Enquiry about ending a joint ESA claim.

Hi. I was wondering if there's anyone here who might be able to advise me. I am currently in receipt of ESA. I am in the Support Group. I claim for my partner as well, so it is a joint claim. Things have not gone well for us recently and I am seriously thinking about ending the relationship and moving out. My question is, what happens then? Can I just inform the DWP that we have separated and that I have moved out and get them to take my partner off the claim? Or will I have to make an entirely fresh claim for ESA, having to go through the entire process of another form, gathering evidence from my GP and consultant, and go through another medical? The thought of having to go through all that again at this stressful time, with the possibility that it might mess up my claim, fills me with horror.
Thanks in advance for any answers.

No, you will not need to make a new claim and no medical will be required.

Adding or removing a partner is a change of circumstances and yes you need to inform DWP that you have moved and that you wish to revert to a single claim.

In my experience (my partner is on ESA and added me to his claim) they may temporarily stop the money while they deal with the paperwork but it will be backdated when the payments restart.

So you may need to be prepared to have a lean time for a couple of weeks.

Thanks very much for taking the time to reply, Lunar Shadow. If that is true it takes a weight off my mind. May I ask, is it just from your experience of being added to your partner's claim that you know this (and are you confident that the same would apply in reverse?), or have you seen it actually stated, i.e., in a letter or online somewhere as well? I don't mean to doubt you, it's just that I want to be sure of where I stand before I make any final decisions.

Hi Eusabius,

I've just spent a slightly frustrating hour reading through the decision makers guide but I can't find references to the procedures once a change of circumstances has been made.

I am convinced that it is only a change in your health that would trigger a new work capability assessment, not merely a change in the members of your household.

If you also get PIP/DLA at the daily living component (PIP) or mid or higher rate care component (DLA) and you will be living alone, you will also be entitled to the severe disability premium (SDP) if no-one is claiming carers allowance for you. You may have to claim this as it is not always put on automatically.

Sorry I haven't been able to find anything to back up my info.

How long have you been receiving ESA? If it's close to a re-assessment it could trigger one anyway.
You will have to notify them as its a change in circumstance. Hopefully they won't re-assess you but they could do. I know sometimes they've re-assessed people when they request a change from contribution based to income based, it seems sometimes they just reassess at every opportunity.
Give them a ring but if your claim is soon up they could ask you to complete another esa50.

Luna Shadow - sorry I put you through that frustrating hour. I have been getting PIP at the higher daily care rate (though I have recently had to fill in a review form and am waiting to hear the decision about that), so maybe I should look into what you say about that. Thanks.

Gillian48 - thanks for your reply. I have been in the ESA support group since Dec 2012.....so I'm not sure what to think now...looks like a no win situation.

It's no problem, I wanted to find the info!

If you haven't been reassessed since 2012 you are probably due an assessment anyway, regardless of whether you report a change of circumstances.

It doesn't necessarily mean a face to face assessment though - if your condition is clear cut they may well do it from the information you put in the paper form.