We understand that our customers, along with many other people across the country, may have concerns with managing their energy costs.
You can get help if you’re struggling to afford your energy bills or top up your prepayment meter. You might be able to take advantage of certain benefits, grants and help offered by the government and energy suppliers.
You might be able to get £150 off your electricity bill or £150 added to your prepayment meter.
If you have a standard credit meter, the money is provided as a £150 rebate applied to your electricity or gas bill between October and March. If you’re on a prepay meter, you’ll usually be sent a top-up voucher.
The scheme is now different in England and Wales from that in Scotland. In England and Wales, you no longer need to apply for the warm home discount, it’ll be awarded automatically to those on pension credit and certain benefits, who are eligible. In Scotland, some will still need to apply to get it.
Check if you’re eligible for the Warm Home Discount: https://www.gov.uk/the-warm-home-discount-scheme.
The Winter Fuel Payment is an annual one-off payment to help you pay for heating during the winter.
Starting this winter (2024/25), you'll only be able to get a Winter Fuel Payment if you're:
You should start getting the Winter Fuel Payment automatically and you can find out more about the Winter Fuel Payment on GOV.UK.
Make budgeting easier by spreading your bills across the year.
We’ll work out your monthly payment and let you choose which day of the month we debit your account.
To set up a direct debit for your account, you will need to contact
us for a budget account facility.
This only takes a few minutes to do over the phone, and you can reach us on:
0800 574 574
You might be able to get a fuel voucher. This is a code given to you in a letter or in a text message or email. You can use it to add credit to your gas card or electricity key. If you don’t have one of these, contact your supplier to get one.
Your local council might be able to help you get a fuel voucher –
find your local council on GOV.UK. If you’re still not sure if you can get a voucher, get help from a Citizen’s Advice adviser.
You can use a fuel voucher at:
a shop signed up to PayPoint – find a shop near you on the PayPoint website.To use your voucher you’ll need to take:
the code and instructionsYou must use your fuel voucher within 3 months after you get it.
If you have problems using your voucher, contact the organisation that gave it to you – you should be able to find their contact information on the instructions.
You might be able to get a fuel voucher if you:
rely on oil, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), coal or wood as your main source of heatingYou’ll need to show that you can’t heat your home because you can’t afford to buy fuel – or you might not be able to afford it soon.
Talk to a Citizen’s Advice adviser if you need a voucher. Your local Citizens Advice will need to apply for you.
Households can get the £25 each time the average temperature in their area is, or forecast to be, 0 C or below for seven consecutive days, between November 1 and March 31 under the Cold Winter Payment.
You’ll only be eligible for a Cold Weather Payment if you already get:
Pension CreditIf you’re eligible, you’ll get paid automatically.
Find out more about Cold Weather Payments on GOV.UK.
Those living in Scotland can’t get the payment, but might be applicable for a
£58.75 Winter Heating Payment, given regardless of the weather conditions. Eligibility is the same as the Cold Weather Payment, and the qualifying week is November 6 and 12. Payments are made in February and March.
Only in Scotland, the Child Winter Heating Payment is a £251.50 grant for families of children and young people up to the age of 19 who receive qualifying benefits.
The benefits they must receive to be eligible include the highest rate of Child Disability Payment or Disability Living Allowance for Children and the enhanced rate of the daily living Personal Independence Payment or daily living Adult Disability Payment.
Families should receive a letter confirming they are entitled along with the money in their bank or building society accounts. The payment is per child, not per household – so families could receive more than one payment.
If you’re in debt to your energy supplier, you might be able to get a grant to help pay it off.
The following energy suppliers offer grants to their customers:
British Gas Energy Support Fund – apply for a grant on the British Gas Energy Trust website.
Scottish Power Hardship Fund – apply for a grant on the Scottish Power Hardship Fund website.
Ovo Energy Fund – apply for a grant on the Ovo Energy Fund website.
E.ON Energy Fund – apply for a grant on the E.ON Energy Fund website.
