Mother, 28, killed herself after mistakenly being advised her advantages have been being minimize, inquest finds

A mother took her own life when she received a letter which wrongly told her she was having her benefits cut, an inquest has found. 

Tamara Jade Logan, 28, died at Tameside General Hospital two days after she was found hanged in Glossop, Derbyshire, on May 18, 2025. 

An inquest heard her mental health had deteriorated after she received a letter from the Department for Work and Pensions. It informed her the ‘enhanced daily living allowance’ portion of her Personal Independence Payment (PIP) had been removed.

It was later found the decision to cut that part of the make-up artist’s benefits was wrong, with a senior coroner saying it had a ‘very significant’ impact. 

In a prevention of future deaths report published by senior south Manchester coroner Alison Mutch, she wrote: ‘The decision to remove the enhanced payment has been accepted as an incorrect determination. The method used for communication of the decision was also not appropriate given her known vulnerabilities.

‘Upon receipt of the letter from Department of Work and Pensions Tamara Jade Logan’s mental health deteriorated further. 

‘On the balance of probabilities, the incorrect decision to withdraw her enhanced daily living allowance and the method of communication of the decision significantly contributed to her declining mental health and her actions on 18th May 2025, which led to her death on 20th May 2025.’

Coroner Ms Mutch said Ms Logan was a ‘vulnerable person with a history of self-harm and suicidal ideation’.

Tamara Jade Logan, 28, took her own life when she received a letter which wrongly told her she was having her benefits cut, an inquest has found

Miss Logan died at Tameside General Hospital two days after she was found hanged in Glossop, Derbyshire, on May 18, 2025

She had been previously assessed as being eligible for Personal Independence Payment (PIP), including the enhanced daily living allowance and the standard rate of mobility allowance.

The DWP was aware of her mental health problems as her file at the government department noted previous self-harm and suicidal ideation, the coroner said.

Under ‘matters of concern’, Ms Mutch wrote: ‘It was accepted that the assessment of her entitlement to benefits had been incorrectly determined despite it having been checked before the final decision was made. The impact of that on her was very significant.

‘The evidence before the inquest was that the person carrying out the initial assessment carried out the assessment correctly and that the checking process had not picked up on the errors. 

‘The purpose of the check was to avoid these errors being made and it was unclear why it had not picked up the incorrect approach.

‘It was clear from the evidence that her vulnerabilities were recognised by the Department of Work and Pensions and their paperwork was flagged to that effect. 

‘Despite that a standard letter was sent with no attempt to reduce the risk that receipt of the letter would cause.’

The coroner recorded a verdict of suicide, with the medical cause of death ‘hypoxic brain injury’ caused by ‘hanging’. 

The report has been sent to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Pat McFadden, who has until March 19 to respond. 

A DWP spokesperson said: ‘Our sincere condolences go to Ms Logan’s family and friends.

‘Protecting the millions of people we support every year is a priority. We take the Coroner’s comments extremely seriously and will provide a full and detailed response.’