A new report suggests that around one in six working-age people receiving disability benefits do not face extra costs due to their conditions, warning against “waste” in the system. Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is designed to help people with the additional costs that can come with being disabled.
The Resolution Foundation said its research suggested 16% of claimants in their survey reported no costs due to their condition. The think tank estimated £4.4 billion could be saved if payments were stopped or lowered, depending on the level of limitations reported by those who said they faced no extra costs.
Survey findings and one-off payments
Savanta surveyed 2,611 PIP recipients aged 16-64 in England and Wales in May and June and found 12% of those with no costs had low limitations, while 4% had no costs but higher level limitations. The foundation said such a change would impact younger PIP claimants particularly, after finding a fifth (21%) of the current 16 to 24-year-old caseload reported little limitation and no additional costs from their disability.
Meanwhile, the think tank also suggested one-off rather than ongoing payments for people who reported a particular cost rather than daily needs. The research found 30% of those with higher costs reported having costs related to appliances, such as buying a mobility aid, and more than a fifth (22%) reported needing one-off adaptations, such as to their home or vehicle.
Recommended changes and PIP review
The report recommended that the assessment should be changed to ask claimants directly about their extra costs and what support would help them live more active lives; and that there should be more frequent but “lower-stakes check-ins” with recipients to get a better idea of fluctuating conditions “and reduce the stress created by infrequent but high-stakes assessments”.
A review into PIP with recommendations for reform of the system is expected to be published by the Government this autumn. Louise Murphy, senior economist at the Resolution Foundation, said: “PIP is a vital benefit for disabled people that enables them to participate in society and live more independently. But the current system is failing on several fronts – recipients don’t trust it, awards don’t fully reflect the nature of disability today and spending is rising unsustainably.”
Spending and claimant numbers
Spending on PIP stood at £16.3 billion in 2019-20, when adjusted for inflation to today’s prices, and had increased to £27.3 billion by 2024-25, Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) figures published in September show. It is currently forecast to rise to £41.5 billion by 2030-31.
A total of 4.09 million people were entitled to claim PIP as of July 31, 2026, according to the latest data. This is up from 3.83 million a year earlier – a rise of 262,045, or 7%. The number of claimants has roughly doubled since comparable figures began in January 2019, when the total stood at 2.05 million.
Learning disability charity Mencap said the Resolution Foundation survey was “inconsistent with our own research and understanding around the importance of PIP and what people with a learning disability and their families spend it on”. Its chief executive, Jon Sparkes, said: “A learning disability is lifelong. The extra costs that come with it don’t go away, and neither should adequate support to meet them”. He said PIP “can be a lifeline when it comes to covering energy costs, attending appointments, sensory aids and taking part in community life”, adding that system reforms should be “shaped by disabled people” as part of the Government’s current review.
A DWP spokesperson said: “PIP is awarded based on a functional assessment that determines how a condition impacts a person’s day-to-day needs. But as the Timms Review report made clear, PIP is no longer fit for purpose and the recommendations from its final report will lay the foundation for sustainable reform.”
