PIP for Anxiety

[IntelligenceIsFree]

AIBU to clear things up?

The current nasty rhetoric around disabled people at the moment is astounding. Society needs to be reminded that we are ALL one illness or accident away from disability.

Everyone knows someone who is gaming the system, yet the PIP fraud rate is extremely low. The public demonising, does not match the reality.

The hot topic is “anxiety” and how people with “anxiety” are gaming the system, getting “free” cars and robbing tax payers; this is being constantly fed through media, news articles and so on.

This is simply not true. The people spouting this nonsense clearly have no idea how PIP works. Nobody gets PIP without strong medical evidence. Nobody.

Before anyone posts “my neighbour got PIP just by telling lies”. No, they did not. That’s not how it works.

People need to be educated properly on how benefits work, how they are awarded and what the criteria for mobility cars actually is; the cars are not in fact free.

People need to be educated on the fact that there is anxiety, which every human suffers from at some point, and then there are anxiety DISORDERS which are entirely different and can be life changing and debilitating. Hence, the need and entitlement for PIP.

Brenda down the road who feels too anxious to go to Bingo on a Friday night is NOT getting PIP ❌

Mary up the lane who has such severe OCD that she cannot leave her own home for fear that she will die, IS getting PIP .✅

There’s a huge difference.

The current turning on disabled people is shameful and we are living in a country full of hate because Bob (and his Uncle) are annoyed that they are paying tax to “support all of these scroungers”.

Bob (and his Uncle), needs to hope that they never get cancer, or suffer life changing trauma or have an unfortunate accident to avoid being served a huge scrounged humble pie.

I do not suffer from anxiety but as a human, I am pleased we have a system in society to support the most vulnerable people who need it. Life can happen to anyone.

@Onmytod24 No I can’t explain it and there is no denying that we can’t sustain such a boom in claims forever. I do not disagree with this.

I do however, completely reject the idea that people are getting PIP for a bit of mild anxiety. It simply doesn’t work like that.

It is in human nature to share things and get it off your chest , even if it’s only sharing with your best friend or sibling .
It’s the same as having an affair or a crush on your boss or laughing that you drink a bottle of wine every evening but you don’t mention it to your doctor when they ask.
we all know other people’s secrets, some of it direct from the source and some passed along as gossip (less reliable but usually has some truth to it) .

if everyone is so honest than how do abuses such as this happen?
https://inews.co.uk/news/taxpayer-funded-new-cars-taken-11000-benefits-claimants-abuse-system-3605920?ico=in-line_link

The problem, especially with mental health related claims, is that “evidence” can be created to match a story if someone chose to do so.

You can’t lie about having something like a broken leg, obviously, no evidence and a quick check with a GP would prove that. But for things like anxiety claims if you present at the GP and tell them you feel anxious, put yourself across that way, that’s your evidence. You could do that 3 times a month if you wanted to, for 3 months, and suddenly you do have evidence.

And some people (as mentioned in several posts) openly brag about gaming the system. It’s unthinkable but they really do.

Are you suggesting disabled people should not do any of these things or just nor frequently? What’s the rationale behind that?

@Jellybunny98 A GP record is highly unlikely to be sufficient in the vast majority of cases.

But having anxiety isn’t enough for a PIP claim. The evidence needed is how the anxiety affects you, not that you simply have anxiety.

In my family members case there is no consultants letters because they haven’t ever seen one. The only medical evidence is the mental health team and gp reports.

Mental health is all based on their word.
The gp cannot prove pain does or doesn’t exist they just provide meds and every so often send them for a scan to see if they can finally spot something that might explain the plain.

But again hospital appointments are only done when they absolutely must because too scared to leave the house and so the medical examination at hospital is very very far apart as they don’t want to trigger a mental health episode.

They have been offered counselling and therapy but they would have to leave the house for that so it’s been rejected again and noted to offer again in another year incase there is improvement. Rinse and repeat.

It’s a joke really for those who genuinely are too afraid to leave their homes.

This is the crucial point people are not getting.

Because other people have seen / experienced different things. Just because you don't believe it happens, why does that trump other people knowing it does?

I know a lot of people on Pip with decent cars who regularly go abroad too.

They seem to live much better than many non pip claimants in society.

@GodDamnitDonut The abuse of motability is an entirely different thing; that clearly does happen and it is unfortunately so easy to abuse.

However, to those cars, you have to qualify for the higher rate of PIP in the first place, which is much more difficult to claim and has to be strongly evidenced.

I think we have stretched the definition of disability and mental health issues to be entirely meaningless if this many claimants have a case. I too would like to be nice all the time but at some point the whole economy just collapses.

You have to be extremely unwell to be under the mental health team and they generally only hold on to you now whilst you’re doing specific work before returning you to GP care.

Your post doesn’t ring true.

@Chewbecca I think you’ve misunderstood.

Unless you know exactly what these friends/relatives put on their forms, have full access to their entire medical history, have seen all of their medical paperwork and attended their PIP assessment AND saw their resulting claim letter, you cannot truly know that they are gaming the system, even if they tell you that .

Do you have a source for this please? I was hoping that would be the case but official websites suggest that Gp letter is ok.

Why does Mary who can’t leave her house need PIP? What exactly is it paying for, compared to someone who does leave their house?

Its not means tested. Its aim isnt relief of poverty.

Why should disabled people not go abroad regularly though? I’m baffled at the ideas in this thread that disabled people should do less, nothing even. What’s is that about?

You don’t have to believe me.

I know what I see with my own eyes and what my own family member openly shares. 🤷🏻‍♀️

Well your posts need to at least be credible and they’re not.

Also they will visit you at home to do work and support. I know because my DD has had it to help her get out. If you just refuse all help it goes against you as regards PIP too.

The PIP fraud rate is not "extremely low" as you say, it's recognised by the Government as being high. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fighting-fraud-in-the-welfare-system/fighting-fraud-in-the-welfare-system-going-further

I agree that as a society we should support people where there is a genuine need. However, I think what a lot of people mean is that there is a way of answering questions to stand a better chance of receiving PIP. I know this is true because someone in my family used such a "specialist" who advised on what to say.

I don't think I have misunderstood.

Many, many of us know people, including people very close to us, who we do not believe have issues to the extent they require taxpayers funds.
We see their full lives, hear about every appointment, sometimes are asked to help fill forms in. You don't believe us or that those people exist. Many of us believe they do because we see and hear it with our own eyes and ears. You don't believe these people exist despite so many of us knowing they do. I haven't misunderstood anything.

Mary isn’t able to work presumably, so it might simply help her with day to day living costs.

I know someone who gets it and shouldn’t (she has claimed for mobility issues that I have seen with my own eyes she does not have and she has talked about this). I also doubt she would show up in fraud figures even if audited because I think she would be very able to mislead an assessor about her abilities. However, I also know people who should be on significantly more or have been denied PIP entirely despite a very clear need and I have been more shocked by that side of things.

How is 0.4% as quoted on the government site not low?

You can’t polish a turd! There is no knowing what to say if you have zero evidence.