A CHRONICALLY disabled pensioner is asking the Citizens Advice Bureau (CAB) to use “common sense” after he was told they could not come to his home to give him advice.

Alan Hardwick, of Sedgefield, suffers from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease, muscle wastage, sclerosis of the spine and has scar tissue on his lungs after having Tuberculosis.

The 72-year-old pensioner also relies heavily on oxygen tanks and cannot leave the house for more than an hour as his supply will run out.

However, when he called CAB to ask for a home visit for advice on how to fill out a legal document, he was told he would have to visit the Spennymoor bureau and there was no guarantee he would be seen.

His only other option is to use a solicitor which would cost him £150 per hour.

“I explained because I’m chronic disabled that when I get exerted I have to use my oxygen which only has a one-hour supply and I cannot be sitting for long periods and they said I just had to,” Mr Hardwick said.

“I have used their home visits three times before so I can only assume that they are overworked and not given the right money by government so they cannot afford to be sending people out for disabled people.”

The father-of-eight added: “I’m not unwilling but the condition I’m in means the only time I leave this house is to go to hospital.”

CAB’s CEO, Neil Bradbury, said the organisation had never done home visits “as a matter of course” but did provide the service in exceptional circumstances.

“It’s not true that we don’t do home visits and if someone has given him that advice then we apologise for that,” he said.

Mr Bradbury said he would be in touch with Mr Hardwick to arrange a home visit for him.