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SEVEN Department for Work and Pensions benefits will qualify you for a free £150 winter payment this year. The Warm Home Discount was first introduced by the Government and Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) in April 2011 to help eligible customers in England, Scotland and Wales with their energy bills during the winter.
The qualifying means-tested benefits include:Income related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA),Income based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA),Income Support andUniversal Credit, as well asHousing benefit,Child Tax Credits and Working Tax Credits andPension Credit Savings Credit (PCSC).
The discount will be added to your electricity account as a credit. And if you’re on Pay as you go, we’ll send you a voucher you can use to top up your meter at a Post Office. British Gas, one of the participating suppliers, said: “If you’re one of our Pay As You Go smart meter customers, we’ll even send it directly to your meter as a credit and send you an email to let you know it’s on there. If we can’t get it directly to your meter as quickly as we’d like, we’ll send you a voucher to top up from a Post Office. That way you’ll still get your discount as soon as possible.
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“With a Pay as you go smart meter it’s easier to see how much energy you use in pounds and pence and you can top up from wherever you like, whenever you like.” The eligibility requirements for the Warm Home Discount are the same as last year.
To qualify, you need to claim either the Guarantee Credit portion of Pension Credit or a different ‘qualifying benefit.’ The Government will make an assessment of your energy costs based on the property you live in. In England and Wales the Government will write to you to confirm if you are eligible.
In Scotland, if you receive the Guarantee Credit portion of Pension Credits, the Government will write to you and you don’t need to apply.
