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Liverpool Echo

Business

Tom Blackburn & Kate Lally

Warm Home Discount 2022: Who is eligible and how much you can claim

Millions of households are struggling to heat their homes amid soaring energy bills and the worsening cost of living crisis.

While the Government has capped the average household energy bill at £2,500 a year, this is not an absolute limit and you may pay more than this depending on how much energy you consume. Bills are still around twice as expensive as they were this time last year.

The Government is rolling out a series of targeted cost of living payments, but these will only cover part of the increase - and some groups are particularly vulnerable as the winter months roll in.

There are some other schemes offering help to low-income households, one of which is the Warm Home Discount.

The Warm Home Discount is a scheme that offers eligible households £150 off their winter energy bill. It is intended to help low-income households cover their heating costs. Last year, over 2.2 million households received the discount, which was then £140, Birmingham Live reports.

Who is entitled to the Warm Home Discount?

If you get the guarantee credit element of Pension Credit, you will get the Warm Home Discount provided your energy firm is part of the scheme and your name - or that of your partner - is on the energy bill.

People on a low income who receive some DWP benefits - including Universal Credit - may also qualify. The full list of benefits is given below. Those who who receive the guarantee credit element of Pension Credit will continue to receive the payment automatically - but now other eligible benefit claimants will also get it without needing to make a claim as they had to in the past.

The benefits that will qualify automatically for the Warm Homes Discount are:

Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit
Savings Credit element of Pension Credit
Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA)
Income Support
Housing Benefit
Universal Credit
Child Tax Credits
Working Tax Credits

Not everyone on those state pay-outs will get the discount. Only households in receipt of one of these benefits who also have high energy costs would be eligible. The Government says it will work with suppliers to match data and identify eligible households.

The Government is also making fundamental reforms to the scheme so that those low-income households most likely to be living in homes that are expensive to heat will receive the rebate. The changes do mean those on some benefits could be excluded. These are:

Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
Personal Independence Payments (PIP)
Attendance Allowance

This is because people on DLA and PIP are on an average income of around £14,434, the Government says. That's higher than the £13,533 upper limit for fuel poverty.

Research found 62 per cent of people on DLA and PIP also receive one of the qualifying benefits and have low income and high energy use so, on those grounds, they will still get the Warm Homes Discount. Others on DLA and PIP will no longer be eligible, meaning 280,000 people missing out, according to Government documents.

How is the Warm Home Discount paid?

The discount is issued in the form of a one-off amount knocked off electricity bills between October and March. People on pre-pay or pay-as-you-go meters are also eligible. Government guidance says the scheme will reopen for this winter in November 2022. Those who automatically qualify usually receive a letter between October and December telling them how they'll get the discount.

If your energy firm supplies you with both gas and electricity, you may be able to get the discount applied to your gas bill instead. The Warm Home Discount does not affect other schemes such as the £400 energy rebate, Winter Fuel Payment or cold weather payment.