DLA to PIP help

Gweston

Hello to all on this community, great to be here,. all the best for Christmas and new year to everyone,. :-) 

Gweston

I just got a letter from DWP re my long term DLA, they said I now have to apply for PIP and said my DLA ends on Jan 18th ? 

I am not sure how this all works, does anyone know if my DLA will stay active till the PIP is confirmed? 

Also question 2,.

Is there a good way to fill out these forms? I have a chronic spine condition and various other issues that affect my mobility, I have heard of many people with similar conditions who were denied PIP who previously were on Long term DLA.

Can anyone advise me on the best method of how to fill in the forms in a way that speaks the assessors language ? 

I know from the horror stories I have read that many assessors have twisted facts and even lied to hold up or knock back peoples applications,. I just want to make sure I make no mistakes from the get go,. thank you and best regards to everyone. Gweston 

felix

Hi Gweston, happy holidays to you too!

1. When going from dla to pip, your dla payments are carried on until a decision is made, so long as you have applied for Pip before your dla runs out.

2. Citizens advice bureau offer good advice and step by step instructions on their website. A good idea if you're still struggling could be to look for a local advocacy agency who could sit through the form with you. Make sure they sign a confidentiality agreement, and that they are either free or you know how much they charge beforehand.

Good luck, and any questions you can always send me a DM and I'll try to help!

Xxx

Geoark

Hello @Gweston and welcome to the community.

Just keep in mind that DLA and PIP are very different beasts, and the thing with PIP is beyond providing evidence of what is wrong with you, you need to concentrate how your disabilities affect your day to day life.

To get some idea of what you might be entitled to check out the PIP calculator at https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-self-test though keep in mind that the assessor may score you differently.

There are a set of criteria that the assessors should be scoring you against, these can be found at https://www.benefitsandwork.co.uk/personal-independence-payment-pip/pip-points-system

Some of the words have their definition set within the PIP law, you can find these at https://www.citizensadvice.org.uk/Documents/Advice (public)/pip-guide-language-of-descriptors-activities.pdf

As @felix said if you can get support putting your claim together it would be better, but it will help you to understand what they are looking for and how it applies to you.

For  your own sanity, expect the worse and hope for the best. In short be prepared of having to request a mandatory review and then going onto appeal. The good news is that statistically you are more likely to win when it goes to appeal, especially if you have concentrated on the criteria laid out above. Above all remember we are here to support you and help you as best we can.