We were at a garden party last week when some English people approached me and asked me if I was the person fighting the DWP for non-payment of DLA for non UK residents but living in the EU. One man was blind, another suffered from Alzheimers. They had both been here longer than my ten years. The topic of conversation got on to DLA. All three of us had had our DLA stopped when we moved to France and the DWP were dragging out our appeals as long as possible. My own appeal is now nine years in the making and during that time the DWP and the Tribunals Service and used every trick in the book to avoid my appeal going ahead. Next week I have a third date for a hearing. The other two both being cancelled at the last minute by the DWP and the Tribunal Services.
However, between the three of us, a conservative estimate of how much the DLA that should have been paid to us ran into six figures. The descision to withold payments has been declared wrong by the European Court of Justice but the DWP are offering to pay some people dated back to 2011.
Now if only three people can be owed such a large amount, then how much have the DWP defrauded from genuine claimants over the years.? If this just three Brits at a party, consider the number involved throughout the EU. This is Benefit Fraud on a colossal scale and all the victims are/were if no longer alive, disabled. If someone appeals and wins their case, the DWP will only pay costs incurred in the UK.
Many who would wish to appeal will be too ill, too poor, too submissive to do so. No Legal Aid is available but the DWP will engage top lawyers to try and twist appelants in knots with legal BS.
I can appreciate that there are some among us who refuse any benefits from the UK and immediately return their Old Age Pension and WFA because of their beliefs. But previous Prime Ministers of both parties have signed up to European Law but only when it suits.
The people concerned were targetted because they are too remote to become an organised force to bother the government. This a complete and despicable fraud.