mobility assesment

Hi
I received the dreaded brown envelope today so the process has started to change over to PIP. I have a query regarding the mobility element and would appreciate some help. I have osteoarthritis in both knees and presently have the higher rate award. When I fill the form in I'm not sure which box to tick as I'm in constant pain and although can hobble about a bit ,I cannot walk for any distance at all without extreme pain. Do I tick "cannot walk at all"?
All help appreciated

Hi Kathryn, my opinion of trying to define how far a disabled person can walk (if at all) is just 'fishing' to make the applicant say any old nonsense.

Does anybody really keep a record or say to themselves how far they walked without pain, fatigue or severe discomfort on any particular part of the day/days? The whole idea of 'PIP' is to reduce government aid. I don't blame 'the state' for trying to do that as it is hard to assess who should and who shouldn't get a financial benefit - but the easiest way (in my opinion) is for an 'assessor' to obtain the medical history and also let a disabled person describe their disabilities and how it affects their daily lives (in their own words) and not be prompted by idiotic questions like 'How far can you walk'?

I remember in the early days of my DLA assessment, a G.P from another surgery (completely unfamiliar with my medical history) He went to the other side of the my living room. (you were assessed by a G.P at home in those days - a 10 minute test - no less!) He told me to get out of my chair and walk to him. I thought I was 'Lazarus' and he was 'JC' for a brief moment - until he said 'And NOW try and reach down and touch your toes' He probably got paid a ridiculous fee for doing that and still wouldn't have been much the wiser.

Good luck with your answer, I have to answer the same question soon and I haven't got a clue what the answer is and nor has 'JC' nor 'The Guide'- Gordon!!)

It is quite common for the assessor to ask for how many minutes you can walk and then extrapolate a distance from that. It is something we warn members to be prepared for.

Hi Mrs Hurtyback.

I know I can't change the world but:-

Even if you can walk for a short distance on a bad day and a longer distance on a good day - why should an assessor really care and why should you have to be wary and position yourself to answer with the appropriate words from the pip guide? Surely it should be based on whether you can get out and about like an equal - then - if the answer is 'NO' then you should qualify for the benefit.

Sounds to me like the system is nothing to do with the real world,