All the changes to PIP coming this year - from light touch review to assessments
People claiming Personal Independence Payments (PIP) will notice some big changes starting next month.
PIP is a disability benefit which is given to those with long-term mental or physical health problems or disabilities - as of January 2023, around 3.2million people claimed PIP in the UK.
Contrary to popular belief, there is no set list of medical conditions that will make you eligible for PIP.
Your eligibility for the benefit and the amount you are paid depends on how your condition affects your daily life.
Already this year, the amount you get when claiming PIP increased by 10.1% alongside other Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) benefits.
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However, more changes are expected to come over the next six months and here we highlight them for you.
The "light touch" review
One DWP shake up coming next month is designed to make it easier for people to renew their claims.
The change is part of the DWP's "light touch" review.
Normally, PIP awards last between nine months to 10 years - after your award ends you normally have to renew your claim.
At the moment, the 10 year award is the longest claim you can get.
With PIP having been introduced in 2013, millions of people who qualified for the 10-year award benefit will now have to submit a fresh claim.
However, from August 1, claimants with "high levels of functional impairment" and no likelihood of improvements in their condition will have a "light tough" review instead.
This will also include those who claim PIP and are over the state pensions age.
The "light touch" review is a simpler way of reapplying for the benefit and does not require the same amount of elements for a new claim for PIP.
Change to claims paperwork
Alongside the light tough review, those who have claimed PIP long term will only need to complete a renewal form which is six pages long.
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This is instead of the 16-page form that those who receive the PIP for a shorter term have to fill in.
The DWP said its light touch process "will complement our policy of regular reviews, which are designed so that payments accurately match the current needs of people claiming PIP".
It also said the process is also "in line with its focus on reducing unnecessary assessments for people with long-term conditions".
Face-to-face assessments to be scrapped
In another change to PIP coming this August, the DWP will be scrapping its face-to-face health assessments for those with long-term awards.
From next month, an assessment won't be required unless a person's medical condition has changed.
However, the health assessment is not set to be scrapped for PIP altogether.
PIP will continue to have a health assessment as part of its claims process - the only change will be for those who have a long term award.
In the future, the PIP assessment will be the only assessment people will need to complete when applying for benefits.
Going forward, the Government plans to completely scrap the Work Capability Assessment (WCA) for benefits - this will impact those claiming PIP and Universal Credit.
Instead, people will face an assessment that asks them what sort of work they think they could do.
This was originally announced in the 2023 Spring Budget and a date has not been confirmed for this as of writing.
Disability cost of living payment
This isn't really a change for PIP however it is something people who are claiming the benefit should be aware of.
The Disability cost of living payment worth £150 was paid to over six million people across June and July.
However, some people may not have received their payment yet - this is because they were likely waiting for confirmation of their eligibility or entitlement for the cash at the time it was being paid.
To be eligible for the disability cost of living payment, you must have been claiming a qualifying benefit on April 1 2023.
If you were waiting for your confirmation during this date you would not have got the cash.
If your claim was or has been successful and it coincided with the qualifying week then you should automatically have the money paid to you.
If you haven't received it, then you can report it to the DWP as a missing payment.
You can report your missing cost of living payment here.
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