PIP
This post took ages to complete because my disabled hands made it hard to put in the clickable links. Now thanks to my live-in IT support, here goes...
Here in Britain we cips are invited to claim the Personal Independence Payment (PIP). I've been scared witless about this for years, expecting to lose much of my income. I knew I'd come under pressure to claim PIP and sure enough, that happened. Here's what the Multiple Society (MS Soc) Helpline told me about PIP.
2017.02.10
Dear Dr Sam Mason,
Thank you for contacting us about the letter you received from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Your email has been sent to the Helpline as it was thought we were best placed to answer your enquiry. We realise that changes to your benefits can be worrying and appreciate you are keen to understand what will happen next.
Whilst we are not trained benefits advisors, we have provided some information below that we hope will help. Where you see words in blue and underlined below you can click on them to take you to further information.
The DWP is currently contacting claimants of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) to move them to the new Personal Independence Payment (PIP). This applies to all claimants who were aged 16 to 64 on the 8th April 2013.
You say, you’ve heard that in the 2016, the MS Society gained a reprieve from this, but this unfortunately, is not the case. In March 2016, we did a play a lead role in halting some major government changes to the way PIP was going to be assessed, which would have meant some people with MS would be £150 worse off each week. However, claimants of DLA will still be invited to apply for PIP by letter and will not automatically be moved across to the new benefit.
Once you receive this letter, you will have four weeks in which to start the PIP claims process. However, we appreciate you have been hospital and this has given you only a few days to get in contact with the DWP.
The Gov.UK website provides information about starting a new PIP claim. If you live in England, Scotland or Wales you would need to call the DWP. Please find the contact details below.
Telephone: 0800 917 2222
Textphone: 0800 917 7777
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
If you live in Northern Ireland this is a different process.
The initial call to start a PIP claim should last about 15 minutes and you will be asked for basic details including:
· Your contact details, national insurance number and bank details.
· Which healthcare professional supporting you would be the best to contact
You may want to have these details ready before you call them.
Once you have spoken to the DWP, they will send you the ‘How your disability affects you’ form. This form asks you to describe in detail how MS affects your daily life in a number of areas. PIP is made up of two components - the daily living component and the mobility component - you can be awarded either or both. The form will ask you questions relating to these two components.
During the process you will keep receiving DLA until a decision on your eligibility for PIP is made. If you miss the four week deadline to begin your claim, your DLA will be suspended for four weeks. If you do not claim within a further four weeks of the suspension coming into effect, your DLA award will be stopped completely. Our factsheet on changing from DLA to PIP explains more about this.
In addition, you may find our booklet ‘Claiming PIP’ helpful. It looks in detail at the assessment process including completing the questionnaire and the face-to-face assessment. Some Citizen’s Advice offices are able to provide face-to-face support with completing the questionnaire. You can find your nearest Citizen’s Advice here.
We hope this information is helpful to you. We are here to support you through this process. Please call our Helpline if you need any more information and support on 0808 800 8000. Alternatively, you can reply to this email at helpline@mssociety.org.uk. The MS Helpline is open between 9am and 9pm on Monday and 9am to 7pm, Tuesday to Friday. These times do not include bank holidays.
Would you like to help us review our service? We’ve prepared a short survey which will take around 5 minutes to complete: MS Helpline Survey
Best Wishes,
The Helpline Team
For further information about our Helpline services please see our website at http://www.mssociety.org.uk/ms-support/emotional-support/ms-helpline.
Further information about MS is available to download from our website at: http://www.mssociety.org.uk/what-is-ms. We have information in a variety of formats. To order, you can visit our shop at http://oscos2.bmc-ics.com/mss2/public/index.php.
You can also visit our website to find out about support in your local area: http://www.mssociety.org.uk/near-me
The Helpline team are not legally or medically trained and are not benefit advisors. Our information should not be viewed as advice or a recommendation. We do our best to give accurate, evidence based and up to date responses. Where we mention products, services or external organisations, we cannot guarantee their safety or quality or whether they are suitable for individual needs. All information is relevant to the UK and may not apply elsewhere.
Helpline
MS Society
DD: 0808 800 8000
Switchboard: 020 8438 0700
www.mssociety.org.uk | Find us on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter
Multiple Sclerosis Society. Registered charity in England & Wales number 1139257 and in Scotland registered charity number SC041990. Registered as a limited company in England and Wales (07451571)
Mae Multiple Sclerosis Society yn elusen gofrestredig 1139257 / SC041990 a chwmni cyfyngedig dan warrant yn Lloegr a Chymru (07451571).
