Do people really think PIP claimants are fraudsters?!

[Greedybilly]

As someone with a chronic illness in the middle of claiming PIP I think it's important to point out it's very stressful to go through the process and actually get the benefit.
To those who were inferring it's an easy blag - I would say yes there will always be a few scammers who claim fraudulently ( though god knows how tbh?) the majority have to struggle for years/go through appeals/give up.
Just saying this for balance as I feel MN is turning slghtly into the Daily Fail.

Because people are spreading a lot of misinformation on this thread and gullible people will believe it instead of listen to actual people who have been through the pip process themselves and understand the reality of it

The DWP have no idea how many people are committing fraud. How can they?

It would also destroy faith in the system if they came out and said fraud is commonplace. Plus it would incentivise yet more people to try and defraud the system.

No, that's wrong. Data matching is very effective for uncovering UC fraud but it doesn't work for fraudulent PIP claims in the same way. It is much much harder for example to prove that someone has exaggerated their depression than to discover someone has £16k of savings squirrelled away.

Do you seriously believe money can be an incentive “not to get better” from mental illness??
What a despicable thing to say. Shame on you.

The mobility component

so you, a rando on the interwebz, think you know better than the people who's job it actually is to work it out?

So many financial experts.. maybe you all ought to apply to DWP's fraud dept and show them how a real detective works it out.

I know it is, I have it. Diagnosed, work know about it and support me, i currently take meds (hoping to at some point come off), had it for years, its fucking awful.

What did people with anxiety do in the days before benefits?

What do anxious people in other countries without benefits systems do?

You don’t get PIP for anxiety

what does that have to do with anything? This isn't then, and here isn't there.

What did we do before seatbelts? WE died.

What did we do before x-rays, and surgery? We died

What did we do before cars: we rode horses.. and died

What did we do before planes? We used boats... and died

What did we do before benefits? we ended up in the poor house, and died.

Thank fuck its not then now huh?

They was sectioned. Or drugged with high doses of diazepam

or off'd themselves.

Sectioned for anxiety?

What frustrates me is the piss poor mental health provision in this country, and the people using their PIP to jump the queue by going private. Why should they have the right to do that, when others need mental health treatment too and aren’t getting it? The access to services paid for by all taxpayers is not equal and that’s unfair, particularly as those not getting PIP (and therefore also not getting MH services) are far more likely to be funding PIP through their taxes. That’s what pisses people off.

Years and years ago people where sectioned for epilepsy

The more people using private care the shorter the nhs lists

what?

You're pissed off that people getting pip are taking themselves OUT of the NHS waiting lists to go private?

Surely that's a good thing because it means less people ON the NHS waiting lists.

I'm using mine to pay for private physiotherapy, so some other poor fuck has one less person on the wait list to wait to get through their treatment for their turn.

The person best placed to know what help, adjustments etc will best help them is the person with the disability imo.

In addition to friend's son who pays for therapy the NHS won't provide, I've had clients use their PIP to pay for acupuncture for drug-free pain relief, skin products specifically for eczema that GPs won't prescribe, a daily swim because it helps their depression and joint pain or even the cost of having a pet for affection and company.

Vouchers wouldn't allow people to get what they know is most likely to meet their needs.

Yes you can.

I've got exactly that combination for several clients.

No you can't

I'm sure some were but a lot of people just soldiered on and got on with life.

Yeah their was a diazepam epidemic mothers little helper they called it

See, people can't win.

Earlier, people should only be allowed to spend it on therapy etc

Now they are wrong to even do that.

I make no apologies for using some of my son's DLA for private therapy because what he does get on the NHS isn't enough.

Yes. My perception is that huge numbers are. Especially the mental health brigade. It’s very hard to prove otherwise. Likewise the “free cars” that get handed out.

But a large number of mumsnet posters seem to be either disabled or have disabled offspring so no doubt I’ll get flamed for this opinion.