10 Attendance Allowance health conditions most at risk from DWP benefit crackdown

The Department for Work and Pensions has issued a warning over the 10 conditions most-likely to see you claim Attendance Allowance. The DWP is planning its biggest crackdown on benefits in a generation under the Labour Party government.

And it is feared disability benefits like Personal Independence Payment (PIP), Disability Living Allowance (DLA) and Attendance Allowance are in the firing line. Around 1.6 million people in the UK already get AA from the DWP.

The list of conditions supported through Attendance Allowance is long, but the most common disabling condition - an umbrella term used by the DWP - is arthritis, which provides support for 469,902 people across the UK.

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The rest of the top ten includes: Dementia - 170,225, heart disease - 120,914, Rrespiratory conditions - 100,530, disease of the muscles, bones or joints - 83,594, cerebrovascular disease - 73,475, back pain - 72,553, visual disorders and diseases - 50,107 and Parkinson’s - 43,367 and well as neurological conditions - 34,804.

PIP is similar to Attendance Allowance, except that it's aimed at people aged from 16 to 66 and can be worth more. That's because while the main part of PIP pays the same as Attendance Allowance (at either a lower weekly rate of £72.65, or a higher one of £108.55), PIP also includes an additional mobility part (worth between £28.70 and £75.75 extra a week) that you'll get if you need help getting around.

DLA is similar to PIP in that it provides help for those with extra care and mobility costs. It's slowly being phased out, though, Money Saving Expert warns, meaning if you apply for Attendance Allowance while getting DLA, the DWP will usually reassess your DLA award instead.

If you were born on or after April 1948, you'll be moved from DLA to PIP, MSE adds.