The Short Answer
The DWP's PIP statistics to January 2026 put the median new claim at 20 weeks end to end and the award rate at 54% of initial decisions. Of reconsiderations cleared in the quarter ending January 2026, 27% changed the award. These are published national figures, not predictions about an individual claim.
The Published Figures
The table below sets out the position, with each figure taken from the source named beneath it.
| Measure | Figure | Period |
|---|---|---|
| Median clearance, new claim | 20 weeks end to end | At January 2026 |
| Median, AP referral to decision | 15 weeks | At January 2026 |
| Initial decisions after assessment | 3.5 million, 54% awarded | Oct 2020 to Sep 2025 |
| MRs registered | 700,000, 20% of decisions | Oct 2020 to Sep 2025 |
| MRs changing the award | 27% | Quarter ending January 2026 |
| MRs changing the award | 17% | Oct 2020 to Sep 2025 |
| Completed MRs then appealed | 33% | Oct 2020 to Sep 2025 |
| Appeals lapsed before hearing | 20% | Oct 2020 to Sep 2025 |
| Decisions overturned at hearing | 65% of those cleared at a hearing | Oct 2020 to Sep 2025 |
Last checked: 7 August 2026
What the Clearance Time Does Not Mean
A median is not a maximum or a promise. Half of claims cleared faster than 20 weeks and half slower, and the figure covers normal rules new claims rather than every route.
Claims under the special rules for end of life are handled separately and are not in that median. Those are made on form SR1, decided without a face-to-face assessment, and award the higher daily living rate automatically.
What the Award Rate Does Not Mean
54% is a national average across five years, not a probability for your claim. The figure describes decisions already made on evidence already submitted.
The more useful reading is the gap between stages: 20% of initial decisions went to reconsideration, 27% of recent reconsiderations changed the award, and of the decisions that reached a tribunal hearing 65% were revised in the claimant's favour. Each stage looks at the same descriptors with more evidence in front of it.
Why the Numbers Move
The series is quarterly, and these figures will change. The DWP publishes PIP statistics on a quarterly cycle, so the clearance median and the reconsideration rate are both moving targets.
Every figure on this page carries the release it came from and the period it covers. A statistic quoted without both is not checkable, which is why they appear together here.
Last checked: 7 August 2026
Where This Sits
Published statistics describe the system, not your claim. What decides an individual award is the descriptors and the evidence, and the current position on both is tracked alongside the rest of the news on PIP news.