In 2024, there were 198,000 PIP claimants with autism listed as their main disabling condition. This makes it the second most common condition to get an award of PIP for out of over 500 conditions listed by the DWP.
So, if you have autism and it affects your daily living activities, such as cooking, washing, dressing or mixing with other people or your ability to get around, you should definitely consider making a claim.
Learn more or take the test
You can read more about claiming PIP for autism or take our simple online test now to find out if you might be able to make a claim.
Success rates
[Please note: the percentages below may not add up to 100%, due to rounding.
The success rate for PIP claims for autism is 68%, compared to an overall average of 53%. So you have a considerably more than average chance of getting an award for autism.
Award rates
56% of PIP claimants with autism, get the enhanced rate of both the daily living and the mobility component.
Daily living awards
Enhanced daily living 84%
Standard daily living 13%
No daily living 2%
Mobility awards
Enhanced mobility 58%
Standard mobility 31%
No mobility 11%
97% of claimants with autism who get an award get the daily living component, compared to 89% who get the mobility component.
Age range
The ages of those currently in receipt of PIP for autism are:
- 16-29 years 78%
- 30-49 years 18%
- 50-64 years 4%
- 65 and over 1%
PIP rates
The rates of PIP from April 2024 are:
Daily Living component
Standard rate: £72.65
Enhanced rate: £108.55
Mobility component
Standard rate: £28.70
Enhanced rate: £75.75
So, an award of the enhanced rate of PIP for both components means an extra £184.30 a week.
PIP is paid on top of almost every other benefit and may lead to an increase in some benefits or entitlement to additional benefits.
The enhanced rate of the mobility component also gives access to the Motability scheme.
How you qualify for PIP
This information applies to England, Wales and Northern Ireland – Scotland has a separate system. You need to be aged at least 18 before you can receive PIP and you need to start your claim before you reach state pension age.
The best way to decide whether you might be eligible for PIP is to look through this list of PIP activities and think about the ways that your condition affects your ability to carry them out. You are awarded points according to the level of difficulty you have with each of these activities, with sufficient points leading to an award of PIP.
Daily living activities
There are 10 daily living activities:
- Preparing food
- Taking nutrition
- Managing therapy or monitoring a health condition
- Washing and bathing
- Managing toilet needs or incontinence
- Dressing and undressing
- Communicating verbally
- Reading and understanding signs, symbols and words
- Engaging with other people face-to-face
- Making budgeting decisions
Mobility activities
There are two mobility activities:
- Planning and following journeys
- Moving around
Remember that you need to be able to complete the activities
- to a reasonable standard,
- safely,
- repeatedly
- taking no more than twice as long as it would take a person without a health condition.
Points for autism
Below are some examples of the issues that you might have because of autism. Do remember, that if you have other conditions, you can take those into account too.
You may need someone with you to guide you through the stages of cooking a meal, as you may find it hard to follow the required processes or to follow a recipe.
You may take longer to process information than a non-autistic person and so may take more than twice as long to prepare or cook a meal unless you have someone to prompt you.
If you are prone to under- or over-eating, you may need visual hunger or fullness scales to support you to eat an appropriate amount at mealtimes.
You may be very anxious about ensuring you take your medication and may need someone to support you in taking it correctly so that you do not become distressed about getting it wrong.
You may be happy to get into the bath or shower but then struggle to initiate getting back out again, either because you are thinking about something else, enjoying the sensation of water or don’t like the sensation of going from wet to dry. You may need support from another person to finish washing.
You may need picture cards to prompt you to complete the stages of toileting in the correct order.
It may take you more than twice as long to get dressed as someone who is not autistic because you are sensitive to the touch or sight of certain fabrics.
You may be able to dress independently but do not initiate doing this unless someone prompts you, as you are focused on other things.
You may become distracted by being focused on something else or performing repetitive behaviours during speaking or listening so that you cannot follow a conversation adequately without help from someone who knows you well.
You may take more than twice as long to read a sentence or a couple of sentences than someone who is not autistic because of difficulties with executive functions or concentration.
You may find it difficult to understand body language, tone or voice or social cues and so find it hard to understand what someone is trying to communicate unless you are prompted by another person.
You might take words or phrases literally and so need support to understand the meaning of a conversation.
You may need someone with you to provide social support when engaging with others so that they can identify the early signs of a potential meltdown and help you safely exit the situation.
Someone familiar may need to be with you when interacting with others, because being autistic makes it hard to read other people or understand social cues.
You may be able to pay specific bills (perhaps with prompting) but could not manage a household budget due to difficulties planning, organising and prioritising.
Difficulties with social interaction may mean that when you are in a shop, you are overwhelmed and cannot process the information you need to make a purchase unless someone helps you.
Difficulties with executive functions, like planning, prioritising and concentrating may mean you cannot work out which route to take to a destination unless you have someone to help you.
Severe anxiety symptoms may make it impossible for you to complete a journey most of the time, even if you have someone to help you.
Overstimulation when outdoors may cause you to experience a meltdown or shutdown and you may be unable to complete your journey safely as a result.
Benefits and Work members can also download a ‘PIP for Autism Supplementary Guide’ from the PIP Guides page with even more examples and case studies, to complement our main guide to claiming PIP.
Take the next step
Claiming PIP isn't easy. And getting the correct award is even harder.
But there are things you can do to greatly increase your chances of getting the right result.
One of them is to use our highly detailed, step-by-step Guide to PIP claims and reviews, which will support you through every stage of the system.
Because filling in the 37 page PIP2 ‘How your disability affects you’ form in as much detail as possible is vital.
It not only means you are giving accurate and consistent evidence from the outset, it also improves your chances of overturning an unfair decision if you have to go to appeal.
Our guide takes you through the PIP2 form, box-by-box, explaining the kind of information you need to put in each one.
Being fully prepared for an assessment is vital too. Knowing what questions you are likely to be asked and what unspoken assumptions may be made based on your answers, unless you deal with them, can make all the difference. Our guide will ensure you are as ready as you possibly can be.
And because we’ve been supporting claimants for 20 years and have a community of thousands of members who keep us updated with their experiences, we can make sure you are prepared for any unfair tactics the DWP might employ.
And we have guides to every other part of your PIP claim too, from mandatory reconsideration, to appeal to review. Plus a forum where you can ask questions, regular news items and more.
So, whether you’ve tried claiming PIP before and been unsuccessful, or you’ve never had any experience of the benefits system, join the Benefits and Work community to give yourself the best possible chance of getting the right award.
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