A PIP warning has been issued to thousands of claimants who are awaiting a decision. More than 3.6 million people receive Personal Independence Payment to help with the extra costs of disabilities and long-term health conditions and thousands more apply for the support every month.
Figures from the Department for Work and Pensions show that more than 950,000 people have put in claims for PIP in the 12 months up to October 2024, with an average of 79,000 applications every month. Another 1,500 people a month apply for PIP when diagnosed with a terminal illness, with those claims fast-tracked under ‘special rules for end of life.’
The number of people claiming the disability benefit has shot up since the pandemic with another 200,000 people getting their claims approved over the year up to October. The majority (1.4 million) of the 3.66 million claimants are getting the benefit for mental health issues, mostly anxiety and depression. But there are lengthy waiting times for a decision and the DWP has now given some further details on this issue.
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Liberal Democrat MP Helen Morgan asked the DWP what the longest waiting time has been for a PIP application. Sir Stephen Timms, the Department’s Minister of State for Social Security and Disability, issued a series of figures for each of the past five years showing that in 2020, people were waiting up to 45 weeks. In 2021, that had risen slightly to 47 weeks, and in 2022, it increased further to 53 weeks. In 2023, the longest wait time went down to 44 weeks, and it has remained the same for 2024.
A separate set of month-by-month figures indicates that at some points in 2022, people were handed a decision after a lengthy wait of 56 weeks. However, DWP statistics show the average waiting time for a decision is 14 weeks, including 10 weeks from being referred to a health assessment.
Sir Stephen said: “We are committed to ensuring that people can access financial support through Personal Independence Payment (PIP) in a timely manner and reducing customer journey times for PIP claimants is a priority for the department. We always aim to make an award decision as quickly as possible, taking into account the need to review all available evidence.”
A major shake-up of health and disability benefits, including PIP, is to be announced this year. Labour says it will set out its own reforms following controversial proposals by the Conservative Government to rein in costs through options such as replacing cash payments with vouchers, grants and shopping catalogues.
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