The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) review of Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is expected to recommend key changes to the assessment process and the health conditions that qualify people for the benefit. Disability support advocates say the official Government review, now in its final stages, will likely include recommendations to broaden the scope of what conditions qualify for payments.
Advocates call for updated eligibility rules
The team at financial support group Money Wellness says it is about time the PIP eligibility rules were updated. External relations manager Rebecca Lamb said: "The main problem is that a claim tends to be judged on a snapshot, and that doesn't work well for everybody. If your condition fluctuates, you might manage something one day and be unable to do it a few days later, and the [application] form doesn't give you much room to explain that."
PIP provides payments for people who live with a long-term health condition or disability, to help them cover their extra costs. How much someone gets depends on how many points they receive, based on how much the condition affects them in daily life and mobility.
Emerging recommendations
The PIP review, co-chaired by DWP minister Sir Stephen Timms, is looking at to what extent the system is still working fairly and where it needs a major makeover. On the question of changing how the qualifying rules work, Ms Lamb said: "We'd want the assessment to reflect how a condition affects someone over time, and the review's emerging recommendations do move in that direction."
The interim report for the review, published in July 2026, said: "Some people's conditions are stable, while others change over time, fluctuate, or are less visible or harder to evidence. PIP must be able to respond to and recognise this diversity equitably."
Advice for applicants
Ms Lamb said it is a good idea to keep records if someone is filling in the PIP application now. She recommended: "If you're filling in a form now, it helps to keep a diary first." Note down the difficult days as well as the manageable ones, how long tasks take, how often help is needed, and how the person feels afterwards. Most people describe their best day because describing anything else feels like overstating it, but the assessment needs to know how often the bad days happen.
As the review progresses, a series of workshops are taking place in September and October to shape its final recommendations. The review body will hear from a range of people at these roundtable events, including those who claim PIP and others who live with a long-term health condition or disability.
Timeline and current rates
Sir Stephen told MPs recently that he expects the final report for the review to be put before MPs in November 2026.
PIP payments are split into two parts: Daily Living – for help with everyday tasks like cooking, washing, or dressing – and Mobility – for help with walking or getting around. Depending on how much support someone needs, they can get either the standard rate or the enhanced rate for one or both parts. PIP is tax-free, not based on income, and paid every 4 weeks.
The current rates are: Daily Living standard £76.70 a week (£306.80 every 4 weeks), Daily Living enhanced £114.60 a week (£458.40 every 4 weeks), Mobility standard £30.30 a week (£121.20 every 4 weeks), and Mobility enhanced £80.00 a week (£320.00 every 4 weeks).
