Cat Smith – 2016 Parliamentary Question to the Department for Work and Pensions

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Cat Smith on 2016-03-16.

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the reasons for the increase in end-to-end personal independence payment processing time from 11 to 13 weeks.

Justin Tomlinson

Following a controlled start from July 2015, full Personal Independence Payment (PIP) roll-out commenced in October 2015, with an increase in the numbers of existing Disability Living Allowance claimants being asked to claim PIP.

In addition and in order to improve the customer journey, the Department has made some changes to the way in which it monitors Assessment Provider performance. These changes mean that Providers now have more time in which to complete assessments and return reports to the Department and also gives them greater flexibility to obtain further evidence to support claims: this therefore allows more time for scheduling appointments that better suit claimants and Assessment Providers, increases accuracy in assessments and reports and ensures opportunities for paper based reviews are maximised thereby reducing the demand for face-to-face appointments. Although these changes may see slightly longer average clearance times, they remain within expected levels.