DWP review shows thousands of PIP benefit claimants owe £90million after failing to report change

manchestereveningnews.co.uk:

Roughly a third of people in Britain receive help from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), with around 22.7 million getting some form of benefit or State Pension.

The most recent figures, published in the 2024 Fraud and Error in the Benefit System report, reveal that the total amount of benefit overpayments during the previous year was £9.7 billion (3.7%), a rise from £8.3bn in 2023.

Introduced in 2013, the Personal Independence Payment (PIP) is intended to assist people with additional costs arising from a long-term illness, disability or mental or physical health condition.

The data indicates that around £21.6bn was spent on PIP last year, a substantial increase from the £17.7bn in 2022/23. This figure is anticipated to grow as the number of individuals receiving up to £737.20 each month has hit a record-breaking high of 3.5m.