The new Personal Independence Payment which is set to replace the Disability Living Allowance is facing problems as it is being rolled out across the UK.
The backlog of cases which have built up due to delays in the assessment process meant that many people have had to wait up to six months to be seen. Statistics from the National Audit Office reveal that patients were waiting significantly longer than forecast. On average claimants were waiting 107 days to be seen while terminally ill patients were waiting for around 28 days to receive a decision on their cases.
Many people were also having to spend up to two hours in meetings with assessors, more than twice as long as claimant were told it would be. MPs have condemned the delays as “completely unacceptable”.
The government claims that PIPs will revolutionize the disability benefits system by making use of regular reviews to target resources more effectively towards those who need it most.
The DWP have said that they are working with their providers to smooth out the system and ensure that all payments will be back dated.
Anyone with any queries about the changes to their disability living allowance can contact the DLA to find out how the changes will affect them.