Benefits battle man fighting on

6:10pm Wednesday 14th May 2008

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A SERIOUSLY ill York man has scored a partial success in his battle with benefits bureaucrats - but says he will not rest until he has secured a complete victory.

Jason Lumb, who has one of the rarest illnesses in the world and spends more than half his life connected to a drip, has been awarded nearly £2,000 in back-dated Disability Living Allowance (DLA).

But the 37-year-old, who cannot eat or drink without being sick, says Government officials still don't accept his full claim. And he has vowed to continue fighting for himself and everyone else in similar positions.

"I am sticking it out, and I am going to shout from the roof-tops when I win this," he said. "And I will let other people see that it's worth taking them on. You have got to stick to your guns."

As previously reported in The Press, Mr Lumb suffers from auto-immune enteric neuronitis, an extremely rare condition that stops his throat and bowels working properly. His woes are compounded by the fact he also suffers from diabetes, balance problems, dehydration, partial deafness and muscle wasting.

But despite him needing to spend up to 16 hours a night being fed through a drip, and waking up four or fives times a night, the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) said Mr Lumb was only entitled to a fraction of the full DLA. They gave him part of the available "care" allowance, but none of the "mobility" element.

After a lengthy battle, the DWP has now agreed to give him the full mobility allowance, and has backdated it to last July.

But Mr Lumb says it should be dated to March 2007, when his case was first reviewed, and he remains aggrieved that the DWP won't give him the full care allowance too. The DWP argues that he needs care only at night, but he says he is often on the drip from 7pm through to noon the next day.

"They have given me a slice of the apple and hope I will be happy with that - but I want the whole apple," he said.

Mr Lumb said he had been buoyed by the support from readers on The Press's website and readers' letters page.

"The things people said have given me a lot of determination to see this out," he said.

"I do not feel like I am fighting just for myself now - I feel like I am fighting for every person out there that has got something wrong with them."

The DWP indicated the new offer would avert a tribunal, but Mr Lumb said he still wanted to take the battle all the way.

Statement from the DWP

A DWP spokeswoman said: "While we cannot comment on an individual's case, the DWP encourages anyone unhappy with a decision made on the benefit entitlement to ask for the decision to be reviewed in the light of new or extra evidence.

"If someone appeals against a decision, their case will be reviewed independently to confirm the correct entitlement taking into account all the available evidence.

"The Tribunals Service, where appeals are determined by independent tribunal panels, arrange hearings on decisions made by the DWP."