150,000 adult DLA claimants to be reassessed for PIP from September

Details: Published: 06 August 2026

The DWP is to begin reassessing over 150,000 disability living allowance (DLA) claimants for personal independence payment (PIP) from September, the Independent has revealed. This will represent the final stage of a transfer process which began in 2013, but has been largely paused since 2020.

The affected claimants are people who are in receipt of DLA and were aged between 16 and 64 on 8 April 2013.

3,000 randomly selected DLA claimants will receive “invitations” to claim PIP in September 2026, to allow the DWP to test the process. After this the roll-out is likely to speed up, although no proposed date for completion has been published.

The interim Timms report called the PIP claims process “dehumanising” and “overly complex, repetitive and difficult to navigate, particularly for people whose needs fluctuate or are less visible.”

Yet, it is precisely this process that the remaining DLA claimants will be put through. Many will be claimants with the most severe conditions who have lifetime awards of DLA and will not have expected to be put through any further assessments.

Claimants who, because of their health condition, fail to respond to the PIP invitation correspondence or fail to take part in a reassessment if required, will face having their DLA stopped and no award of PIP made.

This means many thousands of claimants are likely to lose out. According to the DWP’s own figures, of those DLA claimants so far required to be reassessed for PIP:

40% had their award increased (the total monetary value of the PIP award is higher than the total monetary value of the DLA award)
13% had their award unchanged
21% had their award decreased
18% were disallowed due to failing the assessment
3% were disallowed for failing to attend the assessment
4% were disallowed due to failing to return the PIP2 form

If the current DLA reassessment claimants follow a similar pattern, then 10,500 vulnerable people will lose their benefit because they either fail to return the PIP2 form or fail to attend their assessment.

A further 27,000 will lose their benefit because they fail the PIP assessment.

And 31,500 will get an award of PIP, but it will be less money than they were getting on DLA.

The DWP has not said what safeguards it plans to put in place to protect vulnerable claimants.

Benefits and Work will be publishing information to support claimants going through the process.

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Nutcracker · 9 days ago
I really thought that those of us who were left on DLA weren't being transferred until April 2028. Yet another way of messing with our minds & making our anxiety go through the roof. I currently have no support from my GP, can anybody advise me with what evidence I'd need to claim PIP. I have mental health problems & anxiety which has made life sometimes unbearable for me over the past 20 years, but from what I've read it is extremely hard to claim PIP, especially if you have mental health issues, can anybody shed any light on their own experiences of claiming PIP, if you have mental health issues. Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance.
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Manny · 13 days ago
I genuinely didn't know some folk were still on DLA.
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Gazza · 15 days ago
This happened to me 2016, was DLA lifetime award, was moved over to PiP with no choice, since moved over to PiP Have now had 3 PiP reviews, the last review form i just received last week to be returned no later than 29th August 2026. Doesn't make sense last month i received 5 day extension, my pip award end date was march 2027. Basically now within the last 10 years have had 3 PiP reviews, they keep on going on about saving money when they continue to be paying substantial amount to these private health assessment providers. what they should focus on is why continue keep on picking on disabled vulnerable people so often and paying millions of pounds to private health assessment providers each and every year.
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  Gazza · 14 days ago
  
  @TheDogmother (The original) Yes i understand how DWP continue to mentally affect us. Have actually told dwp
  
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  TheDogmother (The original) · 15 days ago
  
  @Gazza @Gazza I'm in the same boat as you. Only my review form went back feb. Just keep getting update texts,had one this morning stating still looking at my review claim. I had indefinite dla too. Lost it upon be forced onto pip ,won tribunal, second review 2 points,Won at tribunal again, third time got pip back after a successful MR. Now here we are again. I'm bloody coming 60,I've 13 original conditions and now added three more. The stress anxiety and panic of this is unbearable and my consultant says its having a detrimental effect on One of my conditions not including my MH ,because that's a forgone conclusion it makes my MH plummet.
  Its ridiculous and a total waste of money to continue re assessing those who will never be well.
  
