Mandatory reconsideration letter builder
A mandatory reconsideration is the first stage of challenging a benefit decision, and it has a hard one-month deadline. This builds a properly structured letter — addressed correctly, quoting the legal test, and arguing activity by activity rather than simply stating that the decision is unfair.
Count from the date printed on the decision letter, not the day it arrived. You have one calendar month. A request made after that can still be accepted for up to 13 months if you give special reasons for the delay — illness, a hospital admission, a bereavement, not understanding the process — but acceptance is discretionary, so send it late rather than not at all, and explain the delay in the letter.
Your details
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Your letter is below. Copy it into an email, a document, or write it out by hand — all three are accepted.
Where to send it
Use the address or telephone number printed on your decision letter — that is always the correct route, and it changes between benefits and between offices. If the letter has gone missing:
| Benefit | Route |
|---|---|
| PIP | Post to the address on the decision letter, or phone the PIP enquiry line. Form CRMR1 from GOV.UK can be used but is not compulsory — a letter is equally valid. |
| Universal Credit | Post a message in your UC journal and send a written request. The journal alone leaves you without independent proof of the date. |
| ESA, Attendance Allowance, DLA, Carer's Allowance, Pension Credit | The address on the decision letter, or the benefit's enquiry line. |
Get proof of the date. Send it by post with proof of posting — free at any Post Office counter — or by email where an address is given, and keep the sent item. Deadline disputes are common and are won on evidence of when you sent it. If you phone the request through, write down the date, the time and the name of the person you spoke to.
What happens next
- The DWP looks at the decision againA different decision maker reviews it. They may telephone you to ask for more information — take the call, and take notes.
- You receive a Mandatory Reconsideration NoticeYou normally get two copies. Keep both. One must go to the tribunal if you appeal, and appeals are routinely delayed because the notice was not attached.
- If it is refused, you can appealYou have one calendar month from the date on the notice to lodge form SSCS1 with HMCTS. Around 22–25% of reconsiderations change the decision, but around 66% of PIP appeals succeed at tribunal — so a refusal at this stage says very little about your prospects.
The full appeal guide
Deadlines, the SSCS1 form, what the tribunal panel asks, oral versus paper hearings, and success rates.
Read the appeal guide →The descriptors in full
Every activity and every point value. Quote the descriptor you say applies — it is far harder to dismiss than a general complaint.
Open the descriptor guide →Want the argument checked before you send it?
We read the decision letter and the assessment report against the descriptors, and tell you which points are genuinely arguable.
Book a consultation — £50 How the claim process works