PIP form question 13: planning journeys

This is your chance to explain why you find it hard to plan a journey and go out.  

Mention:  

• everything you use to help you with journeys, even it seems obvious 
• if another person helps you  
• if your condition fluctuates, meaning some days you find it harder to make journeys than others
• how long travel-related tasks take you compared to people without your condition
• if you’re at risk of any harm when you travel
• if you need help but don’t get it, explain what support would be useful.   

Aids 

List everything you use to help you follow a route and explain how each item helps you.  

Be clear if you have been told to use any aids by a health professional and if there are any items you can’t use because of your condition. Explain how you’d cope without the aids you use.  

Examples of aids include a: 

• guide dog
• cane or stick (these can be white for sight loss, or red and white if you have deafblindness)
• braille map 

Satnavs are not included unless you use one specifically designed for disabilities, such as BBNav. 

If there’s anything you’d find helpful that you don’t have, mention this too. 

What if someone helps me? 

If you need help from another person, say who helps you and explain what they do.  

This could be a family member, carer or friend. Mention why they help you and how often.  

Be clear if you need them to do any of the following: 

• plan your journeys
• explain things to you
• deal with other people for you, such as when using public transport
• encourage you to leave the house or reassure you 

Good and bad days 

Your condition might mean you have good and bad days. If this is the case, explain what a good and bad day look like for you. It can be helpful to say how many good and bad days you tend to have in a week e.g. in a typical week, I have four bad days and three better days. The Department for Work and Pensions will base its decision on whether to award PIP on how your condition affects you most of the time. 

It can be useful to include how long it takes you to plan and follow journeys compared to someone without your condition. It’s okay to estimate if you can’t be precise, just be clear it’s not an exact figure and explain why you can’t be more accurate e.g. my symptoms vary from day to day. 

What if I’m at risk of harm? 

You should mention if you’ve ever had an accident or lost your way following a route, even if it’s only happened once before. Explain what happened, including how long it took you to get back on track or find a place of safety if you got lost. 

You may be at risk during journeys if you can’t: 

• see obstacles
• remember directions
• recognise things like bus stops or buildings
• understand directions given by other people
• read road signs
• judge how safe a situation is
• think logically e.g. deciding if it’s safe to cross a road  

Driving  

If you can drive, there are still some things to bear in mind when answering this question. 

Consider these questions in your answer: 

• Does someone else plan your route?
• Can you go out in the car by yourself?
• Do you only drive to places you know?
• Has your doctor told you not to drive?
• Does your medication make it harder for you to drive?
• Do you need help on parts of a journey when you’re not driving, such as walking to your car? 

Example answer 

I find it hard to leave the house because of anxiety. Generally, I can drive short distances to places I know well, but I have panic attacks if I have to go somewhere unfamiliar or I’m behind the wheel for longer than about 30 minutes. 

Because of this, I try to go out when the roads are quiet. I can become distressed if there are any changes to my planned route, such as a road closure. My partner has to encourage me to drive and tries to come on longer journeys with me for reassurance. 

I take medication prescribed by my GP for my anxiety which can make me drowsy and affect my ability to drive safely. When I’ve taken this, I’m not able to drive because falling asleep at the wheel is a possibility.  

This is my experience most of the time but on bad days (which I typically have once or twice a week), I’m too anxious to leave the house at all. 

If you need help filling in the rest of your PIP form, continue to our guide on question 14.