PIP expert explains what the DWP learns from subtle 'chair test'
People who are being assessed for the benefit are being scrutinised in ways they might not realise from the second they sign up
A former benefits assessor has shared that some people might not realise that they are being tested from the second they arrive to be checked if they are eligible for Personal Independence Payment (PIP). The simple 'chair test' is one of the few subtle ways that people might feel caught out.
Speaking to Dr Asif Ahmed on his podcast, Jacqueline Gozzard, who worked as a PIP assessor for several years, explained how some PIP assessors may use the 'chair test' to establish what some people are capable of the moment they enter an assessment centre.
Jacqueline explained that the assessment can start as soon as the waiting room, with the expert taking note of the kind of chair you selected to sit in. She said: "It starts right from when they walk through the door. There are chairs in that waiting room - some have arms on and some don't."
She said that your choice of chair matters. She added: "If [the claimant] has walked past chairs with arms and gone to a chair without arms, then [the assessor] would deem that they haven't got that much of a problem getting out of a chair because of that choice."
There's a second chance at the chair test, Jacqueline claims. "When they come into the office, again, there are two chairs. One is a high back chair with arms and the other isn't - so it's which chair do they choose to sit in," the former PIP assessor said.
Jacqueline said that she has carried out thousands of assessments and went on to share that there are many other subtle ways that PIP assessors try to understand potential claimants without them realising. She said that, during her career, she would ask if they found the centre without trouble or have general conversations about their supermarket shopping habits to figure out their travel capabilities.
Whilst it may sound sneaky, Jacqueline claims that these questions can "go both ways." In some cases, she claimed that the subtle methods can reveal areas where more support is needed that might not be picked up on a paper assessment or routine questionnaire.
How do the PIP scores work?
PIP is scored using a points-based system. You are awarded points based on your ability to perform daily living and mobility activities, with the points awarded depending on the level of support or assistance you require.
To qualify for either the standard or enhanced rate of PIP, you need to accumulate a certain number of points within each component (daily living and mobility). The points (ranging from 0 to 12) are awarded depending on the level of support needed to complete the activity.
According to the Benefits and Work Guide, you need to score between 8 and 11 points to qualify for the standard rate of either component. To qualify for the enhanced rate of either component, you need to score 12 or more points.
How much are you paid from PIP?
How much PIP you get depends on how difficult you find everyday activities (daily living tasks) and getting around (mobility tasks). According to GOV.UK, as of April 2025, the rates are:
Daily living part: £73.90 (lower) £110.40 (higher)
Mobility part: £29.20 (lower) £77.05 (higher)
The maximum weekly PIP in the UK for 2025 is £187.45 (£749.80 over four weeks). This is the total amount a claimant can receive if they qualify for both the daily living and mobility components at the enhanced rate.
PIP is tax-free and usually paid every four weeks. If your payment date is on a bank holiday, you'll usually be paid before the bank holiday. After that you'll continue to get paid as normal.
Who can get PIP?
Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can help with extra living costs if you have a long-term physical/mental health condition or disability that makes doing certain everyday tasks or getting around difficult because of your condition. The DWP shared online that people can get Personal Independence Payment (PIP) if they meet all four of the eligibility criteria:
You're 16 or over
You have a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability
You have difficulty doing certain everyday tasks or getting around
You expect the difficulties to last for at least 12 months from when they started
You must also be under State Pension age if you've not received PIP before. If you're over State Pension age, you can apply for Attendance Allowance instead.
If you live in Scotland, you need to apply for Adult Disability Payment (ADP) instead. Find out how to claim if you live in Northern Ireland with NI Direct.
