Pip ongoing confused

Hi Augustus

I moved your post so it stand alone. We ask people not to ask questions on other people's post as it can become confusing trying to answer two or more people and there's a risk someone won't receive the right answer.

Regarding your question about the AR1 and AR2 form.

The AR1 Review form is the one most PIP claimants will receive up to a year before their award end date, including those with an ongoing award and those who have yet to reach state pension age. The award end date is on the decision letter.

The AR2 Light Touch Review form is mainly for claimants with an ongoing award with no fixed end date and for claimants who are over state pension age. It is also supposed to incude those people with very stable needs which are unlikely to change over time; or high level needs which will either stay the same or get worse; However, there are plenty of claimants who say they have lifelong conditions that are not going to change and yet the DWP is continuing to send them the AR1 form. I think the bar for getting the AR2 for those last two points are very high.

Hope this helps.

BIS

Hi sally-jane

Many people were given lifetime awards for DLA, which is one of the reasons the government wanted to introduce PIP. The criteria for PIP was harder than DLA so many people were disappointed when the migration process was introduced and they found that they were often not given the PIP award they expected. Once people moved from DLA the lifetime awards no longer applied as they don't exist under the PIP system.

Many people were also misinformed about how often they would be reassessed for PIP and there have also been changes since it was introduced in 2013. In 2016 you were given an ongoing ten year award. Many people have assumed that 'ongoing means that it would just continue without assessment, but I'm afraid that was never the case. With a bigger welfare bill they want to make it harder for people to get 10 year awards.

When a person has an ongoing award which runs for ten years - they can expect to receive a review form close to the ten year date. This review form will be the one that most people receive, which is the AR2 PIP Review form.

In September 2022 - the DWP introduced the AR2 Light Touch Review form, which is sent out to people who have an ongoing award (but no ten year date) on their letters.

In August 2023 the DWP said claimants will receive the AR2 PIP Review form, if they have very stable needs which are unlikely to change over time; or high level needs which will either stay the same or get worse; or a planned award review date due on or at State Pension age.

Now, the change in 2023 has led many people with ongoing conditions like yours to believe they should receive the AR2 form, but although some have received it, many who expected to haven't.

Your form hasn't been sent to you yet, so you may be sent an AR2. If people receive an AR2, they are less likely to have a telephone or face-to-face assessment and are more likely to have a paper-based assessment. However, it is not a given; one of our members recently reported having a full-length telephone assessment after completing the AR2 Light Touch Review form. Their award was also downgraded.

I really hope your form is the AR2 - which is much shorter but the advice from our member whose award was downgraded is to make sure you still give them some information on the form even if your condition has not changed and don't just tick the boxes 'no change'.

BIS