Response from ATOC (DPRC)
Have received a reply from ATOC regarding my suggestion for the future of the disabled railcard criteria as benefits are changed.
"Dear _,
Thank you for your e-mail concerning ATOC’s review of the qualifying criteria we use for DPRC.
As you will appreciate DPRC is targeted at those disabled passengers who face the greatest difficulty when travelling. To date we have used proxy qualifying criteria, such as the mobility component of DLA, as evidence of entitlement. Our intention is to make it as easy as it is currently to apply for a Disabled Persons Railcard. The migration from DLA to PIP throws up numerous challenges and we are still looking at how we can get around these. Several years ago we made conservative estimates that the card had the potential to grow to around about 250K cards in circulation. This took into account the range of proxy qualifying criteria used and the fact that some people, for whatever reason, would choose not to have a card. The changes to PIP may mean that achieving this target will take longer to achieve, rather than be impossible to achieve. Currently we have about 140K cards in circulation. However, so long as people renew, we should face no problems with retaining existing card holders as we have no intention of asking people to resubmit their applications should they move between benefits.
We have also decided not to increase the price of DPRC for the time being. This is based upon an assumption that as more people lose their DLA their discretionary expenditure will also fall. If individual budgets are hard pressed then discretionary expenditure may fall. We want to retain as many of our customers as possible and will do our best to do so.
Finally, we believe that the general improvements in rail services for disabled passengers may also act as a further incentive for people to consider purchasing a DPRC. This may, in due course, help to mitigate some of the effects of the changes in eligibility to benefits.
Once, again, many thanks for taking the time to write to us.
Best wishes
David Sindall
Head of Disability and Inclusion
ATOC Ltd
40 Bernard Street
London
WC1N 1BY"
Still not sure what to make of it though. On one hand they seem to be avoiding the topic I raised, while on another; there is what I think amounts to them saying if you have a card already you will be able to renew without need to submit evidence - thus allowing you to keep having the cards for life regardless of what happens to your benefits. Or something similar....
It feels a bit incoherent to me, like he's trying to shoehorn a press release about one topic into answering another matter. Although it does reinforce the impression I've got before from communication with them that ATOC see the disabled railcard as a marketing device rather than an equality measure to alleviate the relative poverty caused by disabilities (via reducing the at-the-point-of-use cost of rail travel somewhat in line with reduction in discretionary income).
Also, I get the feel that the decision has already been made. No 'thank you for your input, this will be taken into consideration' or the like. Instead just ...well, that unrelated info dump.
What sort of impressions do you get from it?
"Dear _,
Thank you for your e-mail concerning ATOC’s review of the qualifying criteria we use for DPRC.
As you will appreciate DPRC is targeted at those disabled passengers who face the greatest difficulty when travelling. To date we have used proxy qualifying criteria, such as the mobility component of DLA, as evidence of entitlement. Our intention is to make it as easy as it is currently to apply for a Disabled Persons Railcard. The migration from DLA to PIP throws up numerous challenges and we are still looking at how we can get around these. Several years ago we made conservative estimates that the card had the potential to grow to around about 250K cards in circulation. This took into account the range of proxy qualifying criteria used and the fact that some people, for whatever reason, would choose not to have a card. The changes to PIP may mean that achieving this target will take longer to achieve, rather than be impossible to achieve. Currently we have about 140K cards in circulation. However, so long as people renew, we should face no problems with retaining existing card holders as we have no intention of asking people to resubmit their applications should they move between benefits.
We have also decided not to increase the price of DPRC for the time being. This is based upon an assumption that as more people lose their DLA their discretionary expenditure will also fall. If individual budgets are hard pressed then discretionary expenditure may fall. We want to retain as many of our customers as possible and will do our best to do so.
Finally, we believe that the general improvements in rail services for disabled passengers may also act as a further incentive for people to consider purchasing a DPRC. This may, in due course, help to mitigate some of the effects of the changes in eligibility to benefits.
Once, again, many thanks for taking the time to write to us.
Best wishes
David Sindall
Head of Disability and Inclusion
ATOC Ltd
40 Bernard Street
London
WC1N 1BY"
Still not sure what to make of it though. On one hand they seem to be avoiding the topic I raised, while on another; there is what I think amounts to them saying if you have a card already you will be able to renew without need to submit evidence - thus allowing you to keep having the cards for life regardless of what happens to your benefits. Or something similar....
It feels a bit incoherent to me, like he's trying to shoehorn a press release about one topic into answering another matter. Although it does reinforce the impression I've got before from communication with them that ATOC see the disabled railcard as a marketing device rather than an equality measure to alleviate the relative poverty caused by disabilities (via reducing the at-the-point-of-use cost of rail travel somewhat in line with reduction in discretionary income).
Also, I get the feel that the decision has already been made. No 'thank you for your input, this will be taken into consideration' or the like. Instead just ...well, that unrelated info dump.
What sort of impressions do you get from it?