Personal Independent Payment FAQs – Making a claim
10. I get DLA. Will I be entitled to Personal Independence Payment?
11. I get DLA. Will I be told what to do to claim Personal Independence Payment?
12. I get DLA. When will I be asked to claim Personal Independence Payment?
13. How long will I have to wait to qualify for Personal Independence Payment?
14. Will there be a break in my benefit payments if I move from DLA to Personal Independence Payment?
15. When can I make a new claim for Personal Independence Payment?
16. How do I make a claim for Personal Independence Payment?
17. I have difficulty using the phone. Can somebody else make the claim on my behalf?
10. I get DLA. Will I be entitled to Personal Independence Payment?
There is no automatic transfer from DLA to Personal Independence Payment. If you are already getting DLA, and you are of an eligible age (see question 1 for the eligible age criteria) you will need to make a claim for the new benefit when invited to do so.
We will write to you to let you know when you can make a claim to Personal Independence Payment and how to do that. This stage will begin in October 2015 and we aim to have contacted all current DLA claimants of an eligible age by Spring 2018.
People from the following list will be invited to make claim for Personal independence Payment from October 2013:
- children turning 16 (this does not include those awarded DLA under the rules for people who are terminally ill who will be invited to claim Personal Independence Payment when their existing fixed term award is coming to an end);
- people reporting changes of circumstances which would affect their rate of payment (this does not include payment decisions as a result of going into a care home, hospital or prison or other changes of circumstances e.g. change of address this is because the rate of DLA will not need to be adjusted);
- those with a fixed-term DLA award whose award expires from the end of February 2014 onwards and
- those people who decide to claim Personal Independence Payment this includes those with indefinite or fixed-term awards.
The new benefit will have different entitlement criteria to those for DLA to better reflect today’s understanding of disability.
Everyone will be individually assessed against the new entitlement criteria (some people understand these as rules).
This means we will look at your individual circumstances and entitlement will depend on how your ability to carry out daily living and / or mobility activities is affected by your condition or disability. Entitlement will not depend on what health condition or disability you have.
In the past DLA focussed too much on physical disability. The assessment criteria for Personal Independence Payment reflect a more complete consideration of the impact of individuals’ health conditions or impairments – whether physical, sensory, mental, or cognitive.
Many people who currently receive DLA will continue to receive support under Personal Independence Payment.
11. I get DLA. Will I be told what to do to claim Personal Independence Payment?
Yes. All those who get DLA and are of an eligible age (see the answer to question 1) will be asked whether they wish to claim Personal Independence Payment.
We will begin by inviting every eligible person who gets DLA to claim Personal Independence Payment from October 2015 and we aim to have contacted everyone by Spring 2018.
When you make a claim to Personal Independence Payment we will explain what will happen throughout the assessment process, how and where it will take place, what you need to do and what help is available to support you through the process.
If you satisfy the entitlement criteria for the new benefit, you will be awarded Personal Independence Payment and your payment of DLA will stop.
Provided you have supplied all the information within the required timescales there will be no break in your claim.
If you are assessed as not entitled to Personal Independence Payment, or choose not to claim it, you will not be able to retain your DLA as an alternative.
12. I get DLA. When will I be asked to claim Personal Independence Payment?
Personal Independence Payment is being introduced from 8 April 2013, so there will be no changes to your DLA benefit award before then.
Most people will be invited to claim Personal Independence Payment from October 2015.
If you report a change in your condition from October 2013 or if you reach the end of a fixed term award, or if you turn 16, you will also be invited to claim Personal Independence Payment.
If your condition changes at any time you should continue to report any change to DLA as normal.
We are involving disabled people and their organisations in designing how we communicate information about the assessment for Personal Independence Payment to make sure we provide information that they will find helpful.
Question10 provides further information when and who we will be inviting to claim Personal Independence Payment.
13. How long will I have to wait to qualify for Personal Independence Payment?
If you want to claim Personal Independence Payment for the first time there is a three month qualifying period (this is the period during which you have had a health condition or disability) and the needs arising from your condition or disability must be expected to last for a further nine months as well (we call this the “prospective test”) to qualify for the new benefit.
You will not necessarily have to wait three months, as the qualifying period starts from when your eligible needs arise and not from when you make a claim.
For example, if you have had difficulty walking for three months or more when you apply for Personal Independence Payment and the condition is expected to last a further nine months, you may be entitled to payment from the date of your claim.
If you already receive DLA and apply for Personal Independence Payment you will not have to meet the three month qualifying period but will have to meet the prospective test (that the need is expected to last for a further nine months).
A person with a terminal illness will be fast tracked on to a guaranteed payment of the enhanced rate of the Daily Living component of Personal Independence Payment without having to satisfy the qualifying period or the prospective test. They will also be able to apply for the Mobility component and receive that immediately if they qualify.
14. Will there be a break in my benefit payments if I move from DLA to Personal Independence Payment?
You will need to decide if you want to claim Personal Independence Payment. This is because the new benefit has different entitlement rules to DLA.
We will contact you, providing plenty of notice, explaining what will happen and what you will need to do to claim Personal Independence Payment.
If you decide to claim Personal Independence Payment we will further explain what you need to do through the claims process, what will happen through the assessment process, how and where it will take place and what help is available to support you through the process.
If you are awarded Personal Independence Payment we will ensure there are no gaps between benefit payments so long as you send us the information we need when we ask for it.
15. When can I make a new claim for Personal Independence Payment?
The new benefit is being introduced in stages so that we can check that processes are working effectively. We will begin by taking a few thousand new claims to Personal Independence Payment from 8 April 2013 for people living in the North West and part of the North East of England. Exact locations are contained at:
During this period new claimants in all other parts of the country will continue to claim DLA as now.
We plan to take new claims from people in all parts of the country from June 2013.
16. How do I make a claim for Personal Independence Payment?
To start your claim for Personal Independence Payment you will need to phone us by calling an 0800 number (we will update this answer with the phone number once available) or textphone. Calls to 0800 numbers are free from BT land lines and most mobiles.
This will only take a short time. We’ll only ask for some basic information including your
- National Insurance Number
- full address including postcode
- date of birth
- bank or building society account details, so we can arrange any payments
- daytime contact number, and
- GP or other health professional’s details.
It can help speed up the claim if you have all of this information ready before calling.
17. I have difficulty using the phone. Can somebody else make the claim on my behalf?
Someone else can call on your behalf to make the claim but you’ll need to be there too.
