Received review award letter and now I'm a little confused

BrettW

Received my review letter this morning from my recent review assessment and to be honest I'm a little confused by a certain part of what the letter contains.

My review was conducted on the 11th October 2023 after a last minute cancellation by the assessor on the 20th September 2023

I received a text on 23rd of October to say a decision had been made so I phoned the PIP helpline and was happy to hear that my PIP claim had been upgraded from standard rate mobility to enhanced rate mobility.

Fast forward to this morning and sure enough the letter does in fact confirm that this is the case. Where the confusion arises is in what the DM has put regarding the award itself.

I'll quote the relevant part here to make things clear:

'I decided to award you PIP for a longer time. I increased your PIP award from 16 November 2022, the date we wanted to look at your award again.'

The statement of entitlement also confirms the date of the award to be commencing from 16 November 2022.

Does this mean that I can expect to receive some form of backpay in regards to difference between standard and enhanced rate mobility from September last year to October this year as this has, quite frankly, confused me a bit as I was not expecting any sort of backdate with a review?

On another positive note I was also happy to see that I was awarded 12 points in the moving around section of the mobility award which means not only can I now qualify for the Motability scheme but that I also automatically qualify for a blue badge.

poppy123456

Yes, you will be owed the difference between your old award and the new award back to September 2022.

Just so that you're aware scoring 12 points in any mobility part or a mixture of both would also qualify someone for the motability scheme. 

Please also be aware that when you join the scheme, you will be exchanging the mobility payments for a vehicle once you collect it. I realise you may already know that but some people are unaware of this so thought it best to mention it.

BrettW

thanks for the response @poppy123456. 

Well thats a rather pleasant and unexpected result if I'm honest and yes I'm aware that the Motability scheme will result in the payments ending but to be honest the ability to be able to get out of the house and get some sort of freedom back into my life far outweighs the monetry value for me personally

poppy123456

You're welcome. The decision maker seems to use their own discretion for awarding from an earlier time so you end up being owed some money. Some receive it and others don't.

I've been with the motability scheme since 2016 and i think it's really good. All you pay for on top is your fuel. Some do have advance payments though, that's the only downside. You can also apply for a grant to help with that but you must apply before you order your vehicle. The best part of all it is test driving the cars the worst part is choosing which one.

BrettW

yeah I've already pretty much decided on what car I'm going for as I don't need anything overly large and don't have any young children I need to ferry around

poppy123456

That’s great. I hope you’re not waiting too long for collection.