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Simon Meechan

DWP stats show how many Cost of Living Payments have been paid

At least 99% of those eligible for the second instalment of the £650 Cost of Living Payment have received the £324, according to DWP statistics.

Figures released by the DWP today show how many of the payments for households on low-income benefits have been processed.

They show 8.3 million have had their second payment. The DWP said that by November 14, 99% of those "initially eligible" for the £324 winter half of the £650 payment have had theirs processed. There may be some waiting, whose benefit claims are being checked or backdated.

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Households in receipt of Universal Credit, Income-based Jobseekers Allowance, Income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Income Support, Working Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit and Pension Credit can qualify for the payments.

The first instalment of £326 was sent in July, followed by £324 in November. Those who qualify through Tax Credits only were paid in September and later in November.

The DWP figures released today show how many payments have been made

How many have had the first Cost of Living Payment (£326)

As of September 8, 2022, 8,400,000 £326 Cost of Living Payments had been processed.

Of those, 7,200,000 were processed by the DWP for benefit claimants. The remaining 1,200,000 were processed by HMRC for Tax Credit claimants.

The number of payments is rounded to nearest 100,000.

How many have had the second Cost of Living Payment (£324)

As of December 12, 2022, 8,300,000 payments of £324 have been processed. The DWP processed 7,300,000 of those claims, with HMRC processing 1,000,000.

The number of payments is rounded to nearest 100,000.

The DWP says at least 99% had their second payment in November. Some may still be waiting on payments as their original benefit claim date could have been later than required to trigger the automatic payments.

The DWP adds: "Not all payments will be made immediately. For some of the qualifying benefits, entitlement may not have been established at the time the payments are made. If an entitlement that would qualify for a payment is later established to have existed, a payment will then be issued at that time."

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