The Short Answer
Seven PIP activities contain a descriptor that scores where an aid or appliance is reasonably required, and each is worth 2 points. Four of them together reach the 8-point standard rate for the daily living component without any activity being impossible. The aid does not have to be prescribed, supplied or medical, and the test is whether one could reasonably be used — not whether one has been fitted.
Where the Aid Descriptors Are
Seven of the ten daily living activities, plus a different rule in moving around.
| Activity | The aid descriptor | Points |
|---|---|---|
| Preparing food | Needs an aid to prepare or cook a simple meal | 2 |
| Taking nutrition | Needs an aid to take nutrition | 2 |
| Managing therapy | Needs an aid to manage medication | 1 |
| Washing and bathing | Needs an aid to wash or bathe | 2 |
| Managing toilet needs | Needs an aid to manage toilet needs or incontinence | 2 |
| Dressing and undressing | Needs an aid to dress or undress | 2 |
| Reading | Needs an aid other than spectacles or contact lenses | 2 |
Last checked: 7 August 2026
Four of these at 2 points each is 8 points, which pays the daily living standard rate of £76.70 a week on its own. That arithmetic is the single most under-used route through the assessment.
Last checked: 6 August 2026
The Test Is Hypothetical
Could an aid reasonably be used, not has one been supplied. The assessment guide sets it out for washing: assessors should consider whether the claimant "could reasonably use an aid such as a grab rail to get in or out of an unadapted bath or shower (4B) or whether they require assistance (4E)".
That wording matters in two directions. A person who has never been assessed by an occupational therapist can still score. And a person who already has adaptations fitted has evidence of the need, not evidence that the need has gone — the guide makes the same point about wet rooms, which it says are not unadapted showers, and where reasonably required "could be evidence that the claimant cannot access an unadapted bath or shower".
What Counts as an Aid
Anything that makes the activity possible, whatever it cost and wherever it came from. There is no list in the regulations, and no requirement for it to be prescribed or medical.
- Kitchen: perching stool, jar or tin opener, one-handed chopping board, kettle tipper, lightweight or two-handled pans
- Eating: weighted or adapted cutlery, plate guard, two-handled beaker, straw
- Washing: grab rail, shower seat, bath board or lift, long-handled sponge, non-slip mat
- Toilet: raised seat, toilet frame, commode, pads, collecting device
- Dressing: long-handled shoehorn, sock aid, button hook, zip pull, grabber
- Medication: dosette box or pill organiser, alarm or reminder device
- Reading: magnifier, screen reader, large-print material
Ordinary objects used for a disability reason count. A chair kept in the kitchen so cooking can be done seated is a perching stool by another name.
Moving Around Works Differently
There, an aid changes which descriptor applies rather than adding points. Between 20 and 50 metres, moving unaided scores 8 points and moving "using an aid or appliance" scores 10. Needing a stick raises the score rather than lowering it, because the aid is evidence of the limitation.
Above 50 metres and below 20 metres the descriptors say "either aided or unaided", so the aid makes no difference to those bands.
Making the List
Walk through an ordinary day and write down everything you touch that someone without your condition would not need. For each item: what it is used for, whether the task is possible without it, and roughly when you started using it.
The items most often missed are the ones acquired years ago and now used without thinking. Each of them is pointing at a descriptor, and each is worth 2 points in an assessment where 2 points regularly decides a rate.
Check Your Score
Aids score inside their activities, not as a separate total. Work through all 12 PIP descriptors with your list beside you, and the aid descriptors will each be the second one in their activity.