PIP claimants could be owed up to £12,000 in back pay after DWP rule change

The MM Judgement has now changed the way they assess the Daily Living Component of PIP.

Around 326,000 PIP claimants could now be due up to £12,000 in back payments as they may not have been given one of the two elements of PIP when they were actually entitled to it.

PIP can help with extra living costs if someone has both: a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability.

People can also qualify if they have difficulty doing certain everyday tasks or getting around because of their condition.

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There are two components to PIP - the Daily Living Component and the Mobility Component.

Each part pays a lower and higher rate. If eligible for both higher rates, people could receive £184.30 a week

To find out how much someone is eligible for, the DWP conducts a PIP assessment.

The DWP was ruled to have got the law wrong when deciding the number of points PIP claimants could get for the activity of “engaging with other people face to face” during their PIP assessment.

This mainly impacted those who had certain mental health difficulties with the court ordering the DWP to clearly define what counts as support.

The department was also ordered to not dismiss the help people with mental health conditions may need in social situations.

The DWP is currently reassessing cases where additional points for Activity 9 could influence the PIP amount awarded.

Some people may have not been entitled to the daily living element of PIP when they were actually entitled to it.

There may be other cases where people have been awarded the standard rate but should have actually received the enhanced rate.

However, the DWP is not reviewing claims if:

• The enhanced rate of the daily living part of PIP has been awarded continuously since April 6, 2016
• A Tribunal made a decision on a claim since April 6, 2016
• A decision not to award PIP was made before April 6, 2016

The DWP began an administrative exercise in 2021, looking at PIP claims since April 6, 2016 to check whether claimants may be eligible for more support.

In its latest update, the DWP says it identified around 326,000 cases to be reviewed.

Around 79,000 cases reflecting MM judgement have been reviewed so far and arrears totalling around £74million have been paid out to 14,000 people. The average of each payout has been about £5,300.

Some payments will be higher and some lower as it depends on each individual case.

Full details about challenging your PIP decisions can be found on Gov.UK.

A DWP spokesperson said: "We are monitoring the numbers of, and reasons for, revised awards closely and making regular quality checks to ensure our decision-making is accurate and fair.

"We are committed to making backdated payments to all claimants affected by this judgment as quickly as possible.

"So, as well as continuing to review claims affected by the definition of 'social support', we are also testing a more proportionate approach for claimants who might be affected by the timing element only.

"We will be inviting around 284,000 claimants in this group to contact the department if they think their claim is affected by this judgment and they were not previously identified as needing help to engage with other people face to face because any help they received was in advance."