Here in Britain we cips are invited to claim the Personal Independence Payment (PIP). I've been scared witless about this for years, expecting to lose much of my income. I knew I'd come under pressure to claim PIP and sure enough, that happened. Here's what the Multiple Society (MS Soc) Helpline told me about PIP.
2017.02.10
Dear Dr Sam Mason,
Thank you for contacting us about the letter you received from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). Your email has been sent to the Helpline as it was thought we were best placed to answer your enquiry. We realise that changes to your benefits can be worrying and appreciate you are keen to understand what will happen next.
Whilst we are not trained benefits advisors, we have provided some information below that we hope will help. Where you see words in blue and underlined below you can click on them to take you to further information.
The DWP is currently contacting claimants of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) to move them to the new Personal Independence Payment (PIP). This applies to all claimants who were aged 16 to 64 on the 8th April 2013.
You say, you’ve heard that in the 2016, the MS Society gained a reprieve from this, but this unfortunately, is not the case. In March 2016, we did a play a lead role in halting some major government changes to the way PIP was going to be assessed, which would have meant some people with MS would be £150 worse off each week. However, claimants of DLA will still be invited to apply for PIP by letter and will not automatically be moved across to the new benefit.
Once you receive this letter, you will have four weeks in which to start the PIP claims process. However, we appreciate you have been hospital and this has given you only a few days to get in contact with the DWP.
The Gov.UK website provides information about starting a new PIP claim. If you live in England, Scotland or Wales you would need to call the DWP. Please find the contact details below.
Telephone: 0800 917 2222
Textphone: 0800 917 7777
Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
If you live in Northern Ireland this is a different process.
The initial call to start a PIP claim should last about 15 minutes and you will be asked for basic details including:
· Your contact details, national insurance number and bank details.
· Which healthcare professional supporting you would be the best to contact
You may want to have these details ready before you call them.
Once you have spoken to the DWP, they will send you the ‘How your disability affects you’ form. This form asks you to describe in detail how MS affects your daily life in a number of areas. PIP is made up of two components - the daily living component and the mobility component - you can be awarded either or both. The form will ask you questions relating to these two components.
During the process you will keep receiving DLA until a decision on your eligibility for PIP is made. If you miss the four week deadline to begin your claim, your DLA will be suspended for four weeks. If you do not claim within a further four weeks of the suspension coming into effect, your DLA award will be stopped completely. Our factsheet on changing from DLA to PIP explains more about this.
In addition, you may find our booklet ‘Claiming PIP’ helpful. It looks in detail at the assessment process including completing the questionnaire and the face-to-face assessment. Some Citizen’s Advice offices are able to provide face-to-face support with completing the questionnaire. You can find your nearest Citizen’s Advice here.
We hope this information is helpful to you. We are here to support you through this process. Please call our Helpline if you need any more information and support on 0808 800 8000. Alternatively, you can reply to this email at helpline@mssociety.org.uk. The MS Helpline is open between 9am and 9pm on Monday and 9am to 7pm, Tuesday to Friday. These times do not include bank holidays.
Would you like to help us review our service? We’ve prepared a short survey which will take around 5 minutes to complete: MS Helpline Survey
Best Wishes,
The Helpline Team
For further information about our Helpline services please see our website at http://www.mssociety.org.uk/ms-support/emotional-support/ms-helpline.
Further information about MS is available to download from our website at: http://www.mssociety.org.uk/what-is-ms. We have information in a variety of formats. To order, you can visit our shop at http://oscos2.bmc-ics.com/mss2/public/index.php.
You can also visit our website to find out about support in your local area: http://www.mssociety.org.uk/near-me
The Helpline team are not legally or medically trained and are not benefit advisors. Our information should not be viewed as advice or a recommendation. We do our best to give accurate, evidence based and up to date responses. Where we mention products, services or external organisations, we cannot guarantee their safety or quality or whether they are suitable for individual needs. All information is relevant to the UK and may not apply elsewhere.
Helpline
MS Society
DD: 0808 800 8000
Switchboard: 020 8438 0700
www.mssociety.org.uk | Find us on Facebook | Follow us on Twitter
Multiple Sclerosis Society. Registered charity in England & Wales number 1139257 and in Scotland registered charity number SC041990. Registered as a limited company in England and Wales (07451571)
Mae Multiple Sclerosis Society yn elusen gofrestredig 1139257 / SC041990 a chwmni cyfyngedig dan warrant yn Lloegr a Chymru (07451571).