Changes to PIP and WCA assessments due in days

Changes to streamline the assessment process for personal independence payment (PIP) and employment support allowance (ESA), as well as work capability assessments (WCA) for universal credit are set to be rolled out from the start of September.

The changes are taking place because new contractors are taking over the assessments. And follow the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) announcement last year that new contracts for regional assessments would be active from 2024 to 2029.

Currently, WCAs are provided by a company called Maximus, while PIP assessments are conducted by Atos (also known as IAS) and Capita, with Atos handling most of the PIP contracts.

Known as functional assessment services, the new contracts will replace existing PIP and WCA contracts for employment and support allowance (ESA) and universal credit. This means that one company will manage both assessment types in a specific region.

The change is part of the Health Transformation programme which aims to improve the process for all benefits needing health assessments.

Who will conduct your assessment?

If you have a PIP or WCA assessment for universal credit or employment support allowance scheduled from September onwards, here’s who will be conducting them:

• Scotland and North England: Maximus UK Services Limited (currently Atos)
• Midlands and Wales: Capita Business Services (currently Capita)
• South West England: Serco (currently Atos)
• South East England, London, and East Anglia: Ingeus UK Limited (currently Atos)
• Northern Ireland: Capita Business Services (currently Capita)

Other changes to PIP and WCA

Last year, the DWP also announced plans to move to a new telephony system in 2024 and improve the video assessment application to allow all disability health benefit consultations to be recorded. But this change has not taken place yet.

If you have a PIP assessment coming up, you can still have it auto recorded but you’ll have to ask the DWP for this in advance.

Only around 1.4% of PIP assessments were audio-recorded during the first six months of 2024.

What is a PIP assessment?

A PIP assessment is not a medical examination. Instead, it’s a chat with a medical professional to assess how your long-term health condition or disability affects your day-to-day life. The consultation should take around an hour.

What is a WCA assessment?

If your health condition or disability limits how much work you can do for longer than 28 days, you may need to have a work capability assessment (WCA). The assessment, which looks at what you can and can’t do, is used to discover how much your health condition or disability affects you.

Why might you need to have a work capability assessment?

A WCA is important for universal credit and employment support allowance claims. If you are found to have a ‘limited capability for work’ in the assessment, your work-related conditions will be limited.