You can get the non-means-tested fit at the same time as all other benefits, except Armed Forces Independence Payment. For more information and how to enter a claim, go to the GOV.UK website here.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Daily Mirror
‘I'm a mum of two disabled teenagers - brutal PIP cuts make our life impossible'
Mum Nicola Holmes says that if Personal Independence Payments (PIP) are removed under a Labour shake-up, it is an assault on families like theirs, and it will push them further into poverty Former actor and beauty therapist Nicola Holmes , 55, lives in Tewkesbury with husband Wayne, an electrician, and their two children Ethan, 18, who has autism, Down's syndrome and severe anxiety, and Ella, 16, who has PDA (pathological demand avoidance) anxiety and is situationally mute. Vulnerable people, like Nicola and her family, who are claiming PIP have accused the government of targeting society's most vulnerable by stopping benefits as part of the new Universal Credit and Personal Independence Payment Bill. This is despite Department of Works and Pensions (DWP) confirmation that benefit claimants affected by proposed changes to PIP will have their payments protected for a 13 week transitional period. Existing claimants affected by changes to the PIP daily living component, including those who lose their eligibility to Carers' Allowance and the carers' element of Universal Credit, who will receive the additional protection, feel it is nowhere near enough. Mum Nicola says the cuts will push families like hers deeper into poverty. The family relies on husband Wayne's income as self-employed electrician, PIP for Ethan, universal credit and carers' allowance. Reacting to today's benefits announcements, she tells The Mirror: 'This Is not reform. This is collapse. As a mum of two disabled teenagers, both autistic, and one who also has Down's syndrom, I feel completely abandoned by a system that was supposed to protect us. READ MORE: 'I'm having panic attacks over PIP shake-up - I don't know how ministers sleep at night' 'It almost feels too late for them now, as if the bureaucracy is simply determined to age them out of the system, rather than ever step up and support them properly. 'I can't work, not out of choice, but because I am caring full-time for two incredible, vulnerable human beings in the total absence of meaningful provision. I also have a chronic health condition, brought on by the relentless stress of caring. The system has failed my young people again and again, and in doing so, has failed me and my husband as their parents. As a family, we have been left behind. 'Now, the government plans to make brutal cuts to Universal Credit and PIP. Making the process even more nefarious and complex. 'Disability should not be scored by numbers. Lifelong conditions should be accepted as just that and not be needed to be reassessed. Disabled people should not have to prove their worth in society. 'It's a direct assault on families like mine…families already surviving on the bare minimum. We are constantly exhausted, financially drained, emotionally spent. These cuts won't just make life harder. They will make it impossible. 'PIP and carers' allowance are intrinsically linked. Removing them from thousands will have a violent domino effect of astronomical proportions. Carers allowance is not meant to be a wage and yet it is included as earnings and therefore taxed as one. The Government makes out people are getting something for nothing – but carers provide the equivalent of a second NHS. 'This will be catastrophic. Instead of rebuilding the foundations, the government is accelerating collapse by targeting those of us who were already barely hanging on. 'We're not seeing reform, we're watching the systematic removal of care and responsibility from governance. Social safety nets have become traps. Services have become mazes. 'It feels like the lives of disabled people, and those of us who care for them, simply don't matter anymore. We're seen as burdens to be managed or costs to be cut, rather than human beings with potential, rights, and futures worth investing in. 'This is very serious.'
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Daily Mirror
PIP expert explains what the DWP learns from subtle 'chair test'
People who are being assessed for the benefit are being scrutinised in ways they might not realise from the second they sign up A former benefits assessor has shared that some people might not realise that they are being tested from the second they arrive to be checked if they are eligible for Personal Independence Payment (PIP). The simple 'chair test' is one of the few subtle ways that people might feel caught out. Speaking to Dr Asif Ahmed on his podcast, Jacqueline Gozzard, who worked as a PIP assessor for several years, explained how some PIP assessors may use the 'chair test' to establish what some people are capable of the moment they enter an assessment centre. Jacqueline explained that the assessment can start as soon as the waiting room, with the expert taking note of the kind of chair you selected to sit in. She said: "It starts right from when they walk through the door. There are chairs in that waiting room - some have arms on and some don't." She said that your choice of chair matters. She added: "If [the claimant] has walked past chairs with arms and gone to a chair without arms, then [the assessor] would deem that they haven't got that much of a problem getting out of a chair because of that choice." There's a second chance at the chair test, Jacqueline claims. "When they come into the office, again, there are two chairs. One is a high back chair with arms and the other isn't - so it's which chair do they choose to sit in," the former PIP assessor said. Jacqueline said that she has carried out thousands of assessments and went on to share that there are many other subtle ways that PIP assessors try to understand potential claimants without