More than 30 of Britain’s largest housing associations have called on ministers to give a second chance to 750,000 households that missed out on government support for energy bills worth a total of £300m.
In a letter to ministers, seen by the Guardian, 34 housing associations called for the government to reopen a scheme that aimed to offer support payments of £400 to almost one million households without an energy supplier.
Most homes in Britain received the support payment automatically via a discount on their energy bills, but people living in places such as care homes, narrowboats and park homes failed to receive it because they do not pay bills directly to an energy supplier.
The housing associations, which provide homes to a total of 1.5 million people, warned that only 16% of eligible households made their claim before the 31 May deadline. They have called for a new deadline of 31 December.
The letter to Amanda Solloway MP, the minister for energy consumers, and Lord Callanan, the minister for energy efficiency, was signed by housing associations including Clarion, Places for People, L&Q, Peabody and Riverside.
Riverside commissioned an independent survey of its customers last year which found that almost two-thirds were struggling to pay their energy bills, and almost a third were relying on the £400 government support payment to cope with rising energy costs.
The government has closed its energy bill support scheme, which was offered to all households, in favour of a set of targeted schemes aimed at helping the most vulnerable in society. This includes a £900 payment for those on means-tested benefits, £300 for pensioners, and an extra £150 for disabled people.
However, an estimated 1.7m households are expected to miss out on the support available because they are not registered for benefits, according to a study by researchers at the University of York. The letter also called on ministers to ensure that eligible customers who use home heating from a heat network are able to access payments through the government’s Warm Home Discount.
The scheme offers an automatic one-off discount of £150 on winter energy bills for households that receive pension benefits or have a low income and high energy costs – meaning that households which do not pay an energy bill directly to a supplier are at risk of missing out.
The letter urged the government to work with the industry regulator, Ofgem, and energy suppliers to “protect hundreds of thousands of people this winter by extending support to those who need it most”.
A government spokesperson said the outlook for energy prices had improved significantly since the autumn statement, “which is good news for households, who have seen their energy bills come down”.
Thespokesman added: “The government continues to monitor the situation and will keep options under review, including with respect to the most vulnerable households.”
