New analysis has revealed that 13,000 premium cars were handed to Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claimants last year, as Britain's benefit bill surges to record levels under Labour.
The figures show 3.23 million people are now claiming PIP, even as taxes sit at their highest level since World War 2. The high-end cars handed out to claimants include Mercedes, BMWs and Audis, and four in every five PIP claimants also receive a mobility handout worth between £30.30 and £80 a week.
PIP claims surge across the country
Further analysis found 52,210 people were claiming PIP in April 2026 with back pain listed as their main disabling condition - the equivalent of the entire population of Torquay.
Separate analysis from the Centre for Government Reform exposed that PIP claims have surged by nearly 10 per cent since the 2024 general election in every English constituency. The number of people claiming had doubled in 61 council areas since Labour was handed the keys to No 10.
Political backlash grows
Labour has faced growing demands to slash the ballooning benefits bill, after Tory chief Kemi Badenoch branded them the "welfare party".
Tory shadow minister Joy Morrissey told the Express her party was "for the taxpayer, not for the scrounger, not for those who just sit around - as the Labour Party is." She warned Andy Burnham's party "just asked 'who can we tax to pay for more benefits?'"
Benjamin Elks, of the TaxPayers' Alliance, who crunched the numbers on the car scheme and mobility handout, said: "A benefits system that pays for claimants to cruise around in flashy cars is not fit for purpose."
He added: "The surge in mobility PIP claims, including in areas with perfectly good public transport, raises serious questions of whether all of these claims are entirely necessary. Ministers must continue their crackdown on Motability spending and review the eligibility for PIP to ensure the system is fair for the taxpayers who pick up the bill."
Warnings over welfare spending
Helen Whately MP fumed that the car scheme "makes a mockery of our welfare state." She said: "Most people want help to be there for the seriously sick and disabled. But taxpayers are being taken for a ride - funding cars for people on benefits which they cannot afford to buy themselves." Ms Whately added: "State-funded cars for acne and tennis elbow show just how ridiculous it's got. And claims keep surging under Labour."
Ameer Kotecha, of the Centre for Government Reform, said the figures proved the Government had "lost control of the welfare bill", warning that unless the number was slashed, "Britain will stay on a downward spiral."
Reform's shadow chancellor, Robert Jenrick, delivered the sharpest warning of all, saying the research "shows Labour has completely lost control over the benefits bill." He said: "We can't go on like this. If Burnham doesn't act soon it will bankrupt the country."
The Government was approached for comment.
