PIP Application form (Typing replies)

[SLEepyhead123]

A little about me.I have been diagnosed with :-

Lupus

Rheumatoid Arthritis

Fibromyalgia

Underactive thyroid

Hyperparathyrodism

Carpal tunnel syndrome

Osteoarthritis

Depression

Lower back spinal fusion

Constant huge fatigue and brain fog

I am planning on applying for PIP for the first time and I know the decision is not made on the diagnosis but on how you are affected on a day to day basis. I'm very anxious about filling in the form as my hand writing is appalling and hard to read. Can I type the answers on a separate piece of paper and cut and glue it onto the form and if the answer is too long I assume I can continue on another sheet of paper. Sorry if this seems a silly question but I'm getting so anxious about it, it's stopping me from making the first call to even apply for the forms.

Many thanks

SLEepyhead

[cherlyb]

Hi yes you can type the answer I did. I used separate numbered sheets with the question number, national insurance number & name on each. You can then just put see page( x )on the form and you have much more room to answer fully. NRAS have a great booklet to help.Hope this helps

[SLEepyhead123 in reply to cherlyb]

Thanks so much I have ordered a hard copy of the pip leaflet from NRSA. I'd not come across their leaflets before so thanks for telling me about them. 😁

[Craighead]

Hi the citizens advice will complete the form with you. They also help you with answering questions and dealing with pip enquiries.

[Brian1977]

Hi inwent to citizens advice who sat down with me and wrote everything out because I can't hold a pen for too long. They were brilliant

[BoneyC]

I recommend joining Benefits & Work and using their step by step guides. It costs about £15 a year but well worth it.

[SLEepyhead123 in reply to BoneyC]

Thanks for this. I joined them about a month ago. Their site seems very helpful.

[Salbremner]

Hi

When I have filled in pips forms , I have had the help of the citizens advice bureau. I am dyslexic and my hand writing is t to good. They fill it out you and also help in how to fill in the many questions ( they know how to word it )

Also you need to write about your worst day. Gather information from your consultants and get a letter from your gp if possible.

Good luck

[cyberbarn]

I can also recommend joining Benefits and Work.

I have done PIP forms for my son for years, and DLA before that. I used to literally cut and paste. I would type the answers up, then print them off and cut them out and paste them to the form. If the answer was too long for the box I folded it up!

But now I just write in the box 'see page X) and add all the answers on printed sheets. And as Cherylb says, make sure you have your name, NI number and date of birth the top of each page, and I put the question in bold so there is no confusion as to which question is being anwered.

Take it steady, set yourself a goal of one question a day or similar. And reward yourself for getting it finished.

[KittyJ]

yes I’ve always done that but I don’t type as that’s impossible too so I use dictation on my phone. Good luck

[FredaN]

I'd third the advice to contact Citizens Advice. They helped me a couple of times, although I did my own last time as the review forms are a bit less intensive than the first application form.

Citizens Advice helped explain how to word the answers and filled mine in for me, so that will take away your worry about handwriting. I don't think people understand how stressful it is, but it really helped having someone who knew what they were doing, especially the first couple of times. I make sure I photocopy everything I've sent to keep as a record and in case it gets lost in the post (I make sure I send everything by a "tracked/signed for" service now, because once it did go missing and I don't need the extra stress!) Best of luck!

[thelmar]

my GPs surgery put me in touch with a lady who visited and listened to my problems. She took the form away and a couple of days later brought it back for me to sign. I’m not sure who she is employed by but she had a very good knowledge of the system. She also successfully helped my friend to apply for a blue badge. You shouldn’t have to pay for help with this as there are several means of free assistance available as mentioned by others on here.

[madme1]

My response would be to get in touch with your local Welfare Rights. They can use your own words to answer the questions but will put it in such an effective way. For instance when they ask you how far you can walk, I used to think if a say I can walk further than the length of two buses, they will penalise me. Welfare Rights showed me that its not really about how far you can walk, but how far you can walk without pain, shortness of breath etc. So the answer was not far at all. They will type it all out for you and send you a copy to proof read. Once that's done you can either use the copy you are emailed or posted, mine did both and use that along with you evidence. Welfare Rights took over from CAB. Believe you me it is well worth spending the time on the phone going through it. The first time I did it, they got back money which the DWP had taken off me for over a year. The second time was in April and although they could only give me an appt that was two days after the date the form had to be returned, so I had to ask DWP for an extension it is so worth it. Sorry for the long post.

[madme1]

Doing the above helped relieve some of the stress so it's so worth it.

[madme1]

Thanks Ajay forgot to add that!😊