700,000 people were recently told the changes won’t affect them, but a loophole may mean it does
A loophole in new DWP PIP criteria could expose people to losing their benefits, according to an advice organisation. Last month, Disability Minister Stephen Timms responded to a written parliamentary question regarding the changes to PIP eligibility announced by the government in March. Labour MP Neil Duncan-Jordan had inquired about the impact of these changes on PIP claimants of retirement age.
Sir Stephen offered reassurance, stating: “In keeping with existing policy, people over State Pension Age are not routinely fully reviewed and will not be affected by the proposed changes.” He also confirmed that the new eligibility criteria would only apply to reviews and claims made after November 2026.
Many people welcomed this confirmation at the time, which was intended to alleviate concerns for approximately 700,000 state pension age PIP claimants, according to the Mirror. However, Benefits and Work has identified a loophole that could still subject these individuals to the new criteria, potentially resulting in the loss of their benefit.
The benefit experts cautioned: “The phrase ‘not routinely fully reviewed’ is deeply ambiguous. It is true that claimants over pension age are likely to have a light-touch review.
“This involves the shortened AR2 review form and will not normally require the claimant to have a face-to-face or telephone assessment. But the AR2 form still asks the claimant if there have been any changes in their daily living needs since their last assessment.”
After November 2026, people who do not meet the new eligibility criteria and respond ‘no’ on this form may technically disqualify themselves by highlighting that they don’t meet the criteria. If they answer ‘yes’, it could initiate a new review, which will also be evaluated against the new criteria.
This loophole could leave state pension age PIP claimants in a difficult position, but the experts have reassured: “We don’t want to alarm pension age PIP claimants. Reviews after pension age are much less frequent, so most claimants may not be affected. However, it seems that tens of thousands a year might be.
“Pension age PIP claimants will certainly be impacted by the Green paper changes. The only way to avoid this would be to specify that the new points system regulations will exempt pension age PIP claimants.”
They encouraged people to ask their local MPs to urge the minister to clarify his statement. Many details about the Green Paper are still unknown and open for consultation, including transitional protection so this gap for state pension age claimants could still be addressed in the future.
What has been confirmed in detail are the proposed changes to PIP eligibility criteria. At present, applicants need to score at least eight points across 10 activities to receive the standard rate of the daily living component of PIP and 12 points to get the enhanced rate.
The more assistance or equipment you require to carry out these activities safely and efficiently, the more points you can accumulate in each category. The updated criteria will still necessitate these minimums, but if individuals fail to score at least four points in any one category, they won’t qualify for the daily living component at all.
It remains uncertain how those who currently qualify and receive PIP but don’t meet this criteria will be supported during the transition. The consultation is particularly open to disabled individuals and disability organisations in England, Scotland and Wales.