People with certain health conditions could claim PIP payments up to £737 a month

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has revealed that over 1.1 million adults across Great Britain are now receiving support through Personal Independence Payment (PIP) for more than 85 musculoskeletal conditions. Musculoskeletal conditions refer to injuries and disorders affecting the body’s movement or musculoskeletal system, such as muscles, tendons, ligaments, nerves, discs, and blood vessels.

Arthritis is a broad term encompassing many of these different conditions. Common ones includes the likes of osteoarthritis, back pain, rheumatoid arthritis, fibromyalgia, osteoporosis, gout, polymyalgia rheumatica, lupus, and ankylosing spondylitis.

If you’re over 16 and under State Pension age, you may be eligible to claim PIP – or ADP in Scotland – to help with a musculoskeletal condition. If your ability to work is limited due to your symptoms, you could qualify for ‘new style’ Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

A successful claim for PIP or ADP currently provides between £28.70 and £184.30 each week in additional financial support. As the benefit is paid every four weeks, this amounts to between £114.80 and £737.20 every pay period, reports the Daily Record.

Payments are set to rise by 1.7 per cent from April. The average processing time for new PIP claims is 15 weeks, meaning applications submitted before the end of this month could be processed – and back payments issued – by the end of April.

New claims for ADP currently take an average of 10 weeks to process, so a new claim submitted this month could be processed by the end of March. The latest data shows that at the end of October 2024, over one million people were receiving support through PIP for Musculoskeletal conditions.

Below is the list of 87 musculoskeletal conditions being supported through PIP to help with either daily living, mobility needs or a combination of both components. It is not definitive, so if your condition does not appear, don’t be put off making a claim as an award for PIP or ADP is about how the condition affects you, not the condition itself.

Musculoskeletal Conditions – General

Musculoskeletal Conditions – Regional

Who is eligible for PIP?

To be eligible for PIP you must have a health condition or disability where you:

You usually need to have lived in the UK for at least two of the last three years and be in the country when you apply.

In addition to what we have outlined above if you get or need help with any of the following because of your condition, you should consider applying for PIP.

• preparing, cooking or eating food
• managing your medication
• washing, bathing or using the toilet
• dressing and undressing
• engaging and communicating with other people
• reading and understanding written information
• making decisions about money
• planning a journey or following a route
• moving around

There are different rules if you are terminally ill, you will find these on the GOV.UK website here.

DWP or Social Security Scotland will assess how difficult you find daily living and mobility tasks. For each task they will look at:

• whether you can do it safely
• how long it takes you
• how often your condition affects this activity
• whether you need help to do it, from a person or using extra equipment

How are PIP and ADP paid?

PIP and ADP are usually paid every four weeks unless you are terminally ill, in which case it is paid weekly. It will be paid directly into your bank, building society or credit union account. ADP is paid at the same rates as PIP.

What are the PIP and ADP payment rates?

You will need an assessment to work out the level of financial help you will receive and your rate will be regularly reviewed to make sure you are getting the right support.

PIP is made up of two components:

Whether you get one or both of these and how much depends on how severely your condition affects you.

You will be paid the following amounts per week depending on your circumstances:

Daily living

Mobility

How you are assessed

You will be assessed by an independent healthcare professional to help the DWP determine the level of financial support, if any, you need, for PIP. Face-to-face consultations for health-related benefits are offered alongside video calls, telephone and paper-based assessments.

It’s important to note that the health professional and DWP decide which type of assessment is best suited for each claimant. You can find out more about DWP PIP assessments here.

How do you make a claim for PIP?

You can make a new claim by contacting the DWP, you will find all the information you need to apply on the GOV.UK website here.

Before you call, you will need:

• your contact details

• your date of birth

• your National Insurance number – this is on letters about tax, pensions and benefits

• your bank or building society account number and sort code

• your doctor or health worker’s name, address and telephone number

• dates and addresses for any time you’ve spent abroad, in a care home or hospital