Rising delays in the court system are forcing people to wait nearly nine months for a decision on their benefit appeals, new official data has revealed.
The caseload in the Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) tribunal rose by 60 per cent to 129,000 in the year to June 2026, according to statistics from the Ministry of Justice (MoJ).
The department says this is a “generally increasing trend” which has been “accelerating” over the last four quarters.
The SSCS hears appeals on welfare benefits like the personal independence payment (Pip), universal credit, and disability living allowance (DLA).
It is the next stage a benefit applicant can take their unsuccessful claim to after appealing directly to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).
Heard by an independent judge rather than a DWP caseworker, appeals are generally more successful at this stage, with a 60 per cent overturn rate. This compares to around 20 to 25 per cent at the DWP stage.
The increased caseload has pushed the average waiting time for a case to be decided to 37 weeks, up by three weeks from the same time last year.
Appeals regarding Pip claims make up nearly two-thirds (65 per cent) of the SSCS caseload.
Abdi Mohamed, head of policy at disability equality charity Scope, said: “Time and again disabled people are being let down by our benefits system. Continued delays are unacceptable.
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“Life costs more if you are disabled, and disability benefits are meant to help address these costs.
“Pip is a lifeline for disabled people. The cost of living is still sky high and disabled people are far more likely to live in poverty. Delays in accessing benefits can lead to crisis.”
At around four million claimants, Pip is the UK’s most-claimed health- and disability-related benefit. It is currently being reviewed by social security minister Stephen Timms, with his final report expected to be presented in the autumn.
Early recommendations from the review shared last week included changing the process to challenge decisions and improving the consistency of assessment outcomes.
The rising caseload at the SSCS also coincides with increases across several other tribunals, the MoJ statistics show. The asylum tribunal caseload has increased 48 per cent in the past year, the employment tribunal caseload by 51 per cent, and the Special Educational Needs and Disabilities caseload by 31 per cent.
A government spokesperson said: “We have taken immediate action to address the soaring tribunals backlog this government inherited, maximising sitting days, recruiting up to 1,000 judges and tribunal members across all jurisdictions each year, and opening the UK’s largest dedicated tribunal centre to tackle demand.
“More broadly, we’re committed to reforming the welfare system, rebalancing universal credit to tackle the perverse incentives that discourage work while giving sick and disabled people the support they need.”