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stephen · 16 days ago
i am on indefinate for care and mobility will i have to have a assesment

do you or anybody know how will it affect me and others in this
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  Gazza · 14 days ago
  
  @stephen Stephen when i was moved from DLA over to PIP 2016 i was sent PIP review form about 12 months after being transferred from DLA to PIP, at the time I was indefinate DLA . since then have had in total 3 PIP reviews, unfortunately it doesn't seem to be much option or choice but to be moved from DLA to PIP . This now seems to be the last of any DLA rewards being now transferred over to PIP. it doesn't immediately affect you being until you may well be requested to do another review form or assessment . Nothing is ever clear with DWP ,they seem to do whatever they want and make rules for whenever it suits them . No doubt its all about they want save money at the expense of the disabled and vulnerable
  
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Matt · 17 days ago
Quick question: does anyone know what the exact date of the Timms Report will be published? I'm assuming it'll be before the Budget.
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  Arthritic Annie · 14 days ago
  
  @Bob Yes, as I thought/ was hoping. I was just a bit panicked thinking this was maybe a back door rather than be faced with a revolt as previous. Theres always money for war so after that there seems to be nothing for anything else....
  
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  Bob · 15 days ago
  
  @Arthritic Annie Yes any changes will require legislation. Be that secondary legislation to change descriptors and points or primary legislation to make any major changes to how PIP works or to the benefit amounts and uprating. My point was that the expected saved money could already have been put on the books and spent by the budget. So anyone opposing the welfare changes is asked the question of where the money will come from if not from welfare. And Labour is committed to not increasing taxes and not increasing borrowing to fund day to day spending. So what spending do they want to cut healthcare, education or defence?
  
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  Arthritic Annie · 16 days ago
  
  @Bob But surely any 'savings in the budget' due to changes in welfare even if voted through as part of the budget will need further votes to change legislation like we see previously? I know the government has some mechanisms which dont require legislation changes/ votes but id assume if its big changes which may leave many people destitute a vote would be needed on the exact legislation?
  
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  Bob · 16 days ago
  
  @Matt No exact date has been given. The Timms report is due in the autumn so September to November 2026. The budget is due Wednesday, 28 October 2026. If the budget has forecast savings from welfare in it. Then the Timms report might be released on the same day. This also means the budget and not the Timms report would dominate the news cycle. Rather than just the changes to PIP to make it financially sustainable for the future (cuts). Also by tradition MPs do not vote against the budget. And if the budget relies on the PIP changes taking place, well I guess the MPs will then have to vote for the PIP changes or say where they will get the money from instead.
  
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sara · 17 days ago
@Bob, when you say "It is unclear if the AI trial is going to be to assist work coaches or to assist assessors or decision makers", I think AI has been lurking undeclared for some time in the world of welfare. This Big Issue article is just one example of concerns already expressed:

https://www.bigissue.com/news/social-justice/dwp-benefits-ai/

I agree with you and @tintack when you suggest it's worrying that it would appear the use of AI 'relies on the DWP staff member using their own judgement as to when to follow the hints and suggestions and when not to', and that dwp might be less than transparent regarding how decisions are made.

However, on a more cheerful note, I have long thought that dwp decision makers are overwhelmed and if they're relying on AI, we have a good chance of influencing the decision ourselves if we present our argument with clearly linked supporting evidence. Decision makers need justification for their decisions, so we have to be better than bots!
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V.T · 17 days ago
I’m 74 and no longer mobile. I’m also much too deaf to be able to be questioned at length on the telephone. This is mad!
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Bob · 19 days ago
In other news not as far as I know related to PIP assessments. But probably to Work Coaches. The DWP is apparently going to start trailing AI which based on the claimant's individual circumstances including their health conditions will :

Do pre and post interview personalized to the claimant checklists for DWP staff.

During the interview based on what the DWP staff member is inputting give live prompts/hints on what questions to ask next and how they should be phrased.

At the end of interview will prompt the DWP staff member with suggestions as to what support and actions should be offered or required with a personalized to do check list.

The aim is to create best practice and consistency and appropriate support. And relies on the DWP staff member using their own judgement as to when to follow the hints and suggestions and when not to.

If they do this it strikes me that DWP staff who have no minimum qualifications and just a bit of inadequate in house DWP training are going to just follow the computer prompts. And if the AI is using guidance similar to the health conditions guides already used by the DWP it is going to cause problems. As those guides are often incomplete omitting some symptoms and more severe cases of the health conditions they proport to give guidance on. And rely on assumptions that maybe not apply to all cases.
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  tintack · 17 days ago
  
  @Bob
  "And relies on the DWP staff member using their own judgement as to when to follow the hints and suggestions and when not to."
  
