DLA to PIP Restart: 153,000 Face Reassessment

What is happening and who is affected

The Department for Work and Pensions is resuming the closure of adult Disability Living Allowance, moving the remaining caseload of around 153,000 adults onto Personal Independence Payment. PIP replaced DLA for working-age adults in 2013, and the DWP began inviting existing DLA claimants to transfer in the same year, but the process was paused in 2020 in response to the pandemic and has remained dormant since. The people still on adult DLA are therefore long-term claimants by definition, many of whom received indefinite or lifetime awards and have not faced a reassessment in over a decade. DLA remains open for children, and this restart does not affect child claimants until they approach age 16, when the separate transition process applies. It also does not affect people who reached State Pension age before PIP applied to them and remain on DLA under pension-age rules. The restart is administratively significant because it removes one of the last legacy disability benefits, and personally significant because a lifetime award is not carried over: entitlement is decided afresh under PIP rules.

How the transfer process works

Claimants do not need to do anything until they receive a letter from the DWP inviting them to claim PIP. The letter is the trigger for everything that follows, and it contains a deadline, normally 28 days from the date of the letter, by which the claimant must start a PIP claim by telephone or through the alternative channels the letter sets out. Missing that deadline without good reason leads to DLA payments being suspended and then terminated, which is the single most important risk in the entire process. Once a PIP claim is started, DLA continues to be paid while the claim is assessed, so there is no gap in income for those who respond on time. The PIP claim then proceeds like any other: a How Your Disability Affects You form, supporting evidence, and in many cases an assessment with a health professional, which may be by telephone, video or face to face. A decision letter follows setting out the PIP award, if any, and the date DLA ends. Anyone who has moved address since their DLA award began should ensure the DWP holds current contact details now, before letters go out, because a missed letter still starts the deadline clock.

How PIP differs from DLA

PIP is not DLA with a new name, and the differences drive most transfer outcomes. DLA was assessed largely on paper against care and mobility needs, while PIP scores claimants against defined daily living and mobility activities using a points system, with most claimants undergoing a functional assessment. Some claimants receive more under PIP than they did under DLA, particularly where conditions have worsened over a long award. Others receive less or lose entitlement entirely, with the enhanced mobility rules a known pressure point for people who qualified for higher rate mobility under DLA. The 20 metre walking distance threshold for enhanced mobility is stricter in practice than the DLA test many long-term claimants originally satisfied, and this has consequences beyond the benefit itself, because enhanced mobility is the gateway to the Motability Scheme. Claimants transferring with a Motability vehicle should read their invitation materials carefully, as transitional support arrangements apply where a vehicle must be returned. Preparing evidence that speaks to the PIP activities, rather than resubmitting old DLA paperwork, is the strongest single step a claimant can take.

The PIP review complicates the timing

The restart lands while PIP is itself under a government review of its assessment model, expected to conclude in autumn 2026, following the wider Pathways to Work reforms to health and disability benefits. The DWP has separately stated that reassessment capacity is being increased across the working-age disability system, with additional work capability assessments planned for existing claimants over the coming years. For transferring DLA claimants this creates an uncomfortable position: they are being moved onto a benefit whose assessment criteria could change shortly after their transfer decision. Welfare rights organisations have criticised the sequencing, arguing that moving long-protected claimants onto PIP before the review reports risks putting some through two major reassessments in quick succession. Nothing in the review changes what a claimant must do when their invitation letter arrives, and speculation about future criteria is no reason to delay a claim past the deadline. It does strengthen the case for getting decisions right first time, with full evidence, because appeal rights and award review timing may interact with whatever the autumn review produces.

Protecting your payments: a practical checklist

First, confirm the DWP has your current address and phone number, which you can do through the DLA helpline before any letter arrives. Second, when the invitation letter comes, start the PIP claim well inside the deadline rather than at its edge, and keep a record of the date and method of your claim. Third, gather evidence aligned to PIP activities: prescription lists, specialist letters, care plans, and statements from people who assist you, focused on how your condition affects daily living and mobility on your worst days as well as your best. Fourth, ask for reasonable adjustments to the assessment if you need them, including home assessments where travel is genuinely difficult, and consider having someone accompany you. Fifth, if the decision reduces or removes your entitlement, seek advice quickly: a mandatory reconsideration must normally be requested within one month of the decision, and independent welfare rights advice substantially improves outcomes at both reconsideration and tribunal. Free help is available from Citizens Advice and local welfare rights services, and no claimant should navigate a transfer of this consequence alone if support is available. Related: our money guides, bills section, comparison guides and latest UK news.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to contact the DWP about moving from DLA to PIP?

No. Wait for your invitation letter. The only thing to do in advance is make sure the DWP holds your current address and contact details.

Will my DLA stop when I claim PIP?

DLA continues while your PIP claim is assessed, provided you start the claim by the deadline in your letter. Missing the deadline leads to DLA being suspended and then ended.

Does a lifetime DLA award transfer to PIP automatically?

No. Lifetime and indefinite DLA awards do not carry over. Entitlement to PIP is decided afresh against current PIP eligibility rules, usually including an assessment.

Can I get more money on PIP than DLA?

Some claimants receive more under PIP and some receive less or lose entitlement, because the assessment criteria differ. Evidence aligned to the PIP daily living and mobility activities gives the best chance of an accurate award.

What if I disagree with my PIP decision?

Request a mandatory reconsideration within one month of the decision letter, then appeal to an independent tribunal if needed. Free advice from Citizens Advice or local welfare rights services improves outcomes.