claim to the DWP office handling your claim. They will know what information they have used to decide your entitlement. Capita has no decision making role and does not know the outcome of assessments.