  I think I may have spotted the flaw in this plan.
  
  "Correction. It is unclear if the AI trial is going to be to assist work coaches or to assist assessors or decision makers. Hopefully the DWP will let the public know rather than changing it's internal procedures and not telling anyone outside the DWP."
  
  Given the DWP's unstinting commitment to transparency, I'm sure they will let the public know.
  
  Probably.
  
  Well, maybe.
  
  OK, probably not.
  
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  bronc · 18 days ago
  
  @Bob DWP guidance for the neurological disease which I have fails to follow the new directive issued for my illness by NICE in October 2021 and so people with my illness suffer constant discrimination from its health assessors. The use of AI will only compound this situation.
  
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  godgivemestrength · 18 days ago
  
  @Bob Absolute recipe for disaster. AI is already going rogue. It' s going to be chaos.
  
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  Bob · 19 days ago
  
  @Bob Correction. It is unclear if the AI trial is going to be to assist work coaches or to assist assessors or decision makers. Hopefully the DWP will let the public know rather than changing it's internal procedures and not telling anyone outside the DWP.
  
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Blandie · 20 days ago
Might this return to DLA/PIP transitions be a reason for the PIP extension letters? The assessors might be too busy with this to reassess people.
For anyone worrying about moving over, I was higher mobility, middle care DLA and moved over to enhanced for both PIP. However I was lifetime DLA and am now 5 years then 6 years PIP. I have not had an extension letter.
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Diceman24 · 20 days ago
I’m still on DLA I’m 61 now I suffer from progressive muscular dystrophy unfortunately there’s no cure for this muscle wasting disability what I can’t understand is if this change over pip is so the government disability minister calls pip unfit for purpose and degrading way to show your disability’s why are we still getting moved over to pip it’s such a shame how this government and the country is heading towards thank you for reading
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Wayne · 20 days ago
My wife moved over from DLA lifetime award to pip got 3 years award lost high care it's a scam and should not be allowed to do it
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Bob · 20 days ago
"3,000 randomly selected DLA claimants will receive “invitations” to claim PIP in September 2026, to allow the DWP to test the process." Why does the system need to be tested? Is it a different process to the one that was previously used to tell DLA claimants their DLA claims were being ended and they might want to apply for PIP?

"According to the DWP’s own figures, of those DLA claimants so far required to be reassessed for PIP"
That data would have included people with fixed end date DLA awards and those with low rate care awards not just those with life time high rate awards. The only people left on DLA now are those with life time awards who will typically have high rate care or mobility awards. So the data is unlikely to be representative of that specific group.

Most people with life long DLA award have already been moved to PIP. Should the government really maintain two systems where the difference between if you get DLA or PIP is just down to luck. DLA was closed to new 16+ age claims in 2013. So in theory some pre existing working claimants could be as young as 29. So it is not like it will only be a few years until they all reach pension age.

And if they are going to move people to PIP better they do it now before the Timms PIP review, and changes to the PIP assessment system designed to make PIP financially sustainable for the future, in other words reduce eligibility or benefit award levels or money. And better they do it now before implementing the plan to abolish work capability assessments and making UC health dependent on receiving PIP daily living component.

Having said that. Personally if I ran the country I would retrospectively honour all the DLA life time awards that the Coalition government reneged on. And make everyone financially whole was on a life time DLA award and was made worse off by the move to PIP either due to not receiving PIP or getting less money on PIP. But Burnham is never going to do that when his narrative is cutting spending on disability benefits.
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  godgivemestrength · 20 days ago
  
  @Bob 'If it were done when 'tis done, then 'twere well/It were done quickly', you mean?
  
  I agree, but it's going to slow down any changes following the Timms review, and are all the dla transfers going to be made before any changes?
  
  I so wish it could be as you suggest in your final paragraph, and that existing claimants were not always dragged into new systems, but Manchester Labour is just ploughing on.
  
  It wont end well for them.
  
  'Bloody instructions...return/To plague the inventor'.
  
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godgivemestrength · 20 days ago
Another phase which surely stands in the way of changes to a PIP claims process which is “dehumanising” and “overly complex, repetitive and difficult to navigate”.

How can there be reform when all these dla reassessments are going ahead?
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