Attendance Allowance check → What not to write on the Attendance Allowance form

What not to write on the Attendance Allowance form

Everyday phrases like “I manage” and “only sometimes” can undersell real needs. What to avoid on the AA1, and what to write instead.

Written and checked by the Attendance Allowance Check team at Virix Ltd. Last reviewed 25 September 2026 against gov.uk.

Most Attendance Allowance forms are not let down by what people leave out on purpose. They are let down by ordinary, polite phrases — the ones many of us use when a doctor asks how we are. “I’m fine.” “I get by.” “Only now and then.” On this form those phrases can quietly remove the very information the decision depends on. This page goes through the phrases and habits worth avoiding, and what to write instead.

The aim is not to make anything sound worse than it is. It is to make sure the form says what actually happens. For the full walk-through of the form, see how to fill in the AA1.

Why wording matters on this form

The person deciding the claim does not meet you, in most cases. The DWP only asks someone to attend an assessment if it is unclear how their condition affects them. So the form is usually all they have. They are looking for how often you need help with personal care, or someone to keep an eye on you, and for how long — by day and by night. The DWP’s guidance to decision makers says it is the help you reasonably need that counts, not the help you actually get, and that the severity of a disability is judged by the needs that arise from it, not by the name of the condition.

Anything that hides the need, the frequency or the reason makes that judgement harder.

Phrases to avoid, and what to write instead

The “instead” answers below are illustrative examples only. They are invented, and they show the shape of an answer, not wording to copy. Use your own situation.

“I manage” or “I cope”

It may well be true. But it says nothing about how. The form’s own guidance asks you to say if you take a long time, feel pain, get breathless or hold on to furniture.

Instead of: “I manage the stairs.”
Try: “I go up the stairs once a day, at bedtime, one step at a time, holding the rail with both hands. It takes a few minutes and I stop halfway to get my breath.”

“Fine”, “OK”, “no problems”

These are often written on a good day, or out of habit. If a task really gives you no difficulty, you do not need to dress it up — but check first whether you have simply got used to a workaround.

Instead of: “Dressing — fine.”
Try: “I can only dress because I have changed what I wear: no buttons, no laces, elastic waists. I still cannot put on socks or tights without help.”

“Sometimes”, “occasionally”, “now and then”

These words give the reader no way to judge how often. And many questions start “Do you usually…”, which the form explains means most of the time. “Sometimes” can read as “not usually”, even when it is most days.

Instead of: “Sometimes I need help in the bath.”
Try: “I need someone to help me in and out of the shower every time I use it, which is three times a week. On the other days I wash at the sink.”

If something really is occasional, say so honestly, and say how often it is: “about twice a month”.

“Not applicable — I live alone”

This gap is easy to leave, especially in the night section. The form asks about the help you need, whether or not you get it. Someone who lives alone and struggles is still describing a need.

Instead of: “N/A, nobody helps me.”
Try: “Nobody helps me because I live alone, but I need help. I cannot get out of the bath, so I no longer have one.”

“My daughter does it”

This is a good start, but it leaves out why, how often and how long. The reader cannot tell whether the help is needed or simply given.

Instead of: “My daughter does my tablets.”
Try: “My daughter sorts my tablets into a weekly box because I muddled them twice last year and took a double dose. She rings at 8am and 6pm to make sure I have taken them.”

Things that do not help the claim

A list of diagnoses instead of what they stop you doing

Question 16 asks for your illnesses, and it is right to name them. But a diagnosis on its own tells the reader very little: two people with the same condition can need very different amounts of help. The rest of the form is about effects.

Instead of: “Parkinson’s, high blood pressure.”
Try: “Parkinson’s makes my hands shake and my movements freeze, so I cannot fasten buttons, cut food or get out of a chair without someone pulling me up. My blood pressure tablets make me dizzy when I stand up, and I have fallen twice since Christmas.”

Walking to the shops and getting out and about

Attendance Allowance does not cover mobility needs. Pages about how far you can walk outside, or giving up the bus, will not on their own count towards it. That does not mean leaving outdoor difficulties out completely: question 39 asks about help you need to take part in social, religious or leisure activities, and falls, wherever they happen, belong in question 34. The point is to tie them to care or safety, not to distance.

Instead of: “I can only walk 50 yards.”
Try (question 39): “I would like to go to my lunch club on Thursdays. I need someone to help me in and out of the car, steady me to my seat and help me to the toilet while I am there.”

Housework, cooking and shopping

These are generally not treated as personal care for Attendance Allowance. Cutting up food, eating, drinking and being reminded to eat are. So focus on the parts that are about you, not the house.

Instead of: “I can’t cook or do the hoovering.”
Try: “I cannot cut up meat or lift a full cup safely, so my husband cuts up my food at every meal and pours my drinks.”

Describing your best day

If your condition varies, the natural thing is to describe how you are today, or how you would like to be. The notes that come with the form say the DWP knows people have good days and bad days, and ask you to tell them how your condition varies.

Instead of: “Most days I’m alright.”
Try: “On about four days a week I need help getting dressed and washed because of pain. On the other days I can do most of it myself, slowly, but still need help with my feet.”

Question 38 asks directly how many days a week you have difficulty. Give a number.

Vague time words

“A while”, “ages”, “quite a long time” mean different things to different readers.

Instead of: “Takes me ages to get going.”
Try: “It takes about an hour from waking to being washed and dressed, with rests.”

Things not to write at all

Anything that is not true

It can be tempting, especially for a worried relative, to add things that happen “almost” or to write “always” and “never” when the truth is “often”. Please do not. You sign a declaration that the form is complete and correct, and the form warns that wrong or incomplete information can lead to prosecution, a penalty, or having to repay money. Exaggeration also tends to backfire in a quieter way: if a statement does not match what your GP or others describe, it can make the whole form harder to believe.

Instead of: “I can never wash myself.”
Try: “I can wash my face and hands, but I cannot wash my back, legs or feet, or get in and out of the shower.”

Words copied from someone else’s form or a website

Sample answers, including the illustrative examples on our site, show how an answer can be put together. They are not your life. Borrowed wording rarely matches your own medical records or the statement from someone who knows you.

Understatement for pride

This is the mirror image of exaggeration, and just as easy to fall into. Understating is also inaccurate. If a relative filling in the form with you thinks you are leaving things out, it is worth talking it through together, calmly, with the record of a few ordinary days in front of you.

A quick check before you post it

Read your answers back and ask:

• Does each care answer say how often and how long?
• Does it say why — what your condition does?
• Does it say who helps, or what happens when nobody is there?
• Have I described a typical week, bad days included?
• Have I answered the night questions, even if nobody helps at night? (See the night-time questions.)
• Is every sentence true?

For the slips that happen at other stages — signing, sending, deadlines — see common mistakes on Attendance Allowance claims.

If you would like a hand with it

We are a private company, Virix Ltd, not part of any government department. We fill in the AA1 with you over the telephone, in your own words, then print it and post it to you to check and sign. It costs £149, once. If the claim is refused, we help you ask for the decision to be looked at again at no extra cost, and if the answer is still no, we refund the full £149. Or you can choose to pay £249 only if the claim is awarded. You can also do it all yourself for free, or ask Age UK or Citizens Advice, who help at no charge where they have capacity. How the options compare.