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<p>The information requested is set out in the table below:</p><table><tbody><tr><td
colspan="2"><p>Current and comparative mean waiting times<sup>1</sup> for Personal
Independence Payment (PIP) appeals</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>October – December 18<sup>2</sup></p></td><td><p>31
weeks</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>October – December 17</p></td><td><p>25 weeks</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>1.
Waiting time is interpreted as average clearance time - time taken from appeal receipt
to outcome.</p><p>2. The latest period for which data are available</p><p>The volume
of appeals against decisions on PIP has built up since it was introduced as a new
benefit, incrementally over time, from 2013. As the number of appeals has increased,
so has the average waiting time for an appeal outcome.</p><p>Waiting times are calculated
from receipt of an appeal to its final disposal. An appeal is not necessarily disposed
of at its first hearing. The final disposal decision on the appeal may be reached
after an earlier hearing had been adjourned (which may be directed by the judge for
a variety of reasons, such as to seek further evidence), or after an earlier hearing
date had been postponed (again, for a variety of reasons, often at the request of
the appellant). An appeal may also have been decided at an earlier date by the First-tier
Tribunal, only for the case to have gone on to the Upper Tribunal, to be returned
once again to the First-tier, for its final disposal.</p><p>Waiting times can fluctuate
temporarily and geographically, owing to a number of variable factors, including volumes
of benefit decisions made locally, availability of medical/disability members, venue
capacity and the complexity of the issue in dispute. Any disparity in waiting times
is monitored and investigated locally.</p>
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