Over the last few years we have seen an increasing number of PIP appeals where the DWP alleges that a disabled person who is able to provide care to another disabled people must be exaggerating their needs for the purpose of claiming PIP. The First-tier Tribunal has occasionally accepted such an argument despite the lack of legitimate basis for it. This is because disabled carers have been around for a long time and have always been allowed to claim both disability benefits (PIP and DLA) as well as Carers Allowance (CA).
There has been no discussion in Parliament about the alleged inconsistency between claiming PIP and CA with the relevant laws remaining constant back to a time when disabled carers claiming both disability benefits and CA was never an issue.
A Kester Disability Rights client has won her case in the Upper Tribunal to reinforce that the First-tier Tribunal cannot place undue weight on caring responsibilities when deciding a PIP appeal. Unfortunately, the judgement stopped short of acknowledging this is a matter of wider public importance with disabled people potentially being deterred from claiming CA and/or PIP. And that happening in the context of more responsibility being placed on disabled carers by a shortage of social care provision.
Indeed, with the kind support of Matthew Fraser from Landmark Chambers the case was put that caring duties are more likely to exhaust a disabled person such that they are less able to reliably carry out the PIP activities - the reverse of the DWP position. But regrettably the Upper Tribunal declined to see the matter as one of wider public importance, finding that existing case-law is sufficient.
You can read the judgement here.