DWP Central Freedom of Information Team

e-mail: [DWP request email]

Our Ref: VTR FoI 1069

25 June 2009

Dear Ms Hamilton

Freedom of Information Request - VTR FoI 1069

I am writing in response to your Freedom of Information request of 5 June in which you asked for clarification of information we provided in our response dated 4 June to your earlier request following the European Court of Justice ruling of 18 October 2007 (case C-299/05).

You asked for clarification of a number of points and I have dealt with each one separately under the headings below.

How many of the 1300 claimants exported their benefit AFTER 18 October 2007?

The figure of 1300 represents decisions made after 18/10/2007. However a number of these decisions will include payment for periods prior to the judgement, such as the 181 cases referred to in our earlier response and any cases where customers moved to the EEA or Switzerland before 18/10/2007 but were not considered by a decision maker until after that date.

I have established that the information required to provide a more detailed breakdown and answer your request specifically is not currently held centrally by the Pension, Disability and Carers Service.

Does this figure of 1300 include any claimants who had previously had benefit withdrawn and now have had their allowances reinstated?

We have already given the figure of 181 cases, which represents the number of people who have successfully applied for reinstatement of benefit.

By this we mean customers who have previously received a decision saying that they were not entitled to DLA or AA because of a move abroad that has since been revised because of the ECJ judgement.

How many of the 181 were reinstated due to meeting the eligibility criteria of having been in the UK 26 weeks of the previous 52 weeks at the time of establishment of entitlement to benefit?

All of the 181 cases will have met the legislative requirements relating to past presence in Great Britain at the appropriate time depending on the facts of their case.

How many of the 181 were reinstated due to meeting the eligibility criteria of having appealed the original refusal to the benefits immediately following a move to another EEA Member state (or Switzerland)?

All of the 181 cases will have met the legislative requirements relating to timescales for appealing against decisions of the Secretary of State contained in Social Security and Child Support (Decision and Appeals) Regulations 1999.

How many of the 181 claimants achieved reinstatement of previously withdrawn benefit having pursued their claim via:

The 181 cases include cases where the customer either requested an appeal or asked us to look at the decision again. All of the 181 cases were decided by a decision maker without being heard by a tribunal.

Where I have established that information is not held centrally by the Pension, Disability and Carers Service, providing this information would require us to review every case handled by the exportability team to identify if any relevant information exists and create the information you have asked for. The Freedom of Information Act does not require us to create information we do not already hold in response to a request, and in this case we also estimate that the cost of complying with your request would exceed the appropriate limit of £600.

If you are not satisfied with my handling of your request please tell me why within two calendar months of the date of this letter. I will then arrange for someone to conduct an internal review of your request and the handling of it. The review will be conducted by another officer, usually of a more senior grade to me. This person will have taken no part in the original handling of your request. You will be advised of the reviewing officer's decision in writing.

If you are not content with the outcome of the internal review you have the right to apply directly to the Information Commissioner to look into the way your request has been handled. Please note that generally the Commissioner cannot make a decision unless you have first exhausted DWP's own complaints procedure. The Commissioner can be contacted at:

FoI Complaints Resolution

Information Commissioner's Office

Wycliffe House

Water Lane

Wilmslow

Cheshire

SK9 5AF

If you have any queries about this letter, please contact me. Please remember to quote the reference number above in any future communications.

Yours sincerely

DWP Central FoI Team