MILLIONS of households qualify for a one-off £150 discount on their energy bills over the colder months each year.
The Warm Home Discount is applied every winter between October and the following March.
GettyWe reveal who is eligible for the Warm Home Discount[/caption]
Struggling households and those on the lowest incomes qualify and are usually paid automatically.
Households in England, Wales and Scotland can get the money off their bills.
But there are some groups of people who have to apply for the discount – and the deadline for them to do so is today.
Meanwhile, you’ll only qualify if you’re receiving one of a number of Government benefits.
What is the Warm Home Discount?
The Warm Home Discount is a £150 discount off your energy bills applied between October and the following March each winter.
The money is a taken off your bill rather than being paid direct to you.
You also have to be receiving one of the following benefits to qualify:
Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit
Housing Benefit
income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
Income Support
the Savings Credit part of Pension Credit
Child Tax Credit
Working Tax Credit
To qualify for this winter’s discount, you have to have been receiving one of the above benefits on August 13, 2023.
However, if you later launch a successful claim for backdated benefits, you may still be able to qualify after this date.
Not all suppliers are signed up to the Warm Home Discount scheme, although the major firms are including British Gas, EDF and Octopus Energy.
The full list of firms on the scheme is on the Government’s website.
Bear in mind, just because you are receiving one of the qualifying benefits doesn’t mean you will definitely be eligible for the discount.
The Government also assesses your energy costs based on the type, age and size of your property to see if you qualify.
For example, if you live in a home deemed energy-efficient enough, you may not receive the £150 discount.
However, this rule does not apply to those on the Guarantee Credit portion of Pension Credit.
Do you apply for the discount?
In most cases you won’t need to apply for the discount, including the vast majority of those in England and Wales.
You get the payment automatically if your electricity supplier is part of the scheme and you qualify.
But park home residents in England do have to apply by today via the Charis Grants website.
You may also have to apply by February 29 if you think you qualify for the Warm Home Discount and haven’t yet received a letter.
Meanwhile, Scottish households not on the Guarantee element of Pension Credit have to apply via their energy supplier.
The February 29 deadline does not apply in this case, but you should still apply as soon as possible to avoid missing the discount.
What other energy bill help is there?
If you don’t qualify for the Warm Home Discount, you might be able to get help via the Household Support Fund (HSF).
The latest round of funding is worth £842million and has been shared between councils in England.
They then decide how to distribute their portion.
But what you are entitled to varies on where you live as each local authority sets its own eligibility criteria.
In the vast majority of cases, you will qualify if you are on benefits or a low income, or struggling financially.
You should approach your council to see if any help is on offer. You can find what council area you fall under by using the Government’s council locator tool online.
You might also be able to claim a free grant from your energy firm if you’re struggling to make payments.
Are you missing out on benefits?
YOU can use a benefits calculator to help you check that you are not missing out on money you are entitled to.
Charity Turn2Us’ benefits calculator works out what you could get.
Entitledto’s free calculator works out whether you qualify for various benefits, tax credits and Universal Credit.
MoneySavingExpert.com and charity StepChange both have benefits tools powered by Entitledto’s data.
You can use Policy in Practice’s calculator to not only find out which benefits you could receive but also to find out how much cash you’ll have left over each month after paying for housing costs.
Your exact entitlement will only be clear when you make a claim, but calculators can give you an indication of what you might be eligible for.
British Gas, Octopus Energy and EDF are some of the major companies that offer help.
Meanwhile, it’s worth checking if you’re eligible for benefits, as the move could be worth thousands of pounds a year.
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