Social Security Act 1975

101 Appeal from local tribunal to Commissioner

(1) Subject to the provisions of this section, an appeal lies to a Commissioner from any decision of a local tribunal.

(2) The persons at whose instance an appeal lies under this section are—

(a) an insurance officer ;

(b) the claimant;

(c) in any of the cases mentioned in subsection (3) below, a trade union ; and

(d) in a case relating to industrial injuries benefit, a person whose right to benefit is or may be, under Schedule 9 to this Act, affected by the decision appealed against.

(3) The following are the cases in which an appeal lies at the instance of a trade union—

(a) where the claimant is a member of the union at the time of the appeal and was so immediately before the question at issue arose ;

(b) where that question in any way relates to a deceased person who was a member of the union at the time of his death;

(c) where the case relates to industrial injuries benefit and the claimant or, in relation to industrial death benefit, the deceased was a member of the union at the time of the relevant accident.

(4) Subsections (2) and (3) above, as they apply to a trade union, apply also to any other association which exists to promote the interests and welfare of its members.

(5) An appeal to a Commissioner must be brought within 3 months from the date of the decision of the local tribunal, or such further period as a Commissioner may in any case for special reasons allow; and such an appeal shall be brought by giving notice in writing in a form approved by the Secretary of State stating the grounds of the appeal—

(a) in the case of an appeal by an insurance officer, to the claimant; and

(b) in the case of an appeal by the claimant, or a trade union or other association mentioned above, at a local office.

(6) If it appears to a Commissioner that an appeal under this section involves a question of fact of special difficulty, the Commissioner may direct that in dealing with the appeal or any part of it he shall have the assistance of an assessor or assessors specially qualified and selected from a panel appointed for that purpose.

(7) A Commissioner may, if he thinks fit, refer any question arising for his decision to a medical practitioner for examination and report.