PIP question: Duration of awards and case scenario

I was convinced there was a section on this site about the different duration so PIP awards. However, I cannot locate it. Googling for information there appear to be three vague bands:

• 2-3 years if improvement is likely
• 5 years or more where changes are less likely but possible. For example, where some improvement is possible over time or where the needs of the individual are likely to increase
• 10 years/ ongoing where an applicant’s needs are unlikely to change

Here’s a scenario and a question:

A claimant has two serious overlapping medical conditions on which his claim for an indefinite award of DLA has been based.

The claimant’s first condition (physical) will not improve without a major medical breakthrough of global importance. In fact, the nature of the condition and the claimant’s medical history suggest it is likely to worsen leaving him in need of still greater support. Clinical judgement and common sense alike indicate that the claimant is entitled to both components of PIP at the enhanced rate. It also strikes me that he is just what the DWP have in mind when making 10 year/ongoing awards.

The claimant’s second condition (mental health) is of many years duration and seems very unlikely to improve. The claimant demands constant support but if he were tested for PIP on this condition alone he would probably only get the standard care rate. Mobility is difficult to judge without evidence from other people’s case stories. Furthermore, it could be argued that improvement is possible. A medium-term award would seem reasonable to anyone who does not know the person.

If the claimant were free of his mental health condition tomorrow morning it would not reduce the care and mobility needs that his physical state demands. Could the vague possibility of an improvement in the second condition reduce the length of the award? Would the claimant and his carer be wiser to downplay the second condition is completing the PIP2 when the first ailment is so unlikely to improve that the maximum award would be appropriate? It strikes me as a dangerous risk for a claimant to play but what do you think?

Mari

Thanks, Gordon. That is the advice I'll share. To do otherwise is risky, IMO.