John Pring’s Disability News Service (DNS) has revealed that 44% of all claimants who have a planned review of their personal independence payment (PIP) lose out as a result.
DNS has discovered via a Freedom of information Act request that:
the proportion of claimants who had their award reduced when their PIP was reviewed rose from 10% in 2014 to nearly 20% in 2016;
the proportion of claimants who had their PIP stopped altogether after a planned review rose from 13% in 2014 to nearly 25% in 2016.
At the same time, the proportion of claimants whose award increased following a review fell from 23% in 2014 to less than 16% in 2016.
PIP can only be claimed by people who have had their level of needs for at least three months and who are likely to continue having them for a further nine months. So it would be remarkable if almost half of them had managed a considerable recovery within just a few years.
In reality, a large proportion will have conditions which are only likely to deteriorate over time.
This strongly suggests that the reason the awards are being reduced or stopped altogether is connected with changes in the way assessments are being carried out and decisions are being made.
