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Treating a DLA claim as a claim for PIP
I’m sure I should know this, but I can’t find anything in any of the reams of info we have about PIP and we are lucky enough to be in the “controlled start area”...
If someone sends a DLA claim in from 8 April because they happen to get hold of a claim form, is there any provision to treat it as a claim for PIP? If not will anyone tell them to claim PIP? And if they do will the date of the PIP claim just be the date they make the telephone claim?
Answered my own question - thought I’d seen it somewhere. Claims for DLA can be treated as claims for PIP and vice versa - Reg 25 UC, PIP, JSA and ESA (Claims and Payments) Regs 2013.
I’m not so sure. Reg 25(4) seems to allow for a claim for DLA to be treated as a claim for PIP if it appears that the claimant is not entitled to DLA. Reg 6 of the Personal Independence Payment (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2013 appears not to allow a claim for DLA made before 7/10/13 to be treated as a claim for PIP while that DLA claim is still under consideration. I will, of course, stand corrected if the regs have been amended.
(4) Where it appears that a person who has made a claim for disability living allowance or attendance allowance is not entitled to it but may be entitled to personal independence payment, the Secretary of State may treat any such claim alternatively, or in addition, as a claim for personal independence payment.
Persons in the course of claiming disability living allowance not entitled to claim personal independence payment
6.—(1) This regulation applies to a person who is not entitled to disability living allowance if—
(a)the person claimed disability living allowance before 7th October 2013, and
(b)that claim remains under consideration on that date.
(2) A person to whom this regulation applies may not claim personal independence payment while the person’s claim for disability living allowance remains under consideration.
(3) For the purpose of this regulation a person’s claim for disability living allowance remains under consideration only if it has not—
(a)been decided by the Secretary of State under section 8 (decisions by the Secretary of State) of the Social Security Act 1998(1),
(b)been withdrawn in accordance with paragraph (2) of regulation 5 (amendment and withdrawal of claim) of the 1987 Regulations, or
(c)otherwise ceased to be under consideration before being decided by the Secretary of State as mentioned in subparagraph (a).
Our clients live in a pilot area for PIP (Sunderland) and new claims for DLA cannot be made from monday the 8th.
I was speaking to those nice DLA folk yesterday on behalf of a client as i wasnt sure when the pilot start date was as it kept changing.
They told me that they would post the client a DLA form however it would be treat as a PIP claim, even though the form was requested before the 8th of April date.
We all know new DLA claims are date stamped anyway so i thought that would override it being a PIP claim, but i was told that it wasnt so.
I asked them to post me a PIP claim form instead, which they refused to do (Probably not got em yet)
As PIP and DLA have different scoring and criteria how on earth can they do a point score with the “wrong” form?
Ridiculous.
I’m not so sure. Reg 25(4) seems to allow for a claim for DLA to be treated as a claim for PIP if it appears that the claimant is not entitled to DLA. Reg 6 of the Personal Independence Payment (Transitional Provisions) Regulations 2013 appears not to allow a claim for DLA made before 7/10/13 to be treated as a claim for PIP while that DLA claim is still under consideration. I will, of course, stand corrected if the regs have been amended.
Interesting, but what about the effect of Reg 22 of the PIP (TP) Regs?
‘22.—(1) No person may claim disability living allowance who is—
(a)entitled to personal independence payment, or
(b)entitled to claim personal independence payment.
(2) Paragraph (1) does not apply to a person whose award of disability living allowance is of—
(a)both components and the award in respect of either or both is for a fixed term period, or
(b)one component only and the award is for a fixed term period,
if, before 7th October 2013, the person has been notified by the Secretary of State that, because the fixed term period is due to come to an end, the person needs to claim disability living allowance again, or to apply for a supersession of the award, if the person wishes to continue to be entitled to disability living allowance in respect of the component or components subject to the fixed term period.’
My reading of this and Reg 25(4) of the the new Claims and Payments Regs is that a purported claim for DLA by a 16-64 year old (not getting DLA) made after 7 April 2013 in one of the commenced postcode areas could be treated as a claim for PIP as no DLA entitlement could arise by virtue of Reg 22(1)(b). Surely the DLA claim wouldn’t be ‘under consideration’?
Any thoughts?
Jon
Not sure if I made clear that I agree completely that a DLA claim can ONLY be treated as a PIP claim if the DM doesn’t think there is a possible DLA entitlement.
That was my thought Jon, though not expressed in anything like the same detail! What I’m struggling to find is what in practice happens in those circumstances. Is the claimant simply “invited” to claim PIP? And what is the effective date of the PIP claim if they then make one? Does reg 25 have the effect of making it the date the DLA claim is received? I can’t find anything specifically setting down a period within which the PIP claim would have to be made to achieve that result.
Our clients live in a pilot area for PIP (Sunderland) and new claims for DLA cannot be made from monday the 8th.
I was speaking to those nice DLA folk yesterday on behalf of a client as i wasnt sure when the pilot start date was as it kept changing.
They told me that they would post the client a DLA form however it would be treat as a PIP claim, even though the form was requested before the 8th of April date.
We all know new DLA claims are date stamped anyway so i thought that would override it being a PIP claim, but i was told that it wasnt so.I asked them to post me a PIP claim form instead, which they refused to do (Probably not got em yet)
As PIP and DLA have different scoring and criteria how on earth can they do a point score with the “wrong” form?
Ridiculous.
“it would be treat as a PIP claim, even though the form was requested before the 8th of April”. Surely they’ve got that wrong. It must be possible to make a DLA claim up until 7 April (though for practical purposes it will be 5 April) provided the date stamped form is returned within the 6 weeks. That I presume would then preclude a claim for PIP as it would be a DLA claim “under consideration”.
Is the claimant simply “invited” to claim PIP? And what is the effective date of the PIP claim if they then make one? Does reg 25 have the effect of making it the date the DLA claim is received?
Assuming I’m right above, the answer to the first question is no, assuming that the DM agrees that the DLA claim should actually be treated as a PIP claim. This is a discretionary decision, though…
The answer to the third question is yes, if it is treated as a PIP claim (Reg 25 (5)).
So, is the following conclusion correct and one we agree on? Where after the appointed date a person is entitled to make a claim for PIP that person cannot make a claim for DLA (and if he did it would be treated as a claim for PIP) but where a claim for DLA is made before the appointed date and is still under consideration that person cannot make a claim for PIP and the DLA claim cannot be treated as a claim for PIP.
Benefit simplification..
PIPPED at the post in fact!
So, is the following conclusion correct and one we agree on? Where after the appointed date a person is entitled to make a claim for PIP that person cannot make a claim for DLA (and if he did it would be treated as a claim for PIP) but where a claim for DLA is made before the appointed date and is still under consideration that person cannot make a claim for PIP and the DLA claim cannot be treated as a claim for PIP.
Admirably succinct and yes, I agree.