Decision No: C25/02-03(DLA)

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION (NORTHERN IRELAND) ACT 1992

SOCIAL SECURITY (NORTHERN IRELAND) ORDER 1998

DISABILITY LIVING ALLOWANCE

Appeal to a Social Security Commissioner
on a question of law from a Tribunal’s decision
dated 12 April 2002

DECISION OF THE SOCIAL SECURITY COMMISSIONER

1.	This is an appeal by the appointee of the claimant against the decision of the Tribunal to the effect that the claimant is not entitled to either component of Disability Living Allowance from 3 February 2001.

2.	Having considered the circumstances of the case and any reasons put forward in the request for a hearing, I am satisfied that the appeal can properly be determined without a hearing.

3.	As each of the parties to the appeal have expressed the view that the decision appealed against was erroneous in point of law (in that, inter alia, the Tribunal failed to deal with the issues arising out of the provisions of regulation 6(2) of the Social Security and Child Support (Decisions and Appeals) Regulations (Northern Ireland) 1999: – namely, it failed to identify or explain what the relevant change of circumstances was that gave the Tribunal jurisdiction to decide that the relevant decision could be superseded) in accordance with Article 15(7) of the Social Security (Northern Ireland) Order 1998 I exercise my discretion to allow the appeal and to set aside the Tribunal’s decision and, accordingly, I refer the case to a freshly constituted Tribunal for redetermination.

4.	
That Tribunal should bear in mind that, depending on the evidence available to it, it will in all probability be necessary to make an evidential assessment in relation to the letter from Disability Action dated 10 April 2002 which was before the previous Tribunal.  It should also deal with the issues (and make appropriate findings) in relation to the claimant’s manual dexterity and mental ability to plan and prepare a main meal.

(Signed):  J A H MARTIN QC

CHIEF COMMISSIONER 

2 JUNE 2003