Occasional Paper 21: SSAC FOI response
Updated 11 February 2021
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1. Information request
In your report SSAC Occasional Paper 21: The effectiveness of the Claimant Commitment (CC) in Universal Credit you say:
“Claimants are entitled to a second opinion if they disagree with their commitment, but we heard that not all claimants are aware of their right to do so. In one Jobcentre there had been no second opinions sought in the two years that the team leader had worked there. While this doesn’t prove there is a problem, it is reasonable to expect at least some challenges given the scope for human error in a personalised, discretion-based system”
With this in mind can you please send me copies of information you hold on the topic of a Second Opinion including information you hold that explains/shows the legislative basis for a Second Opinion for the two very different processes and possible outcomes the DWP uses for an initial or on-going Claimant Commitment Second Opinion, outlined in the quotes below:
Initial commitment:
If the second opinion agrees that the original requirements are considered to be reasonable, the original commitments remain unchanged. If the claimant now choses to accept this commitment date of claim will be from the date the commitments is accepted. If they refuse to accept it the claim is closed. If the requirements are considered unreasonable the claimant must be offered a new commitment to accept. They cannot ask for a further second opinion and there is no further cooling off period. It the clamant refuses to accept their commitment the claim will be closed. If they accept their commitment, the original date of claim is used.
On-going commitments:
If the second opinion agrees that the original requirements are considered to be reasonable, the claim is closed from the start of the assessment period in which the change was generated.
The claimant will need to submit a new claim. If the requirements are considered unreasonable the claimant must be offered a new commitment to accept. It the clamant refuses to accept their commitment (either the revised one or the original) the claim will be closed. If they accept their commitment, the claim continues.
Claimant Commitment not accepted
SSAC Occasional Paper 21: The effectiveness of the Claimant Commitment (CC) in Universal Credit
2. Response
The Social Security Advisory Committee is a statutory independent non-departmental public body sponsored by the Department for Work and Pensions.
The evidence and findings set out in the Committee’s report ‘The effectiveness of the Claimant Commitment in Universal Credit’ - including the references to a second opinion - was drawn from a wide range of sources, including: publicly available information, a public consultation, and discussions with Jobcentre staff, DWP officials and claimant advocates.
In accordance with Section 12 of the Freedom of information Act, compliance with your request would exceed the appropriate cost limit. However, I can confirm that the Committee did not specifically research the legislative basis for the second opinion and that this information is not held.