Overview
- The DWP has begun a small-scale pilot that moves responsibility for assigning PIP points from contracted health assessors to DWP case managers, with the department saying case managers have always made final decisions.
- Officials told reporters the trial will initially cover about four percent of claimants — roughly 2,800–3,300 people a month — while one outlet reported a larger 150,000-claimant figure, creating uncertainty over the pilot’s scale.
- New regulations brought into force extend award lengths for most claimants aged 25 and over so initial awards are typically at least three years and, after a successful review, usually five years; the change does not apply to under-25s.
- Ministers say they are negotiating with assessment contractors to raise the share of face-to-face PIP assessments toward the government’s roughly 30% goal, but they warn existing contracts signed in 2023 make that shift challenging.
- Disability charities and campaigners, citing conditions that fluctuate or are invisible such as MS, warn the operational changes risk less accurate decisions, greater hardship and weakened trust while the Timms review of PIP continues this year.