Leicester: Disabled woman's benefits restored 'out of the blue'

A disabled woman who lost her benefits after a phone assessment said they have been restored "out of the blue".

Sandra Cutland's Personal Independence Payment (PIP), totalling £600 a month, was stopped in November.

An appeal was dismissed and the 56-year-old, from Braunstone in Leicester, said she would take the matter to an independent tribunal.

But she had a call from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on Tuesday to say the benefits had been restored.

Mrs Cutland, who has osteoarthritis in her knees and hip and scoliosis, said her husband David, 63, had also lost his £300 carer's allowance, leaving them with only his income support.

She said the news that her benefits have been restored was "just fantastic".

She said: "It has been so stressful. My stress levels have been through the roof, I have lost 12lbs in weight since Christmas.

"We were really struggling for money, my husband's income support was running out, so this has come in the nick of time."

"I want to know - with an apology - why they took it off us in the first place."

Mrs Cutland also had her mobility scooter taken away - but was gifted a replacement by a local company.

At the time the DWP backed its decision saying its disability assessors were "qualified health professionals" who made the right decision "in the majority of cases".

Confirming the U-turn, a DWP spokesperson said: "We support millions of people every year and our priority is to provide a supportive service and help claimants get the benefits they are entitled to.

"Following new information we have reinstated and backdated Ms Cutland's benefits in full."

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