E.ON Next Energy Fund – apply for a grant on the E.ON Next Energy Fund website.
EDF Energy Customer Support Fund – sign up to the priority services register to apply for a grant on the EDF Energy website.
Bulb Energy Fund – apply for a grant on the Bulb Energy Fund website.
Octopus ‘Octo Assist Fund’ – apply for a grant on the Octopus website.
If you can’t get a grant from your supplier, you might be able to get a grant from the British Gas Energy Trust. These grants are available to anyone – you don’t have to be a British Gas customer. You’ll need to get debt advice before applying – get help from a debt adviser.
If you’ve already spoken to a debt adviser – check if you can get a grant from the British Gas Energy Trust.
Before you apply
When you apply for a grant, you’ll have to provide detailed information about your financial situation in your application. It could take a while to complete, and it might be worth getting help from a friend or family member. You can also talk to a Citizen’s Advice adviser for help filling in forms.
It’s worth checking on the trust or fund website if there’s anything else you need to do before you apply.
For example, if your supplier is E.ON, E.ON Next or EDF you’ll need to show you’ve completed a budget sheet with a Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) approved adviser. To do this:
Find an adviser using the debt advice locator on the Money Helper website.
Check if the adviser or their firm is on the FCA register.
Contact the adviser to arrange a conversation where you’ll complete a budget sheet.
You can get ready for your conversation by using the Budget Planner on the Money Helper website.
Check if you can get a local energy grant on the Simple Energy Advice website.
You might also be able to find grants or schemes run by your local council.
Find your local council on GOV.UK.
You might be able to get extra help and support from your mains energy supplier by signing up to the Priority Services Register. You can sign up for a number of reasons - including if you’ve reached state pension age, you’re disabled or sick, if you have children under the age of five or if your energy network considers you ‘vulnerable’. The PSR is a free UK wide service which provides extra advice and support, including when there’s an interruption to your electricity, gas or water supply.
Your energy supplier can help you with things like:
reading your energy meter
moving your energy meter free of charge
Upgrading to a smart meter to help manage costs
getting your bills sent or copied to someone else – for example, a carer
You can get £150 back from the council to help pay your energy bills – this is called a ‘rebate’.
You’ll get the rebate if you pay council tax and your home is in council tax bands A to D. You can find your band on your council tax bill or check your council tax band on GOV.UK.
You’ll only get the rebate if you’re the person who has to pay council tax for your household. Only one person per household will get the rebate.
You’ll get the rebate even if you:
If you get benefits, the rebate won’t affect them.
If you can’t get the rebate, the council might still offer you financial help. For example, they might help you if you’re in council tax bands E to H and you get certain benefits. Contact your local council to see if they can help you – find your local council on GOV.UK.
How you’ll get the rebate
If you set up a direct debit to pay your council tax before the end of March 2022, your council should pay you automatically. Local councils will start to make the payments directly into bank accounts in April 2022.
If you don’t pay by direct debit or didn’t set up a direct debit before the end of March 2022, you should still get a rebate.
Your local council will contact you – they’ll probably ask you to complete an online form.
After you’ve given the council your details, they’ll make the payment as soon as possible.
If you don’t hear from your council, contact them to check how you can claim the rebate. You should contact them before 30 September 2022 when the scheme closes. Find your local council on GOV.UK.
If your bank account is overdrawn
You can ask your bank to use this £150 rebate to pay your energy bills instead of paying off your overdraft. This is known as ‘exercising your first right of appropriation’. You can check how to exercise your first right of appropriation on National Debtline.
Find out more about the rebate here https://www.gov.uk/guidance/council-tax-rebate-factsheet
If you’re struggling with money, there are things you can do to save on your regular living costs. Check what to do if you need help with living costs.
If you’re finding it hard to pay your bills, you can get help. Find out more about getting help with your bills.
You can also get help with debts.
If you’re struggling to pay for food, find out how to get help from a food bank.
Contact the Citizens Advice consumer helpline
If you need more help – a trained adviser can give you advice over the phone or by email.