PIP Rates: How much are personal independence payment (pip)

To make a new claim for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) you need to contact the DWP on 0800 917 2222 they will also be able to go over the current pip rates.

When you ring the DWP it is important that you have your National Insurance number and bank details to hand.

Your eligibility for PIP will be checked and if you are eligible to apply for PIP you will be sent out the PIP form to complete and return by the deadline given. The DWP are rolling out online PIP forms so if you will be sent a link to complete the online form. It is important to remember that you can request a paper form to be sent to you if you are offered the online form to complete.

You can request an extension date by which your form needs to be returned if, for example, if you have an appointment which is after the deadline date that you have been given, you have been too unwell to complete the form, have been in hospital etc.

Next Step

Once the DWP receive your completed PIP form and any additional medical evidence, care plans, OT assessments etc, they will decide:

1. That the completed PIP form and all the additional information is sufficient for you to be awarded PIP.
2. That you need to attend a health assessment either face to face, over the telephone or via video with a health professional. Once the assessment is completed, the health professional sends a report to the decision maker who decides whether you are awarded PIP or not.
3. That from the completed PIP form and additional evidence do not meet the threshold for PIP and therefore you will not be eligible for a PIP award.

If you are invited to an assessment, you can have someone with you who is a family member, friend or a professional e.g. independent advocate, support worker etc.

Assessments can be audio recorded. You can ask the health professional to do this, or you can make your own recording.

You can contact the DWP about 2 weeks after your assessment and request a copy of the health professional’s report which was completed at your assessment. This document is very useful if you want to challenge the decision.

The Decision

If you are awarded PIP, it will be for a length of time. This will vary from person to person depending on your health conditions and/or disability and whether there is likely to be an improvement, stay the same or deteriorate within the award period.

During the award period, if there are any changes e.g. a health condition improves/worsens, you are diagnosed with a new health condition, you have an OT assessment and you are provided with aids and adaptations in your home, you move house etc, you must inform the DWP on the existing claims line: 0800 121 4433. This will trigger a review, and a review form will be sent to you. Once completed and returned, you may be asked to attend a health assessment either face to face, over the telephone or via video. Again, the health professional’s report will be sent to the decision maker to decide if you will be awarded PIP and how long the award will be.

Toward the end of an award, the DWP will send out a review form regarding your health conditions and/or disability which you complete and return. A decision is made whether there is enough evidence to make a paper-based decision or that you will need to attend a health assessment with a health professional either face to face, over the telephone or via video.

If you are not happy with the decision, you can challenge it.

Challenging the decision

The first step in challenging the decision is to complete a Mandatory Reconsideration (MR). This means explaining what you don’t agree with and why. This needs to be completed within 28 days of receiving the PIP decision which you do not agree with.

This can be done in a variety of ways:

1. Ring the number on the decision letter and tell the call handler that you want to challenge the PIP decision, and you can do this verbally over the phone. It would be a good idea to prepare and write everything down that you want to say so that you do not miss anything.
2. Write a letter to the DWP and explain what you are not happy with the decision and why and post it off to the DWP using the address at the top of your decision letter.
3. Fill in the online Mandatory Reconsideration form, print it off and send to the address on the top of your decision letter. Here is the link: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/656088523d7741000d420162/if-you-disagree-with-a-decision-made-by-dwp.pdf

The Mandatory Reconsideration Notice

The Mandatory Reconsideration Notice is sent to you and tells you if the decision has changed or not. It will also tell you if you have a right to appeal. If it does and you are not happy with the decision, then you can go to an Appeal Tribunal.

Appeal Tribunal

The process for this is to complete an SSCS1 form and submit it within 28 days to His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS).

The form can be completed and sent online or be completed online and then printed off and sent to the Tribunal address on the form. You need to include all your medical evidence to support your appeal as well as a copy of your Mandatory Reconsideration Notice.

The form must reflect how your health conditions and/or disability were at the time when you attended your PIP assessment.

The link to the SSCS1 is here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1136666/SSCS1_0821_save.pdf

The appeal panel are independent of the DWP, and their role is to look at whether the decision made at the time of the assessment was the correct one. The panel is made up of a judge, doctor and a lay disability specialist.

Close to the appeal date, you will be sent all the evidence – known as the ‘court bundle’ to look over. This will include all previous claim forms including the claim you are challenging, medical evidence submitted, assessors’ reports, decision notices, MRs etc.