The Guardian view on long waits for disability benefits: the system should not push people closer to poverty | Editorial

Long delays in processing Personal Independence Payment (PIP) claims are causing prolonged uncertainty, financial hardship and distress for disabled people. Many claimants wait months and in some cases more than a year for a decision, which can push them into debt, rent arrears and poverty and delay access to linked support such as carer's allowance. The Department for Work and Pensions is prioritising a health transformation programme that replaces paper applications with an online claims system, but implementation has been repeatedly delayed. Targets to process 75% of new PIP claims within 75 working days were unmet in 2024–25, with only 51% achieved. Disabled households face higher living costs, needing about £625 more annually for basic essentials.

"Pip is designed to support disabled people with the additional costs of daily living and mobility, yet for many claimants it has instead become a source of prolonged uncertainty, financial hardship and distress. Waiting months and in some cases more than a year for a decision can push people into debt, rent arrears and poverty, especially as Pip unlocks other support such as carer's allowance."

"The stock response is that a new health transformation programme will lead to efficiency gains made by replacing paper Pip applications with an online claims system. Sir Geoffrey Clifton-Brown, the chair of the public accounts committee, last week pointed out that MPs had been told three years ago that improvements would have manifested by now; we are now told that they are a further three years off."

"The department aims to process 75% of new Pip claims within 75 working days, but, in 202425, only 51% of claims were processed within this timeframe. Despite this, the department continues to present long-term digital reform as its primary answer, while offering little reassurance that waiting times will improve meaningfully in the near future. The result is a widening gap between policy intent and lived reality."

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