What is the Personal Independence Payment (PIP)? What are the rates? How can I claim this benefit if I am disabled? PIP is a benefit you may get if you have a disability. This Your Benefits article will walk you through all you need to know about Personal Independence Payment (PIP).

What is PIP?

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is a benefit for people that have both:

• A long-term disability, either physical or mental;
• Difficulty achieving certain day-to-day tasks, or mobility issues that makes it difficult for them to move around.

Who can claim PIP?

In order to be eligible for Personal Independence Payment (PIP), all of the following must apply to your situation, you:

• Are aged 16 or older;
• Have a long-term mental or physical disability or health condition;
• Encounter difficulty getting around or carrying out daily tasks;
• The difficulties are expected to last at least 12 months from when they first began.

If your child was already earning the Disability Living Allowance (DLA), they should receive a letter:

• Soon after their 16th birthday;
• Whenever they leave the hospital, if they were hospitalized on their 16th birthday;
• About 20 weeks before the end of their DLA, if they applied under the policy for people who are terminally ill.

Personal Independence Payment will then be replacing Disability Living Allowance (DLA) for your child.

If you are above State Pension age, not to worry! You can then apply for Attendance Allowance (AA). If you have received Personal Independence Payment before, you can still send a new claim, in the case that you were eligible for PIP the year before you reached State Pension age.

What about if you receive other benefits? You can still receive PIP while getting any other benefits, apart from Armed Forces Independence Payment. If you are a recipient of Constant Attendance Payment, you will not get as much of the daily living component of the Personal Independence Payment.

You will not be eligible to get the mobility component of PIP if you already receive War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement. Lastly, savings and income from work do not dictate if you are able to receive Personal Independence Payment or not.

How much is PIP?

They are for:

• Daily living: do you have trouble doing everyday tasks?
• Mobility: do you have trouble getting from A to Z?

You can earn one or both depending on your type of disability, and how difficult it is for you to move around or achieve day-to-day tasks.

Additionally, you can earn PIP regardless of employment. The same answer applies if you have savings or are getting most other benefits. You can receive PIP on top of other benefits. Note that the amount you get is in no way affected by your savings or income.

What is the PIP Daily Living component?

You might qualify for the daily living part of the PIP if you need help with the following:

• Preparing food, eating or drinking;
• Using the toilet, washing or bathing;
• Putting on or taking off clothes;
• Communicating with others or reading;
• Managing and taking medicines or treatments;
• Making money decisions;
• Being around other people or socializing.

If you receive the daily living component, you might also qualify for Disabled Persons Railcard. Additionally, you will not get as much of the daily living component of Personal Independence Payment if you receive Constant Attendance Allowance.

What is the PIP Mobility component?

You might qualify for the mobility part of the PIP if you need help with the following:

• Making and following a route to your destination;
• Physically moving around;
• Going outside of your house.

A physical disability is not required for earning the mobility part of the PIP. Cognitive or mental health conditions, like anxiety, can also make you eligible.

If you receive the mobility component, you might also qualify for the following benefits:

• Blue Badge;
• Vehicle tax discount or exemption;
• Motability Scheme vehicle, if you qualify for the higher rate mobility component;
• Disabled Persons Railcard.

Where can I live and still receive Personal Independence Payment?

In order to receive Personal Independence Payment, you most often need to:

• Be living in England, Scotland or Wales when you apply;
• Have lived in those countries for at least 2 of the last 3 years.

You might be entitled to receiving PIP sooner if you recently returned from having lived in theEU, Switzerland, Norway, Iceland or Liechtenstein. If you currently live in those areas, you can apply for PIP. However, you will only be eligible for receiving help with daily living tasks. 

Additionally, if you are coming from these areas into the UK and wish to apply for PIP, you need an additional procedure. 

If you currently reside in Northern Ireland, the ways in which to apply for PIP might differ. If you live abroad but either work in the Armed Forces or are a family member of someone who does, you might still be eligible for PIP.

Furthermore, if you are not a British citizen, you might still be able to apply. The following must apply to you:

• You can show that you intend to or currently live in the UK, Ireland, the Isle of Man or the Channel Islands;
• You are not subject by immigration control (does not apply to sponsored immigrants).

If you are a refugee or benefit from humanitarian protection status, you might still be eligible for Personal Independence Payment.

What other benefits can I claim with PIP?

Consult the “Daily Living Component” and “Mobility Component” sections above to find out what benefits you can receive if you qualify for each.

If you qualify for either the daily living or mobility component of the Personal Independence Payment, you qualify for a Disabled Persons Railcard. You might also be eligible for a Council Tax discount or discount on local bus travel. Contact your local council to learn more.

You may also receive a disability premium if you are paid the following:

• Income Support;
• Income based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA);
• Housing Benefit;
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

You may be eligible for the disability element of the Working Tax Credit. Additionally, you will not get the mobility part of Personal Independence Payment if you receive War Pensioner’s Mobility Supplement.

How to claim PIP?

Once your child turns 16 and they currently were paid Disability Living Allowance (DLA), they will no longer be eligible for it. As such, they will need to apply for the Personal Independence Payment (PIP). However, they should receive a letter with instructions on how to do so.

They will need to apply for PIP by the date given in the letter. If they do not, their DLA payments will stop. If they do, they will continue to receive DLA payments until their claim is reviewed.

You may want to claim PIP and are over 16. Then, you will need to do so in 3 steps:

1. Call the “PIP new claims” line. This will start your claim (you will then receive a claim form to write about your condition);
2. Fill out the form and return it;
3. If more information is needed, you will need to follow up with a face-to-face assessment.

What will I need when calling the PIP claim line?

When calling the “PIP new claims” line, you will need to following information, your:

• Contact details (like your phone number);
• Date of birth;
• National Insurance number, if you currently have one (this can be found on tax, pensions and benefits letters);
• Bank or building society account number and sort code;
• Doctor or healthworker’s details (name, address and telephone number);
• Dates any time you’ve spent in a care home or hospital (as well as their addresses);
• Dates for periods where you were abroad for more than 4 weeks at a time (including the countries visited).

You will have a month to return the form sent to you after the call (with supporting documents if necessary). If more information is needed, you might need to go to an assessment with a health professional to examine your condition. If so, you will receive a letter citing where and why you need to do so.

Once a decision is made, if you are eligible, you will receive a letter with the decision, and if positive, the date of your first PIP payment. If you disagree with a decision, you can ask for a “mandatory reconsideration”.

If you are terminally ill, after calling the PIP claim line, you must ask a doctor or healthcare professional for form DS1500. They will fill it out, and either send the form themselves or give it to you. In this case, send it directly to the Department for Work and Pensions.