DWP PIP alert as these 21 conditions can qualify you for £796 a month

Brits living with a long-term medical condition or illness are being urged to check if they could boost their income by over £750 a month by claiming Personal Independence Payments (PIP). The DWP benefit is designed to help those who have a long-term condition to cover their additional costs.

The payments are made every four weeks, with the maximum amount standing at £184.30 a week, or £737.20 for each four-week pay period. This equates to £9,583.60 annually, or £796.63 monthly.

The benefit is divided into a daily living part and a mobility part, with lower and higher rates depending on your level of need. The current payment rates are as follows:

Daily living element

• Lower rate - £72.65.

• Higher rate - £108.55.

Mobility element.

• Lower rate - £28.70

• Higher rate - £75.75.

Some 550 different conditions are currently on the list of eligible conditions for PIP. To qualify, you must expect your difficulties caused by the condition to last for at least 12 months from when they started.

Here are the 21 main categories of conditions that qualify, with the numbers indicating the number of claimants for each category from October 2013 to April 2024:

• Psychiatric disorders - 1,347,889

• Musculoskeletal disease (general) - 672,201

• Neurological disease - 465,187

• Musculoskeletal disease (regional) - 416,878

• Respiratory disease - 138,003

• Malignant disease - 111,874

• Cardiovascular disease - 92,015

• Visual disease - 59,085

• Endocrine disease - 47,236

• Hearing disorders - 37,384

• Gastrointestinal disease - 33,315

• Genitourinary disease - 27,812

• Skin disease - 23,849

• Autoimmune disease (connective tissue disorders) - 19,240

• Infectious disease - 13,543

• Diseases of the liver, gallbladder and biliary tract - 13,241

• Unknown or missing - 9,243

• Haematological disease - 8,391

• Metabolic disease - 5,130

• Multisystem and extremes of age - 1,616

• Diseases of the immune system - 1,262.

Those claiming PIP may also be eligible for a disability premium, an additional payment on top of their other benefits.

This could apply if you claim:

• Income Support

• Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)

• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)

• Housing Benefit.

Claimants might also qualify for the disability element of Working Tax Credit. You can initiate your PIP claim by ringing the PIP new claims phone line on 0800 917 2222.

Alternatively, you can start a claim by sending a letter to Freepost DWP PIP 1. There's no need to write anything other than the address on the envelope - you will then receive a form for you to complete and send back.