PIP Waiting time

thatgirlwithlongcvd

Hi all, I was hoping someone might be able to suggest any way that I might be able to further my PIP application or speed up the process. I opened my application in February and received a text in early May reading: "A Health Professional is looking at your PIP claim. They will contact you with an appointment if they need to. You only need to contact us if your circumstances change."

I've heard absolutely nothing since then. I've called a couple of times to see if there's an update or if I need to book an appointment or anything, and they've just said it's being assessed and to wait. It seems like an incredibly long time to have an assessment taking place and I am really struggling with finances. I put off applying as long as I could after hearing bad stories about the stress and poor experiences with the process until I couldn't deny I needed long-term support anymore (silly, I know), but it's been over 5 months now, and I don't know what to do. Any advice would be appreciated.

poppy123456

It's not unusual to be waiting this long for an assessment. All you can do is ring the assessment providers who are responsible for the assessment and ask if there's any updates.

Rachel_Scope

Hi @thatgirlwithlongcvd, welcome to the community 😊

As poppy said, the assessment can take a long time. You say you're struggling with finances, do you receive any other benefits?

thatgirlwithlongcvd

Hi @Rachel_Scope Unfortunately not. I was told Long Covid didn't qualify for a long time because it was "so new," so I've not been able to apply until they approved it within the last year, and I was given official ME/CFS and POTs diagnoses. I've been applying to lots of jobs and received a disability access internship but wasn't able to secure a placement, so it's been quite difficult.