PIP Application Part Two: Application Form

"Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement.

Nothing can be done without hope and confidence"

- Helen Keller

In my last post I described the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) benefit in the UK and explained why I put off applying because I was worried about the application failing. I see so many posts on lupus noticeboards about the PIP application process and I thought it might be useful to others is I described my experience in more detail. Please note that the application process may have changed since I wrote this article and you should check for the most up to date information about completing the PIP application.

Once I had decided to apply for PIP the first step was to get hold of an application form. To get this form you have to either telephone the PIP Centre (Telephone: 0800 917 2222 or Textphone 0800 917 7777) or write to the DWP for an application form. It seems rather archaic that you cannot fill in an application form online or just download one to fill in at home. But anyway....

I decided to telephone the PIP Centre and ask for an application form. I was nervous about making the call but the lady I spoke to was very professional and quickly put me at ease. When you telephone the PIP Centre you are asked a set of standard questions about your identity, illness and/or disability, and banking details. It is therefore useful to look out the following information in advance and have it to hand when you make the call:

• Full name;
• Date of birth;
• Address;
• Telephone number;
• National Insurance number;
• Details of you illness or conditions;
• GP and other health professional’s details;
• Details of any recent stays in hospitals, care home or hospices;
• Nationality or immigration status;
• Details of any time you’ve spent out of the country; and
• Bank or building society account details.

During the phone call I was also asked whether I needed help at home because of my illness and whether I would be filling in the form myself or whether somebody would be filling it in on my behalf.

The phone call took a little longer than I had expected and my advice to others would be to pick a time that you won't be disturbed and are feeling up to it. 

After I made the call, it took two weeks for my PIP application pack to arrive in the mail. The pack includes the application form, a guide to filling in the form and a handy Freepost envelope to return the completed application form.

The PIP application form is a bit daunting at first glance and I put off filling it in for as long as possible. This was a mistake and I would advise you to start filling in your application as soon as you receive it. It is important to note is that you must return the PIP application form within a month of receiving the form. If you do not return the application within the timeframe allowed, your claim will be invalidated and you will need to start the claim process all over again.

You should start to gather evidence to support your claim as soon as possible, particularly if you need letters or other documents from your carers, GP or Hospital. 

Filling in the PIP application form is actually pretty straight forward - you just need to write about your condition and how it affects your daily life. I didn't find the PIP Guidebook very helpful as it seemed to repeat the questions without giving any real suggestions how to answer them. 

The questions that I had to answer were as follows:

1. Provide information about your doctors and health care professionals;
2. Provide information about your health condition(s) and medication(s);
3. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to prepare a simple meal;
   
4. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to eat and drink;
   
5. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to manage your treatment(s);
   
6. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to wash and bathe;
   
7. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to manage your toilet needs;
   
8. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to dress and undress;
   
9. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to communicate with others;
   
10. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to read and understand signs;
    
11. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to socialise with other people;
    
12. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to make financial decisions;
    
13. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to go out/ follow a route;
    
14. Provide information about how your condition affects your ability to move around.

There is a section at the end of the application form where the applicant can provide additional information on how their condition affects their daily life and activities. Applicants are also encouraged to provide photocopies of medical letters (not appointments) and other information from professionals about their condition and how it affects them. General information leaflets about medical conditions or medications are not accepted, your evidence has to be specific to you and your situation.

There is a quite a lot of advice out there on how to answer the PIP application questions and my advice would be to read through some of this before starting to complete your form. Below are some websites that I found useful:

PIP Toolkit
GOV UK
Citizens Advice
Skybadger
Pip Assessment Scoring

Questions 1 and 2 are fairly straightforward to answer. You need to include information about your healthcare providers, your illnesses and/or disabilities, and a list of current medications. 

You will need documents (e.g. doctors' letters, test results) to support your answer to Question 2, so take time to think about what you will need and gather these together as soon as possible. To support my application I made copies of all of the hospital and doctor's letters that detailed my condition. I excluded letters about appointments and only included those which reported diagnoses and test results. I also included a copy of the document that lists my repeat medications (I receive this from the chemist every time they fill my prescription).

Questions 3 - 14 are more complex and require details about how well you can move around and perform daily activities (e.g. bathing, preparing a meal). It can be difficult for people with autoimmune conditions to answer these questions accurately due to the changing nature of their illness. One day you may be able to complete an activity (e.g. bathing) without a problem but the next day you will have severe difficulties. Your answers to these questions should therefore reflect your ability to undertake activities on your worst day. 

During the face-to-face assessment you will be able to discuss the percentage of time you experience difficulties (i.e. the number of bad days you have in a week). The higher the percentage of bad days you have, the more likely you are to score points for a particular question. In some ways I am 'lucky' because my lupus causes me difficulties all the time. I don't have good days and bad days, so it is simply a case of how bad a bad day is.

Some of the questions require you to think about your mental ability to cope with activities like travelling somewhere new, understanding signs or communicating with others. If you have mental difficulties performing activities you should note these down in addition to any physical difficulties that you have. Examples could include: 

• You avoid socialising because you feel ashamed about how others view your physical appearance (e.g. rashes);

• You can't travel alone because you are fearful that you become too unwell to get yourself home.

Filling in the form it is very important to be honest. During the face-to-face assessment the PIP assessor will go through the questions with you again and you will need to keep your answers consistent. As Judge Judy says, "If you tell the truth you don't need to have a good memory". 

But....don't be embarrassed to say when and how you need help. If somebody helps you with activities, prepares meals, or drives you to appointments then make sure to state this in your application form. Also note down any aids that you use to complete activities some common examples include: walking aids, resting stools, joint supports, arthritis gloves, kitchen gadgets, medication dosette boxes, medication alarms and bathing aids.

It is also important to say how you feel after performing an activity. Do you have a shower but then have to rest for an hour afterwards due to pain or fatigue? If you push yourself to make a social engagement one day are you laid up in bed the next day? This additional information gives the PIP assessor a better picture of how your condition affects you and how you need to plan ahead to manage your daily activities.

The answers to questions 3 - 14 are very repetitive but each question is scored separately and it is therefore very important to answer each question fully. If you mention something in one answer don't assume that the assessor will remember that information and apply it to another question. Re-state the information as many times as necessary. 

In the section marked additional information you are allowed to enter commentary from doctors, friends and family. My mum kindly provided a few paragraphs on the significant changes she had noticed since my lupus had become more debilitating. I don't know if this information was helpful to my application or not. It may be more useful to have your doctor or carer to provide information to answer this question. I ran out of time to do this for my application so remember to plan ahead! 

Finally, I made a copy of my application form so that I would have a record of my answers and the supporting documents. It is very important to have a record of your application form if you are called in for a face-to-face assessment. The assessment will happen many weeks after you submit the application form and you may forget exactly how you answered each question. Having a copy of your answers allows you to refresh your memory before your assessment. 

Remember to take a copy of your completed application form with you into your face-to-face assessment so that you can refer to it if necessary.

After completing my PIP application form I felt much better about the whole process. Answering the questions allowed me to take stock of how much Lupus has changed my life over the past year. I also came to the realisation that asking for financial assistance from the Government is not a form of failure, it is a support net that is there for everyone in their time of need. I no longer needed to feel ashamed about asking for help.