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What is Disability Living Allowance?
Disability Living Allowance is a benefit available to adults and children who:
- Need help with personal care, or need someone to offer them support, or
- Have problems getting about outside their home.
Depending on what sort of help you need, you can apply for both of the components or for just one of them. Care needs are paid at three rates and mobility needs are met at two rates. Your income and savings are not taken into account when you apply.
Who can claim Disability Living Allowance?
You can claim if:
- You have needed care for three months and are likely to need it for the next six months, or
- You have had problems with walking for three months and they are likely to continue for the next six months, and
- Your child is at least three months old when you claim for care needs, or three years old when applying for the higher rate for mobility needs, or at least five years old when applying for the lower rate for mobility needs.
- You are aged 16 to 64 when you first claim. Benefit can continue to be paid if you already get it and pass your 65th birthday.
- You have lived in Great Britain for six months out of the last year.
- You do not have a restriction on your immigration status.
If you are terminally ill, there are special rules to help you claim immediately.
What is Disability Living Allowance for Care?
This is to help you cope with the personal care or support needs because of physical difficulties or mental health problems. This may range from needing help with cooking a main meal for yourself, to needing help with personal care during the day or night.
What does 'personal care' or 'support' mean?
Help with personal care covers most of the things you might do to look after yourself. For instance you might need help to get up, wash, get dressed, use the toilet, take your medication, cook a hot meal, eat and drink, sleep, or make sure you don't hurt yourself or somebody else. It does not include help with shopping or cleaning. 'Support' is when you might be physically able to do things, but because of mental health problems you need someone to remind, encourage, persuade or support you to do these things.
You can also claim help for care if you need someone close by to help you avoid the risk of accidents or danger, for example: you might be unsteady, have sudden attacks or have blackouts. You might find it hard to make simple decisions and need quite a lot of support because of mental health problems.
Recent court decisions make it easier for people with sight, hearing problems or learning difficulties to get Disability Living Allowance for Care. For instance you may need someone to read letters or papers to you, to communicate with others on your behalf or to have a proper social life.
For babies and children, you need to show that they need a lot more care than a child of the same age who is not disabled, so it is a good idea to get advice from an adviser if you want to claim Disability Living Allowance for a child.
What is Disability Living Allowance for Mobility?
This can help when you have difficulties walking outside your home. Your difficulties could be due to physical or mental health problems. The rate you are awarded depends upon the kind of mobility difficulties you have.
What is the lower rate?
You can claim the lower rate if you can walk, but need someone with you when you go out to help you find your way about. For example: you have problems seeing, you have panic attacks, you have a mental health problem that makes it hard for you to cope when you are outside, or you have learning difficulties. The test looks at whether you can manage on your own in unfamiliar routes. So, if you can follow routes that are familiar to you, it doesn't matter. This sort of walking will be ignored and you may still qualify if you cannot cope with routes that are new to you.
What is the higher rate?
You can claim the higher rate of Disability Living Allowance for Mobility if:
- You are severely mentally impaired with severe behavioural problems and you get the highest rate of Disability Living Allowance for Care, or
- The effort of walking would be a serious risk to your health, or
- You have no legs or feet, or
- You are deaf and blind, or
- You are unable to walk at all, or
- You are 'virtually' unable to walk.
What does 'virtually' unable to walk mean?
This is where, for example, you get breathless or tired out after a short distance, your walking is very slow difficult or painful, or your walking is interrupted so much by stopping that you make very little progress. The time taken to walk, the distance you can walk, how you walk and the speed at which you walk are all taken into account. You have to show that your problems have a physical cause.
To find out more about Disability Living Allowance, including facts and how to claim, follow 'next'.
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Information Provider:
Manchester Advice
Date Reviewed:
22 June 2009