PIP mandatory reconsideration: what to do if you're refused

Checked 24 September 2026 against GOV.UK · Sources at the bottom

If your Personal Independence Payment claim has been refused, or the award is lower than you expected, you can ask for the decision to be looked at again. This is called a mandatory reconsideration. You usually have to do this before you can appeal to a tribunal, and it's free.

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The one-month time limit

You usually need to ask for a mandatory reconsideration within one month of the date on your decision letter. Later requests may be accepted if you have a good reason. GOV.UK, Challenge a benefit decision (mandatory reconsideration), checked 23 September 2026.

"The date on your decision letter" means the date printed on the letter itself, not the date it arrives or the date you read it. It's worth checking this date as soon as the letter comes, so you know exactly how long you have.

A good reason for a late request is a plain, honest explanation of why you couldn't ask sooner. It doesn't need to be dramatic. If you're not sure whether your reason counts, ask anyway and explain what happened in your own words - our reconsideration helper has a box for exactly this.

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What actually changes on reconsideration

In the three months to July 2026, about 1 in 4 (26%) PIP mandatory reconsiderations led to a change in award. DWP, Personal Independence Payment statistics to July 2026, checked 23 September 2026.

That means most reconsiderations keep the original decision. But a change isn't rare either - roughly one in four does lead to a different outcome. This figure covers all reconsiderations, for all sorts of reasons, so it can't tell you what will happen with your own claim. It's a general fact about the system, not a forecast. What tends to make a difference is new information: something the original decision didn't have, explained clearly.

What a good reconsideration letter covers

A reconsideration letter works best when it's specific. It should cover:

• What the decision said. Quote or summarise the part of the decision you're challenging, so the person reading it knows exactly what you mean.
• Why it's wrong, with specifics. Say which activity doesn't match your daily life and why - how you manage washing, dressing, cooking, or getting around, on a normal day and on a bad day, not a general statement like "I struggle with everything".
• A real example. A short, true example from your own life makes a description easier to follow than a general statement. Describe what happened, not how it made you feel about the process.

Keep the tone plain and factual. You're describing your life, not making an argument, and this page won't show you a scoring system to write towards - see our separate points reference if you want to understand how the scoring itself works, but a reconsideration letter is about what you can and can't do, not a points total.

It's worth writing about every activity you think was scored wrong, not just the one that feels most obvious - if the decision under-described three different daily living activities, say so for all three, not just the loudest one. A letter that only mentions one activity when several were wrong reads as a smaller ask than it actually is.

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If reconsideration doesn't change the decision

If the reconsideration keeps the original decision, you can appeal to an independent tribunal. You can only do this after you've had the mandatory reconsideration decision - you can't appeal straight from the original refusal.

In April to June 2026, tribunals decided 67% of PIP appeals heard in the claimant's favour. Ministry of Justice, Tribunal Statistics Quarterly: April to June 2026, checked 23 September 2026.

That's a general figure across all PIP appeals heard in that period. It tells you how tribunals decided those cases overall - it doesn't tell you what will happen with your own appeal, and it isn't a guarantee of any particular result. Every appeal is looked at on its own facts. This guide doesn't cover building a tribunal appeal in detail - it's a separate process with its own paperwork, worth reading about once you have your mandatory reconsideration decision in hand.

Getting your evidence together

A few practical steps help, whichever route you take next:

• Ask for a copy of the assessment report. You can request the report the decision was based on. Seeing exactly what was recorded makes it much easier to say precisely what's wrong.
• Decide how to ask for reconsideration. You can use the CRMR1 form or write a letter - either is accepted. A letter gives you more room to explain things in your own words; the form is a quicker structured option.
• Keep a copy of everything you send. Your request, any evidence, and any reply. If you need to appeal later, you'll want all of this to hand.
• New evidence helps more than repeating what's already been said. A letter from your GP or a support worker, a care plan, or anything else DWP didn't have when it made the original decision, is often what actually moves a reconsideration - not restating the same form answers in different words.

Our reconsideration helper turns your answers into a clear, specific reconsideration letter, in your own words, and covers all of this - what to send, how, and what happens next.

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Common questions

Sources

• GOV.UK, Challenge a benefit decision (mandatory reconsideration) - checked 23 September 2026
• DWP, Personal Independence Payment statistics to July 2026, published 15 September 2026 - checked 23 September 2026
• Ministry of Justice, Tribunal Statistics Quarterly: April to June 2026, published 10 September 2026 - checked 23 September 2026