My condition has worsened

anne161

I have been receiving disability benefits for around 10 years at first when I was on DLA I received low care and high rate mobility but once I was changed over to PIP I only receive standard care and standard mobility I do think this is wrong but I have never challenged it. Over the past few months my condition has worsened and I feel that I should be getting a higher rate of PIP but I just don’t know what to do. If I tell dwp they will do another review and I will have to go through all the forms again, I am worried that they may even lower my award. I also need someone to fill in my application for me. Another question is do I carry on getting my award while the review goes through. I have no extra evidence only than doctors visits and my explanation, my condition is one that can’t be treated so I have to live with it the best I can.  Any advice who be appreciated 

poppy123456

A worsening of condition doesn't automatically mean you can score more points for a higher award. You need to have a look at the descriptors and fully understand them before doing anything else.

If you don't fully understand what they mean then i'd advise you to get some expert advice from an agency near you. Start here. https://advicelocal.uk/

Once you've done that if they advise you that more points are possible you can ask them for help filling out the forms.

If you go ahead and report the changes then your existing award will continue until a new decisions been made on the change of circumstances.

calcotti

anne161 said:

.. when I was on DLA I received low care and high rate mobility but once I was changed over to PIP I only receive standard care and standard mobility I do think this is wrong but I have never challenged it. ..

The test for mobility on PIP is different to DLA so it doesn't follow that because you got higher rate mobility on DLA the award of standard rate mobility on PIP is incorrect. (That doesn't mean that the award was incorrect - it may have been.)

Alex_Alumni

Hello there @anne161 and thanks for reaching out on the community this morning I hope the above replies have helped to answer a few things for you.

Deciding to take the step to submit a 'change of circumstances' is a difficult decision, and it's not one you need to make without support. I hope this community can act as that for you, so please continue to reach out if you're unsure about anything, and we'll see what we can do to help. 

I would encourage you to seek professional advice, perhaps from Advice Local, Citizens Advice, or if you prefer, you can talk to one of our advisers on the Scope Helpline if you'd like to run through things over the phone.

Someone else can fill out the form on your behalf if you need them to, and if you need them to help make the call about the change of circumstances and request the form, they can do that too:

If you need someone to help you, you can:

• ask for them to be added to your call - you cannot do this if you use textphone
• ask someone else to call on your behalf - you’ll need to be with them when they call
  

I hope that's helpful for, but please do say if anything isn't making sense. Let us know how things go as and when you can.

Alex