Is it worth applying for PIP

[backtoworknextweek]

I suffer from a bone condition which means I am constantly in pain which, for the past few years, massively effected my mental health. I work part time because I am unable to full time because of my condition.

Is it worth applying for Pip. Will I be knocked back and is it a stressful process to go through. Will I need to send my doctors letters with my condition

Can I jump in with a PIP question?
can an elderly person claiming pension credit and attendance allowance (dementia related) also claim PIP?

Good luck with your claim OP

I’m really sorry. I currently am undiagnosed. The doctors are still trying to work out what’s wrong with me. Hasn’t stopped me from claiming PiP and a blue badge though

And even then, the DWP/assessor ignored all the evidence attached (an inch thick) and said that if you can do this xyz, then you must be able to do abc i.e. you don't get any points for that activity. Be prepared to challenge if they do this and go to appeal if necessary. At appeal, it is impartial and the DWP can no longer dodge. Your chances of your succeeding at appeal increase significantly.

@Thighdentitycrisis no. A pensioner can only receive PIP if they already had an award at the time they reached state pension age. Attendance Allowance is the equivalent for pensioners.

You have to be 64 or younger to make a new pip claim. Attendance Allowance is the over 65s equivalent.
I have enhanced rate daily living of the Scottish Adult Disability payment in spite of working full time. I can keep it together enough to work well but home life is a disaster and my conditions are poorly managed.

That's the invisible illness penalty.

So true. Mental health, autism and learning difficulties, maybe even chronic pain, fall under this.

Thanks @flourella @Auldspinster

This is like me. I hold it together in work but when I get home it's another story but I think I would be worse if I didn't work because then I think my mental health would suffer.
Even though I'm in pain daily with my condition, I tend to just get on with it and that's why I wondered if it's worth applying

Thank you for all the responses. I am going to start the claim tomorrow so I'll no doubt be back to update/ask for advice.

I had a slight advantage in that I worked in PIP appeals and knew the descriptors back to front. Still a slog to fill in the form.

What prompted me to apply was that I was listening to cases thinking "That's the same as me" or that I'm on the same meds and face the same barriers. GP backed me up, they've always been very supportive and have often stated how well I've done to hold down a demanding full time job.

It struck me quite how much I had wrong with me when listing my very long list of conditions - had kind of compartmentalised before. Did feel slightly guilty at first but the determination is very clear, feel like I can breathe for the first time in many years after only just getting by.

No attendance allowance is the equivalent disability benefit for people over state pension age. You can't claim PIP once over state pension age,

It's not 64, it's state retirement age that determines which benefit you claim.

Do you always have to have an assessment and is this face to face or over the phone. Can it be approved just by the application. I'd rather they speak to my GP and health professionals rather than meet with me. I hate that kind of things

Most people have a face-to-face or telephone assessment. Paper-based assessments can be carried out if the assessment provider feels they can write a report just from the form and other written evidence. Paper-based decisions are also possible, where the DWP doesn't even send the form to the assessment provider because they feel they can make a decision without an assessment report (this is what happened with my review a couple of years ago).

I wouldn't bank on them contacting the medical professionals you name. They never have with me. Assessments I have had over the years have not been exactly pleasant, but haven't been awful either. I'm afraid you should prepare to have one and hope the assessor is nice.

How long did it take all together

I can do all these things most of the time, but not all of the time and not on the same day.

If you had twenty quid to spend, then theoretically you could buy a meal in a cafe, buy ingredients and cook dinner, go bowling, go to the cinema, get a bus, taxi ride, do an exercise class, buy a t shirt, get brows threaded, buy some raffle tickets, get a prescription, buy some nappies etc, but you couldn't do all of them and would have to choose. That's how I am with my health, except the price of those activities also shoots up randomly on various days. Is that sort of thing eligible for PIP? Am I making any sense?!

If you have the sort of condition that means your capacity to do stuff is up/down or you have bad days and good days less bad days you're in with a chance.

Speak to an adviser such as CA, your local Law Centre etc.

Keep a diary day by day or even minute by minute of what you cannot do that us folks in OK health can. Complete it with the PIP descriptors in mind.

Thank you

@backtoworknextweek did u apply ? X