Overview

Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is a benefit for people with long-term conditions or disabilities that affect their daily living or mobility. Eligibility is based on how the condition affects someone, not on their diagnosis.

PIP is a very important benefit for many people living with mental health needs. Getting the right support during the claims process can make a real difference, helping to reduce stress, improve the quality of the evidence submitted and increase the chances of a successful claim.

This page contains practical advice on completing a PIP claim, explains how to give the best possible information, and provides guidance on helping an individual to prepare for a medical assessment.

Introduction to PIP

If you're completely new to PIP, our full guide explains how it works, who can claim, and what the eligibility rules are, including age and residence requirements. It also takes you through the claims process step by step.

Read the full guide here

Completing the PIP form

PIP has two components: daily living and mobility. Each can be paid at either the standard or enhanced rate, depending on a person's level of need.

An individual needs 8 points to qualify for the standard rate and 12 points for the enhanced rate of either component. They may receive one or both components, and each can be paid at either the standard or enhanced rate, depending on their score.

Before starting to complete the form, it’s important that you understand the needs of the person you’re supporting and have assessed that the claim is likely to succeed. It’s very unlikely you’ll be able to persuade the DWP to give points that you can’t evidence. If you don’t feel that the individual can score enough points, then you may want to discuss the case with a more experienced adviser before proceeding.

The claim form is a space to describe the person’s circumstances in as much detail as possible. While you shouldn’t exaggerate, it’s really important that you give detailed answers, not just tick boxes.

Under each descriptor, explain:

  • What actually happens

    What, specifically, is happening that affects the person?

  • What is the reason that this happens

    Try to link this back to the individual's health needs.

  • The frequency of the needs

    The DWP will consider the situation that is most common (e.g. if the needs occur more days of the week than not).

  • Whether any help is available

    Or if help is required but not yet available to the person.

  • Whether any aids are used

    Or if help is required but not yet available to the person.

  • Any examples to illustrate what happens

    This helps make the case more understandable to a DWP decision maker.

Include as much supporting evidence as possible, such as a GP's summary of the individuals medication and conditions, community care assessments, hospital discharge notes, or other medical records.

Encourage the person you're supporting to keep copies of any medical evidence, and always keep a copy of the completed claim form in case it is lost or needed later in the claims or appeals process.

Explaining mental health needs

When supporting a PIP claim, include as much relevant information as possible about the person’s mental health, including:

  • Diagnosis and medication
  • Treatment and support, such as counselling, psychiatry, Talking Therapies, hospital stays, support groups, or day services
  • How well they manage medication and appointments
  • The history of their condition, including any changes or periods of worsening
  • Any risks relating to suicide, self-harm, or previous attempts
  • Patterns and fluctuations in conditions such as bipolar disorder
  • The overall impact of their mental health on their daily life and general wellbeing

Preparing for a medical assessment

A PIP medical assessment can be stressful, especially for someone with poor mental health. Help them prepare by reviewing their claim form and reminding them of the examples they have given, as well as any new ones.

A family member, carer, or support worker can usually attend for support, and an interpreter should be arranged if needed. If the individual wants someone to take notes during the assessment, they should ask the assessor at the start.

At medical assessments, individuals should be encouraged to talk about:

  • the length of time it takes them to do any activity
  • how well they do it
  • whether they need help
  • whether they are safe
  • whether they are anxious or confused when doing it
  • whether there are any times of day they cannot do an activity
  • whether they can do the activity reliably
  • how many days per week they can do the activity

You should encourage the individual to not just say ‘yes’ in answer to a question from the health care practitioner but to say, “yes but/and…” and then add any of the above information.

What to do when someone is unhappy with their medical assessment

If the person you’re supporting isn’t happy with what has happened at the medical, they should be encouraged to write this down as soon as possible afterwards and to challenge any decision that seems to be inadequate, although in the case of partial awards, it is important to consider whether the client could get less at the next assessment.

A person who went with them could also write a statement of what happened.

Refusals

Refusals should be challenged initially at Mandatory Reconsideration (MR) and then at appeal if needed. It is well worth challenging refusals. Success rates at MR are relatively low but at appeal stage, average success rates are 65% and a represented individual would expect to have a higher chance of success than this. The high rate of success reflects the inadequacy of the medical assessments and the decision-making process.