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Important New Legal Judgement Rules That Walking Through Pain Is Not Acceptable For PIP

July 29, 2016

With many thanks to Disability Rights UK.

A significant new legal judgment holds that while someone may ‘push through pain’ in order to continue walking this does not mean that they are walking to an “acceptable standard” for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) purposes.

The new judgment means that consideration should not only be given to whether a disabled claimant can reliably walk up to 20 metres or 50 metres in total.

In addition, consideration should also be given to whether they are walking through pain before reaching 20 metres or 50 metres.

In CPIP/665/2016, Upper Tribunal Judge Markus rejects the Secretary of State’s submission that if pain was not significant enough to prevent someone walking it is only at the stopping point at which the pain meant that walking was to an unacceptable standard.

While Judge Markus finds that while the appellant in this case had not succeeded in showing that he could not walk over 50 metres repeatedly or within a reasonable time period:

“… he said that he did so in considerable pain … and that he would rather push through the pain in order to stay as active and independent as possible.

The tribunal was wrong not to consider what the impact of pain was on the appellant’s ability to mobilise the distance found to an acceptable standard.”

Read fuller summary of CPIP/665/2016

Read full decision

15 Comments leave one →
  1. Christopher John Ball's avatar
    July 29, 2016 4:49 pm

    Reblogged this on Christopher John Ball.

    Like

  2. mili68's avatar
    mili68 permalink
    July 29, 2016 6:25 pm

    Reblogged this on disabledsingleparent.

    Like

  3. mili68's avatar
    mili68 permalink
    July 29, 2016 6:26 pm

    Tweeted @melissacade68

    Like

  4. Nick's avatar
    Nick permalink
    July 29, 2016 6:39 pm

    this judge is like myself (lol)
    full of commonsense and if only this country had it what a great country this would be in the world

    Like

  5. wildthing666's avatar
    July 29, 2016 6:43 pm

    A judge with some sense.

    Like

  6. snaithmagmailcom's avatar
    July 30, 2016 4:16 am

    Reblogged this on michaelsnaith.

    Like

  7. barbara's avatar
    barbara permalink
    July 30, 2016 1:43 pm

    my knees hurt as soon as i get out of bed and even in the night when resting

    Like

  8. Miss Suzanne Walsh's avatar
    Miss Suzanne Walsh permalink
    July 30, 2016 2:46 pm

    There is an awful lot these drastically unqualified people need to realise about what we sick and disabled people do to maintain our dignity, and independence. We are not defined by our illnesses every second of our lives, we are not sub-humans, and we should not be expected to exist as though we are already dead.

    Like

  9. Paul Smyth's avatar
    August 2, 2016 10:49 am

    Reblogged this on The Greater Fool.

    Like

  10. zolamagic's avatar
    August 2, 2016 10:56 am

    Finally! Somebody in the decision making process with some common sense. People who are both sick & disabled will have varying degrees of difficulty. I, for example can go out today & walk easily, but tomorrow I may go out & be suffering. & may I just say that the winter months are even worse, not only for the pain levels, but from a personal point of view: BALANCE problems.

    Like

  11. SKIPTON TRAVELLER's avatar
    painandmeblog permalink
    October 25, 2016 3:16 pm

    best not tell them I do fencing for 1 and a half hours a week. I have muscle damage too my foot and suffer with chronic pain. If I want too do something why shouldn’t I. besides if I stopped every time it hurt I wouldn’t get to the toilet and back.

    Like

    • stuart willis's avatar
      stuart willis permalink
      February 1, 2019 11:31 am

      just the fact that you can tell them would have them withdrawing benefits and no doubt they’d say ” he/she can tell us about how their disability affects them” , I was asked how did I walk to the tribunal building even though it could be clearly seen that I was in agony and had a walking stick , they found that to be acceptable , you’re dammed if you do and dammed if you don’t ,

      Like

  12. stuart willis's avatar
    stuart willis permalink
    February 1, 2019 11:14 am

    i had a tribunal hearing yesterday and got high rate daily living due to not being able to prepare food, and that was after going to the lord knows how many tribunals with the evidence going back years, of the receipts I had for the pre cooked food that I had delivered to me , the evidence was there all along and now some 5 years later they’re like ” oh he can’t cook or prepare food” DUH how many times have I explicitly stated that

    and the questions they ask bear no resemblance to reality , just what some crusty law maker has decided what the reality is concerning disability , I got arthritis every where , fibromyalgia , suffer from bad headaches brought on by stress , and guess what
    there’s nothing wrong with my mobility , ironically I got a blue badge from the council without scoring points for mobility

    I don’t know who’s worse the DWP , ATOS , or the tribunals , all that claim they want to help , yep they sure do , help you into an early grave

    Like

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