DWP could ask PIP claimants to fill in 'health impact record' before assessments

People applying for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) could be asked to keep notes on how the effects of their disabilities and medical conditions can vary. The idea is being considered to help people explain their good and bad days when attending an assessment for the benefit.

The latest published statistics from July show there are 3.5 million people receiving PIP in England and Wales, with 37 per cent on the highest level of award. The maximum payment is £737 every four weeks, equivalent to more than £9,500 a year. Another 130,000 people are on PIP in Scotland, where they will be gradually transferred to the new Adult Disability Payment introduced north of the border.

The DWP says 210,000 people registered a claim for PIP in the three months ending July 31, 2024, an average of 70,000 applications per month. To improve the process and rein in soaring costs, Labour is expected to announce a raft of changes to disability benefits in spring 2025 after confirming it will not look at the previous proposals from the Conservatives, which included replacing cash payments with vouchers.

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Figures show the majority (38 per cent) of people on PIP are receiving it for mental health issues, while another 31 per cent get it to help with musculoskeletal ailments such as arthritis.

Liberal Democrat life peer Baroness Thomas of Winchester submitted a parliamentary question asking if the Government has investigated how Personal Independence Payment is accessed by people with fluctuating conditions. In a written response, DWP Minister Baroness Sherlock revealed that a new Health Impact Record is under consideration to help people make their case at an assessment and give evidence on how their health needs vary.

Baroness Sherlock said: "The Personal Independence Payment (PIP) assessment is designed to take into account the impact of variations in an individual's level of functional impairment. The criteria consider an individual’s ability over a 12-month period, ensuring that fluctuations are taken into account.

"Health professionals carrying out PIP assessments are required to assess individuals in line with the statutory criteria, including whether an individual can complete each of the PIP activities, the manner in which they do it, and whether they can complete each activity safely, to an acceptable standard, repeatedly and in a reasonable time period.

"The PIP assessment criteria were developed in collaboration with independent specialists in health, social care and disability, including disabled people. The Department aims to continually improve the assessment process through customer insight, stakeholder engagement and qualitative research.

"We are exploring the option of a Health Impact Record that claimants could use on a voluntary basis, in addition to other evidence, to capture the changing effect of their condition on day-to-day functionality. This could help claimants present evidence in a structured way at or preceding an assessment."

In its current guidance to health professionals who carry out the assessments and award points for each descriptor - a category looking at a specific activity such as preparing a meal or bathing - the DWP says: "The impact of most health conditions and impairments can fluctuate over time. Taking a view of ability over a longer period of time helps to iron out fluctuations and presents a more coherent picture of disabling effects." It explains that the assessors should consider the claimant's capabilities during the three months before the assessment and in the nine months after.

Each score that can be awarded is usually based on whether someone can complete an everyday activity on more than 50 per cent of the days in that 12-month period. Assessors are also asked to consider evidence that the applicant is awaiting further treatment for their condition.

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