When somebody makes a Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claim, they will be informed by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) how long they will receive the benefit for.
PIP can be awarded for any time from three months up to 10 years, though the DWP retains the right to review an award at any time.
In normal circumstances, it will be for a fixed amount of years, and claimants will be issued a review form to fill out up to a year before their award is due to end.
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As reported by the Daily Record, the original award letter claimants receive from the DWP will inform them of the likely review date.
This is an example from a DWP letter for a 10-year award, also referred to as a 'light touch' review: “We give you PIP for a set time, but we know people’s lives can change."
It continues: "When lives change it may become easier to do everyday things. Sometimes it can become harder for people with a health condition or disability to do everyday things.
"We will also contact you while you’re getting PIP to see if your needs have changed and to look at the amount you get.”
What happens at a PIP review?
The DWP will send out a form which is shorter than the ‘How your disability affects you' (PIP2) form for reviews of existing awards, this form is currently called the PIP Award Review form or the AR1 form.
Even those who have an ongoing award could potentially be issued a review form to fill out.
Claimants should be aware that their award may be adjusted or ended dependent on the information they put down.
Returning the review form
Claimants will normally need to return the completed form within a month of the date the DWP sends it, though the exact deadline will be included in the letter.
Because it may take a few days for the DWP to receive the form, you will need to ensure you post it before the stated deadline.
If you fail to get the form back to the DWP before the stated date, your PIP may be cancelled even if it was not due to end until years in the future.
If you do not think you will be able to make the deadline, particularly if you require assistance completing the form, you must call the DWP and request an extension.
If this request is permitted, you must ensure you make a note of the new deadline — which in most cases will be two weeks later — as well as the name of the representative you spoke to on the phone.
While the review form included a Freepost return envelope — meaning a stamp is not required to send it back — you may wish to pay for recorded delivery if you are sending it close to the deadline.
Before posting the completed form, it is recommended that you either scan or photocopy it in order to keep a record.
What happens after you return the form?
Once the review form has been sent back to the DWP, it will be dealt with by a case manager in the first instance.
According to the DWP, the case manager will "compare the new information against the evidence from the previous assessment".
They may also get in touch with you or your carer to request further information, but is not permitted to ask for more medical evidence.
If the case manager is unable to reach a decision about your review, then they will forward all information onto Independent Assessment Services or Capita so that a health professional can look at the case.
This health professional will be able to see the review form, as well as any further evidence acquired by the case manager and “all relevant medical evidence”.
While the health professional will begin by attempting to make an assessment based purely on the documentation, they may require you to attend a face-to-face, telephone or video call assessment.
What to be aware of
When filling out the review form, one key thing to keep in mind is that you are aiming to prove to a DWP case manager that the evidence is sufficient to maintain your award.
The aim of the PIP Award Review form is to accelerate the renewal process, as well as lower DWP expenses by avoiding the involvement of Independent Assessment Services or Capita.
Therefore, strong supporting evidence — in particular medical evidence — will be very beneficial.
This is likely to apply whether you are stating that your condition remains the same or that it has deteriorated.
Completing the form
As with the standard PIP claim form, it’s worthwhile using additional sheets if you can’t fit everything you want to say in the boxes on the form. Make sure you include your name and National Insurance number on the top of every additional sheet you use and attach them to the back of the form.
Consent and declaration
The first section of the review form asks you to sign to say that the information you are giving in the review form is correct and complete and that you will inform the DWP of any future change of circumstances.
In Section 2, the form asks for details of the main medical professional involved in your care and asks you to consent to allowing the DWP, Independent Assessment Services or Capita to contact them for information.
Remember, the DWP case manager is not allowed to send for additional medical evidence when they receive your form and providing medical evidence yourself means that it will be seen at the very start of the review process.
You also have to provide information on your health conditions, medication, and details of any treatment, therapy, surgery and hospital admissions that have happened since the date your previous PIP claim was looked at by the DWP.
What has changed for you
The form now takes you through each of the daily living activities covered in your original PIP claim, from Preparing Food and Eating and Drinking through to Mixing with Other People and Making Decisions About Money.
It also covers the two mobility activities, Planning and Following a Journey and Moving Around.
For each of these activities you are asked the following questions about any changes since your claim was last looked at by DWP:
- Tell us if something has changed and approximately when
- Tell us how you manage this activity now, including the use of any aids you use
- Tell us about any changes to help you need or the help you get from another person
- Tell DWP if something has changed and approximately when
- The activity may have got easier because you have new aids or adaptations, you have more effective medication, you have learnt how to manage things better or simply because your condition has improved over time
- The activity may have got harder because your condition has deteriorated or because you have developed a new condition
Or things may not have changed at all since you made your last claim for PIP.
No Change
If there has not been any changes in how difficult you find a particular activity, you should nonetheless include detailed information regarding the difficulties faced with each activity in the same way that you did in the PIP2 ‘How your disability affects you’ form.
As stated by independent benefits forum Benefits and Work: “We’ve certainly heard from claimants who have stated ‘no change’ and had their PIP award renewed at the same rate.
“However, we have also heard from people who have stated ‘no change’ throughout and were still called for a face-to-face assessment. At that assessment the health professional may, or may not, have a copy of your award review form or of your most recent PIP2 ‘How your disability affects you’ form.
“So, there is a real risk that if you just state ‘no change’ you could end up at an assessment where the health professional has very little information about how your condition affects you. You will then be entirely reliant on their skill at asking the right questions and recording your evidence accurately.”
To help provide a clearer image of how your disability or health condition continues to impact your daily life, you may want to make statements such as: “Because of my lack of sight I continue to have problems preparing and cooking food” or “Because of arthritis in my hands I still have great difficulty gripping things.”
Following this, you should offer a description of the issues you face in the same manner as the ‘How your disability affects you’ form.
If you have not seen any change to your condition, and you have held on to your prior PIP claim form, you may use this as a basis for your answers — but you are advised to give more recent examples.
Although this will take longer than simply putting down 'no change', according to Benefits and Work "it means that even if the decision goes against you, if you have to go to an appeal tribunal you will be able to show that you gave consistent evidence at every stage of your claim".
Supporting information
When you return the form you should also send supporting information to show how your health condition or disability affects your day to day life.
You should include copies of any of the following documents:
- A list of your prescriptions
- A copy of your care plan, if you have one
- Any paperwork you’ve been given by health professionals, including reports and letters (not appointment letters)
It’s also a good idea to attach any documents to the form so they don’t get separated.
You should not send:
- Original documents
- Appointment letters
- Copies of anything you’ve already sent to the DWP
If you need help completing the form, Citizens Advice have a dedicated section on their website and advisers who ma be able to offer additional support - find out more here.
