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Disability Living Allowance
The Disability Living Allowance is the main disability benefit for people who are under the age of 65, and who have care or mobility needs (or both)
The Disability Living Allowance is a non-means tested benefit and will not be affected if you have a job. Instead, the amount that you could receive will depend on the assessment of your needs.
Care needs will apply if you need help with using your ‘bodily functions’ either throughout the day, throughout the night, or both. Eating, washing, dressing and undressing are all examples of this. Care needs will also apply if you need help in preventing yourself being a danger, either to yourself or to others. You may also qualify if you need help to prepare an cook a main meal (but may have to prove that your disability prevents you from performing such a task).
Mobility needs will apply if you cannot walk outside, or go on an unfamiliar route without the guidance or supervision from another person most of the time. Blindness, deafness, or if you are liable to have panic attacks are all examples of this. Mobility needs will also apply if you are unable to walk at all, or if you can walk but doing so outside is difficult, or if exertion from walking leads to serious deterioration of your health, or if you have no use of your legs or feet, or if you are blind or deaf and need to have someone help you to get around out of doors. You may also be considered to have mobility needs if you have severe learning difficulties and can behave very disruptively.
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Do I qualify?
You will qualify for the Disability Living Allowance if:
You are under the age of 65 when you first claim
You are not permanently in hospital or living in accommodation provided by or funded by the local authority
You have care or mobility needs (or both)
You have had these needs for at least the past three months and you will be likely to have these needs for the next six months.
However, if, in the opinion of your doctor, you are terminally ill, it is automatically assumed that you have care needs and you will be treated as satisfying the three-month condition.
How much will I receive?
Your care needs are graded at 3 different rates:
- The lower rate means that your disability prevents you from cooking a main meal, or that you need care for part of the day. The lower rate is £16.50 a week.
- The middle rate means that you need frequent care throughout the day or night. The middle rate of the Disability Living Allowance is £41.65 a week.
- The higher rate means that you need frequent care throughout the day and night, or you are terminally ill. The higher rate is £62.25 a week.
Your mobility needs are graded at two different rates:
- The lower rate means that you cannot walk outdoors without the supervision or guidance of someone ‘most of the time’. The lower rate is £16.50 a week
- The higher rate means that you have any of the other problems with mobility as listed above. The higher rate is £43.45 a week.
How do I claim?
You will need to complete the Disability Living Allowance claim form (DLA1) in order to make your claim. To do this, you must first complete the form DS704.
You can obtain the Disability Living Allowance claim form (DS704) either by contacting your nearest Jobcentre Plus office, Citizens Advice Bureau, or you can contact the Benefits Enquiry Line (BEL) by ringing 0800 88 22 00 (if you have speech or hearing difficulties and you use a text phone, then dial 0800 24 33 55).
Alternatively, you can download the form from the Department for Work and Pensions website by logging on to www.dwp.gov.uk, or by clicking your mouse on the following link:
Please click here to download the Disability Living Allowance claim form (DS704).
Is there anything else I should know?
If you are eligible to claim the Disability Living Allowance, then you will also qualify for a Christmas bonus – for more information, please click here
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