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Early 60s DLA claimants, mobility and PIP migration
Was wondering if somebody could clear something up for me. At present the position is that people who turn 65 after 01/04/13 will (eventually) be migrated to PIP. What is the position with the mobility component?
Three possible scenarios with what I think would be the situation if the old DLA rules apply in this context…
1) Claimant has mobility needs before age 65 and requests a supercession of DLA award. Mobility component can be awarded. They can migrate to PIP and will be able to keep the mobility component (assuming that they still qualify under the tougher rules).
2) Claimant receives DLA care and develops mobility needs after turning 65. They can choose to migrate to PIP but will not be able to get any mobility component. Or they could reapply for Attendance Allowance if they are likely to get a higher award under those rules.
3) This is the one I’m really unsure about. Claimant receives DLA care, develops physical mobility needs before turning 65 but does nothing until PIP migration. If the situation matches the old DLA rules they should be able to try and qualify for the mobility component (based on their mobility when they turned 65), but will be unable to score any points from the Planning and Following Journeys descriptor. However I would not be surprised if somebody comes back to tell me that they will not be able to get Mobility Component at all.
What are people’s thoughts?
I think that in both scenario 2 and 3 they would be able to get PIP mobility component.
Reg 27 of the PIP Transitional Regs says that claimants being transferred from DLA, who have reached 65 after 8 April 2013, are exempt from the general rule that claimants are not entitled to PIP after pensionable age. This also applies to ‘self selecting’ claimants who choose to apply to transfer from DLA to PIP. There is nothing to stop them from scoring points for both mobility activities.
There are restrictions on entitlement to mobility component where a PIP award is revised or superseded after pensionable age, but if someone is transferring from DLA to PIP it is a new claim (for PIP), not a revision or supersession.
It looks like it could be possible for a DLA migration claimant to have mobility problems that arose after age 65 taken into account. I can’t see anything in the Regs to prevent that from happening. What is more, DLA migration claimants (including self selectors) are exempt from having to meet the required period condition (reg 23 of PIP Transitional Regs). That exemption doesn’t seem to be linked to having an ‘equivalent’ DLA award; there has to be some DLA entitlement (or a previous award of DLA which can be linked), but not necessarily the same component.
What do others think?
[ Edited: 29 Nov 2013 at 11:25 am by Emma B-G ]What do others think?
Spot on. Although, for clarity, it is worth pointing out that there is only an exemption from the past period bit of the required period condition for current and former DLA claimants in the situation you describe.