Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is one of the DWP's main forms of benefit payment.
It helps people with significant disabilities and chronic illnesses with the extra expenses their conditions require, such as custom equipment or supplies. However, many people are put off claiming for PIP for a number of reasons, as the Daily Record reports.
But at a time when some coronavirus lockdown restrictions are still in place, it's a good opportunity to set aside some time and start the process - or at the very least, consider it.
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If the claim form is completed in full with comprehensive detailed information about how an illness or disability impacts on an individual’s daily life, it may not be as difficult as you expect.
How much PIP you will be paid depends on how difficult it is for you to carry out certain daily tasks including preparing and eating food, washing and getting dressed, basic toilet needs and moving around - inside and outside the home.
PIP is made up of two parts - a daily living component and a mobility component, you may be able to claim one or both of these depending on your circumstances.
Who is eligible for PIP?
Anyone aged over 16 can apply.
You don’t need to have worked or paid National Insurance to qualify for PIP and it doesn’t matter what your income is or if you have any savings or are currently working.
You must have a health condition or disability where you:
- have had difficulties with daily living or getting around (or both) for three months
expect these difficulties to continue for at least nine months
You usually need to have lived in the UK for at least two of the past three years and be in the country when you apply.
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How to apply for PIP
To start the application process, you will need to contact the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on 0800 917 2222 (textphone 0800 917 7777). You can ask for a paper form to complete if you are unable to claim by phone, although this may delay your claim.
Filling in the ‘how your disability affects you’ claim form
If you are eligible to apply for PIP, the DWP will send you a claim form through the post to complete called 'How your disability affects you'.
This form asks about how your health condition or disability affects you, in relation to 12 different different daily activities. This is your opportunity to explain fully and honestly how your condition impacts on your daily life.
Along with the form, you will also need to provide any supporting information as ‘evidence’ for your claim - this might be a letter from your doctor or social worker, explaining how your condition affects you.
Send photocopies of this information, not the original documents and keep a copy of your claim form.
It’s important you respond to the DWP quickly - the deadline for returning the form will be shown on the DWP letter which comes with it. If you do not apply for PIP within this time, your claim will end and if you are currently receiving Disability Living Allowance (DLA), this will stop.
How your claim for PIP is assessed
The PIP assessment looks at 12 activities under two different categories: daily living and mobility.
The daily living activities include:
preparing or eating food
washing
bathing and using the toilet
dressing and undressing
reading and communicating
managing your medicines or treatments
mixing with other people
making decisions about money
The ‘mobility’ activities pertain to going out: planning and following journeys and physically moving around.
For each activity, there is a list of descriptions of how your condition affects you.
Each description has a score, which is added up to a single total for daily living and a total for mobility.
For each category, if you score eight to 11 points you will be awarded PIP at the ‘standard rate’ and if you score 12 or higher, you will be awarded the ‘enhanced rate’. For example, someone could get ‘standard rate mobility’ and ‘enhanced rate daily living’.
What are the PIP payment rates?
You can get the following amounts per week depending on your circumstances:
Daily living - standard rate: £60
Daily living - enhanced rate: £89.60
Mobility - standard rate: £23.70
Mobility - enhanced rate: £62.55
All the questions on the claim form
Q1: List your health professionals
You need to give the DWP details of any health professional you've seen about your condition.
Q2: List your conditions, medications and treatments
List all the physical and mental health conditions and disabilities you have and the date they started.
Q3: Preparing and cooking a meal
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to prepare a simple meal for one and heating it on a hob or in a microwave until it's safe to eat.
Q4: Eating and drinking
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to eat and drink.
This means being able to cut up food into pieces, put it in your mouth, chew and swallow it.
You should say if you need prompting or reminding to eat, as well if you have physical difficulties.
Q5: Managing treatments
This question is about how your health condition makes it difficult for you to:
manage your treatments
monitor your own health condition, including your mental health
take action to stop your condition getting worse
Q6: Washing and bathing
This question is about whether your condition makes it difficult for you to wash or bathe in a standard bath or shower that hasn’t been adapted in any way.
It’s also about whether you use any aids or appliances to help you wash or bathe.
Q7: Managing toilet needs
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to:
get on and off an unadapted toilet seat
clean yourself afterwards
if applicable, manage your incontinence
Q8: Dressing and undressing
This question is for you to describe any difficulties you have dressing or undressing. This means putting on and taking off unmodified, appropriate clothes - including shoes and socks.
'Appropriate clothes' means clothes that are appropriate for:
the weather
the occasion
the time of day
Q9: Communicating verbally
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to:
speak to others so that you're understood
hear and understand what other people are saying to you
Written communication is not a criterion of the assessment.
Q10: Reading
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to:
read information that is a standard text size (not large print)
read signs - for example, emergency exit signs
read indoors and outside
Q11: Mixing with other people
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to:
meet people and mix with them
judge situations when you're with other people and behave appropriately
establish relationships with people - for example make friends
Q12: Making decisions about money
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to manage everyday purchases and transactions.
This means things like:
paying in shops and restaurants
budgeting for and paying your bills
budgeting for bigger things such as a TV
Q13: Going out
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to:
plan and follow a route to a place you know (it doesn't matter how you get there)
plan and follow a bus or train route to a place you don't know
cope in places that you don't know
if applicable, leave the house because of stress or anxiety
Q14: Moving around
This question is about how your condition makes it difficult for you to:
stand safely without help
walk safely without stopping and without help
Additional information
This is a blank page that you can use if you run out of space on the claim form.
You can also use it to give any additional information you think necessary. There's no right or wrong type of information to include but it's a good idea to use this space to tell the DWP if:
someone had to fill in the form for you and explain why
you filled in the form slowly or with pain
filling in the form caused you anxiety or stress
you're attaching medical evidence to support your claim - for example, a care plan
Help completing your claim form
If you have difficulty filling in your form or understanding the questions, contact your local council and ask for help or Citizen's Advice Scotland, who have a complete guide to completing the form online.
Even if you don't qualify for financial support, you could be eligible for a National Entitlement Travel Card, which offers free or reduced travel across Scotland on most public transport links.
For more information about PIP, visit gov.uk here.
