Those receiving Personal Independence Payments (PIP) or Adult Disability Payment (ADP) are being advised to inform the Department for Work and Pensions of any changes in their health condition.
These benefits are not determined by the specific diagnosis but rather how it impacts your daily life and mobility so even seemingly minor changes in your health could significantly affect your payments.
Reporting these changes while on PIP could potentially boost your benefits by nearly £700 a month.
For instance, if you were initially granted the basic rate of the mobility component of PIP, you would receive £28.70 per week, or a total of £114.80 per month, as reported by the Daily Record.
If your condition deteriorates to the point where you qualify for the enhanced rate of both the mobility and daily life components of PIP, you could be receiving £184.30 a week instead, or £737.20 a month.
However, caution is advised when reporting these changes, as they also have the potential to decrease your payments or terminate your benefit entirely, should your condition improve to the point where you require less support.
Government guidance points out the nuanced nature of benefits assessments, highlighting: “As the assessment principles consider the impact of a claimant’s condition on their ability to live independently and not the condition itself, claimants with the same condition may get different outcomes. The outcome is based on an independent assessment and all available evidence.”
It’s crucial for claimants to report any changes in circumstance that might affect their benefit entitlements to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to avoid missing out on support.
Purposefully not reporting such changes could also potentially be seen as benefit fraud and you may be required to pay back any DWP funds you wrongfully received.
To update the following changes in circumstances, you can call the PIP enquiry line on 0800 121 4433:
- You need more or less help with daily living tasks
- You need more or less help with mobility tasks
- Your health professional tells you your condition will last for a longer or shorter time than you reported before
- Your condition has worsened and you’re not expected to live more than 12 months
There are 3.6 million people in the UK currently receiving PIP, yet only a fraction – 36% – receive the maximum possible amount. In Scotland, the Adult Disability Payment (ADP) has taken the place of PIP for new claimants, and existing PIP cases are set to follow suit.
Additional details can be found on the Gov.uk website.