them realising. She said that, during her career, she would ask if they found the centre without trouble or have general conversations about their supermarket shopping habits to figure out their travel capabilities. Whilst it may sound sneaky, Jacqueline claims that these questions can "go both ways." In some cases, she claimed that the subtle methods can reveal areas where more support is needed that might not be picked up on a paper assessment or routine questionnaire. How do the PIP scores work? PIP is scored using a points-based system. You are awarded points based on your ability to perform daily living and mobility activities, with the points awarded depending on the level of support or assistance you require. To qualify for either the standard or enhanced rate of PIP, you need to accumulate a certain number of points within each component (daily living and mobility). The points (ranging from 0 to 12) are awarded depending on the level of support needed to complete the activity. According to the Benefits and Work Guide, you need to score between 8 and 11 points to qualify for the standard rate of either component. To qualify for the enhanced rate of either component, you need to score 12 or more points. How much are you paid from PIP? How much PIP you get depends on how difficult you find everyday activities (daily living tasks) and getting around (mobility tasks). According to as of April 2025, the rates are: Daily living part: £73.90 (lower) £110.40 (higher) Mobility part: £29.20 (lower) £77.05 (higher) The maximum weekly PIP in the UK for 2025 is £187.45 (£749.80 over four weeks). This is the total amount a claimant can receive if they qualify for both the daily living and mobility components at the enhanced rate. PIP is tax-free and usually paid every four weeks. If your payment date is on a bank holiday, you'll usually be paid before the bank holiday. After that you'll continue to get paid as normal. Who can get PIP? Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can help with extra living costs if you have a long-term physical/mental health condition or disability that makes doing certain everyday tasks or getting around difficult because of your condition. The DWP shared online that people can get Personal Independence Payment (PIP) if they meet all four of the eligibility criteria: You're 16 or over You have a long-term physical or mental health condition or disability You have difficulty doing certain everyday tasks or getting around You expect the difficulties to last for at least 12 months from when they started You must also be under State Pension age if you've not received PIP before. If you're over State Pension age, you can apply for Attendance Allowance instead. If you live in Scotland, you need to apply for Adult Disability Payment (ADP) instead. Find out how to claim if you live in Northern Ireland with NI Direct. You can get the non-means-tested fit at the same time as all other benefits, except Armed Forces Independence Payment. For more information and how to enter a claim, go to the website here.
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Daily Mirror
Thousands of households to get free payment worth over £290 this week
The money is being paid between June 18 and 19, 2025, to those in Scotland who were in receipt of Carer's Allowance or Carer Support Payment on a particular date Thousands of unpaid carers will receive a free payment worth of £293.50 this week. Carer's Allowance Supplement is an extra payment for people in Scotland. The money is being paid between June 18 and 19, 2025, to those who were in receipt of Carer's Allowance or Carer Support Payment on April 14, 2025. If you're due to get a payment, you'll get a letter from Social Security Scotland. The payment will be made to your regular bank account automatically - you won't need to apply for it. You're advised to contact Social Security Scotland for free on 0800 182 2222 if you haven't received the payment by June 30, 2025. A second Carer's Allowance Supplement payment worth £293.50 will be made in December 2025. Again, you will need to be in claiming Carer's Allowance or Carer Support Payment and live in Scotland to receive this. Carer Support Payment has replaced Carer's Allowance for carers in Scotland. Both are worth £83.30 a week. You can find out who is eligible for Carer's Allowance below. Carer's Allowance explained Carer's Allowance is paid to those providing at least 35 hours of care a week. This can include helping someone with everyday tasks such as washing, managing bills, or taking them to doctor's appointments. The person you're caring for must also receive one of the following benefits: Personal Independence Payment - daily living component Disability Living Allowance - the middle or highest care rate Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance - the middle or highest care rate Attendance Allowance Pension Age Disability Payment Constant Attendance Allowance at or above the normal maximum rate with an Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit Constant Attendance Allowance at the basic (full day) rate with a War Disablement Pension Armed Forces Independence Payment Child Disability Payment - the middle or highest care rate Adult Disability Payment - daily living component at the standard or enhanced rate You must also be aged 16 or over, not in full-time education, and not studying for 21 hours a week or more. There is an earning limits, which sets how much someone can earn in income and still be eligible for Carer's Allowance. This is set at £196 a week. If your earnings go over the limit - even by just £1 - you lose your entitlement to Carer's Allowance. You don't have to be related to the person you're caring for, and if more than one person cares for the same person, only one of you can claim Carer's Allowance. You should keep in mind that claiming Carer's Allowance can affect the benefits of the person you're looking after, as well as your own.
