DWP are not fit for purpose

Over 99,000 social security claimants are currently waiting for their appeals against the Department of Work and Pensions’ (DWP) callous decisions to be heard. What’s more, the situation is only getting worse.

That’s according to the latest tribunal statistics from His Majesty’s Courts & Tribunals Service (HMCTS), released on 12 March. The figures relate to Q3 of 2025/26, from October to December last year. By custom, the publication presents its statistics in comparison to the same quarter of the previous year.

DWP spiralling caseload

HMCTS deals with a broad spectrum of claimants, including social security and child support, immigration and asylum, employment tribunals, gender recognition certificates, and several other functions.

Overall, the numbers were damning, with the open caseload growing, whilst the number of cases dealt with continued to fall. The publication stated that HMCTS:

recorded a 14% increase in the interim total for receipts, and a 4% decrease in the total for disposals, compared to the same quarter in 2024. Receipts have exceeded disposals over the last year, resulting in a 19% increase in open caseload to 831,000 at the end of December 2025.

Moreover, the situation is even more dire if we focus specifically on social security appeals are challenging DWP decisions:

Compared to the same period in 2024, Social Security and Child Support (SSCS) increased by 12% and disposals decreased by 26%. Open cases increased by 25%, as receipts have exceeded disposals over the last year.

Of the 22,000 disposals in Q3 2025/26, 66% were cleared at a hearing (compared to 60% in the same period in 2024/25) and of these, 58% had the initial decision revised in favour of the claimant (compared to 60% in the same period in 2024/25).

Left in limbo

More specifically, 99,000 social security claimants were waiting for their appeal hearing at the end of December 2025. That’s more than 25% higher than it was in the same period last year. Further, the number of people waiting in limbo has increased steadily since the middle of 2021/22, and is only set to continue.

Compared to last year, there’s been a 12% increase in appeals, bringing the total to 38,000. Meanwhile, the number that HMCTS has actually dealt with has actually decreased by 12% overall.

By far the greatest number of appeals related to Personal Independence Payments (PIP). In total, these reached an eye-watering 22,394 cases lodged.

To put that into perspective, Universal Credit claimants lodged 8,714 appeals over the same period. Meanwhile, 2,592 appeals related to Disability Living Allowance (DLA), and 882 appeals related to Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).

Successful appeals falling

However, whilst PIP appeals vastly outnumber the rest, the rate of appeals has increased fastest for DLA and Universal Credit. PIP cases only rose by 4%, whilst Universal Credit appeals increased by 35%, and DLA appeals shot up by 64%.

Likewise, as reported by Benefits and Work, more and more claimants are being forced to go to tribunal due to the DWP’s dodgy decisions. Meanwhile, fewer of those appeals are actually being won:

Of the 22,000 cases cleared in the quarter, 66% were cleared at a hearing compared to 60% in the preceding year. This means a higher proportion of claimants are having to go all the way to a tribunal rather than the DWP settling the case before it reaches a hearing.

58% of appeals were won by the claimant, a fall of 2% compared to the year before.

Breaking that down, the success rates of appeals for every aspect of social security have fallen. Success rates for ESA appeals dropped the most, by some 11%, followed by a 3% fall for PIP, 2% for DLA, and 1% for UC. However, PIP appeals were still the most likely to be successful, at around 64%.

Unfit for purpose

The numbers of appeals against DWP decisions are rising against the backdrop of a department that’s scrambling desperately to make cuts. Meanwhile, this right-wing posturing is endangering the vulnerable people these schemes were set up to help.

As the Canary’s Rachel Charlton-Dailey previously wrote:

It’s becoming increasingly clear that the main reason the government is pushing ahead with PIP reform is that they don’t have the staff to process the claims they already have. As a recent report found, delays to PIP are endangering people’s lives. The same report revealed that the DWP planned to make the application process more online-focused and to give every claimant a case worker. But this only works if the DWP can actually find the staff.

Meanwhile, the amount of compensation payments the DWP has authorised has more than doubled since 2021. These ‘consolatory payments’ are issued when DWP screws up a claim so badly that people are left in deep distress.

The DWP is deeply unfit for purpose, and beyond it, the Tribunals Service is increasingly overwhelmed by the backlog of appeals against DWP decisions. Waiting times are out of control, and people’s lives are being put on hold – also so that successive UK governments can try desperately to look ‘tough on benefits’.

Featured image via the Canary