Getting a Personal Independence Payment (PIP) decision (2024)

FAQs

What is the best answer for PIP questions? ›

The overall average success rate for PIP claims is 52%, but this varies widely depending on your main disabling condition. For example, PIP claims for Rheumatoid Arthritis have a success rate of 74.7%, whilst those for Type 1 Diabetes are as low as 28%.

To get PIP you must find it hard to do everyday tasks or get around because of a physical or mental condition. You must have found these things hard for 3 months and expect them to continue to be hard for another 9 months.

The latest figures released by His Majesty's Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) on 14 March, show that 70% of all PIP appeals are won by the claimant. However, the waiting list for appeals to be heard is growing rapidly. The figures cover the period October to December 2023.

Psychiatric disorders

With 37% of people receiving PIP having a psychiatric disorder, it is the most common condition people receiving PIP claim for. Psychiatric disorders are mental health conditions that can affect how a person thinks and feels about themselves and/or the world around them.

It's useful to include evidence from health professionals on how your condition affects you. It can give the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) a clearer picture of how your condition affects you and give you a better chance of being properly assessed.

Your Personal Independence Payment (PIP) will start being paid after you receive your decision letter. Your decision letter tells you whether you qualify for PIP and how much you will get. Your PIP will be backdated to the date when you made the PIP claim, so you are likely to get a lump sum back payment.

What is the lowest pip payment? ›

The PIP allowance rate you may be entitled to depends on whether you're eligible for the daily living or the mobility components of the DWP assessment. For the daily living component: The lower rate is £72.65 a week. The higher rate is £108.55 a week.

These general PIP assessment tips will also help you: Don't let the assessor rush you. Try not to just answer 'yes' or 'no' to the questions. Always explain how doing something would make you feel afterwards and the impact it can have on you if you had to do it repeatedly in a short period.

The MR success rate for all PIP cases – including reviews of existing PIP claims as well as new PIP applications – is higher but has followed a similar trajectory, rising from under 20% to over 50% with the 2019 rule change, before slumping back to 20% in the latest figures.

Worth knowing

The process can be draining but it's worth remembering that more than half of people who appeal their PIP decision win at a tribunal. If you feel the decision is wrong, don't be put off appealing.

You need to give specific reasons why you disagree with the decision. Use your decision letter, statement of reasons and medical assessment report to make a note of each of the statements you disagree with and why. Give facts, examples and medical evidence (if available) to support what you're saying.

Talking about how your condition affects you

It can be hard to do this but it will really help if you can talk about: the kind of things you have difficulty with, or can't do at all - for example, walking up steps without help or remembering to go to appointments. how your condition affects you from day to day.

These general PIP assessment tips will also help you: Don't let the assessor rush you. Try not to just answer 'yes' or 'no' to the questions. Always explain how doing something would make you feel afterwards and the impact it can have on you if you had to do it repeatedly in a short period.

To qualify for PIP, you need to show that you need help with the activities on more than half the days in a year. Make it clear on the form how often you have problems with the activities. If your health changes, explain how often this happens and the effect it has on you. It may help to keep a diary.