There is different support available depending on your circumstances and who lives in your household.

You don't need to apply for this help  - it will be paid automatically if you are entitled to it.

• Money off your energy bill this winter
• Help if you are getting a benefit because your income and savings are low
• Help for disabled people
• Help for pensioners

£400 off energy bills

Everyone in England, Scotland and Wales who pays a domestic electricity bill will get £400 off their bill this winter.

You do not need to apply for this - it will be applied to your energy account automatically.

You will not need to pay the money back.

If you have a prepayment meter (a key meter) you will still get paid this support. Contact your energy company for details.

If you pay your energy bill in with your rent to your landlord, you need to apply online for energy bill support. 

£600 for people in Northern Ireland

All households in Northern Ireland will get £600 as a lump sum payment to help with energy costs.

This will be paid through your energy supplier.

It will usually be paid automatically. 

You need to apply online if you pay for energy through your landlord, or live in a park home, houseboat or off the electricity grid. 

£400 for people in park homes and care homes

People in England, Scotland and Wales who live in park homes, care homes, or who pay their home energy bill to a commercial supplier didn't get the same help everyone else got.

The government has recognised this and is setting up a scheme to help.

These households will get £400.

The money will be paid through local authorities.

Applications are open and you can apply online for energy bill support. 

£200 extra for people for people who heat their homes with alternative fuels

People in England, Scotland and Wales who use alternative fuels to heat their homes will get an extra £200.

Alternative fuels include things like heating oil, LPG, coal, and biomass.

The extra help will be paid automatically through your electricity supplier in most cases. You won't need to apply for help.

If you don't have an electricity supplier you will need to apply for the help. 

Updated: February 2023

Cost of living payments during 2023/2024

The cost of living payment will be £900 paid in three instalments across the year:

• First instalment of £301 will be paid during Spring 2023.
• Second instalment of £300 will be paid during Autumn 2023.
• Third instalment of £299 will be paid during Spring 2024.

Eligibility criteria for £301 payment

You may be entitled if you get any of the following benefits or tax credits on certain dates:

• Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Income Support
• Pension Credit
• Universal Credit
• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit 

You are eligible for the first payment of £301, if:

• You were on Universal Credit and got a payment of any amount over 1p for an assessment period that ended between 26 January 2023 and 25 February 2023.
• You were on another qualifying benefit and you got any amount of payment of that benefit between 26 January 2023 and 25 February 2023. 
• This includes if you are later found to have had backdated entitlement during these days. 
• Pension credit can be backdated for three months. This means you have until late May to put in an application for Pension Credit and be entitled to a Cost of Living payment.

You'll not be eligible for the Cost of Living Payment if your benefit is reduced to £0 for the qualifying period, except if one of the following applies:

• Your entitlement reduced to £0 for other reasons, such as payments of rent to your landlord or for money that you owe.
• You had a hardship payment because you got a sanction and could not pay for rent, heating, food or hygiene needs. 

How do I claim it?

You do not need to claim it. It will be paid automatically if you’ve qualified for it. The payment will be made separately from your benefit payments.

When and how will it be paid?

It will be paid the same way you usually get your benefits paid.

The first payment of £301 will be paid between 25 April 2023 and 17 May 2023 for most people. If you get tax credits only and no other low income benefits, you’ll get your payment between 2 and 9 May 2023, if you're eligible. 

Payments of £300 and £229

We don't know exact payment dates and eligibility criteria for the second and third payments yet. They will be announced by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).

Report a missing £301 Cost of Living Payment 

The first payment £301 of Cost of Living Payment was paid between 25 April 2023 and 17 May 2023 for most people. 

If you think you should have received a payment and have not, you can report the missing payment online.

Cost of living payments for 2022

Below shows what was available to people during 2022.

What help was available for people on low incomes?

People who were claiming means-tested benefits received an extra payment of £650. 

Eligibility criteria for £650 payment

You were eligible for this support if you were receiving any of these benefits:

• Universal Credit, or
• Income-based Jobseeker's Allowance
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
• Income Support
• Pension Credit (Guarantee Credit or Savings Credit)
• Tax credits (working tax credit or child tax credit)

The money was paid in two instalments.

The first instalment was paid if: 

• You were on Universal Credit and got a payment of any amount over 1p for an assessment period that ended between 26 April and 25 May. You can check your payments and your assessment period dates on your online journal.
• You were on another qualifying benefit and you got any amount of payment of that benefit between 26 April and 25 May.
• This includes if you are later found to have had backdated entitlement during these dates.

The second instalment was paid if:

• You were on Universal Credit and were entitled to any amount of Universal Credit payment for an assessment period that ended between 26 August and 25 September 2022. You won't get any payment if you were awarded £0 of Universal Credit for your assessment period ending between these dates.
• You were getting income-based JSA, income-related ESA or Income Support during the period 26 August to 25 September 2022.
• You were getting Child Tax Credits or Working Tax Credits between 26 August 2022 and 25 September 2022.
• You were getting Pension Credit during the period 26 August to 25 September 2022. 

How much was it?

The £650 was split into two payments.

The first payment was for £326.

The second payment was for £324.

How do I claim it?

You did not need to claim it. It was paid automatically if you qualified for it.

When and how will it be paid?

It was paid the same way you usually get your benefits paid.

The first instalment has already been paid: 

• For people getting Pension Credit, Universal Credit, Income Support, income-related ESA or income-based JSA, it was paid between 14 July and the end of July 2022.
• For people getting Child or Working Tax Credits (and not getting Income Support, income-related ESA or income-based JSA) it was paid in autumn 2022.

The second instalment has already been paid:

• For people getting Pension Credit, Universal Credit, Income Support, income-related ESA or income-based JSA, it was paid between 8 and 23 November 2022
• For people getting Child or Working Tax Credits (and not getting Income Support, income-related ESA or income-based JSA), it was paid after 23 November 2022.

If you think you should have received a payment and have not, contact the office that pays your benefit. 

Updated: May 2023

Disability Cost of Living Payment 2023

Below is information about the Disability Cost of Living Payment in 2023.

What help is there for disabled people?

There is an extra £150 payment for disabled people for 2023/2024. 

Can I get the extra help for disabled people?

You can get the extra help if you get any of these benefits:

• Attendance Allowance, or
• Disability Living Allowance (for adults or for children), or
• Personal Independence Payment, or
• Adult Disability Payment (in Scotland), or
• Child Disability Payment (in Scotland), or
• Armed Forces Independence Payment, or
• Constant Attendance Allowance, or
• War Pension Mobility Supplement

You have to have been entitled to one of these benefits on 1 April 2023.

If you make your claim before 1 April 2023, but you only get a decision saying you're entitled to the benefit after 1 April 2023, you will still be able to get the extra money. 

How much extra help are disabled people getting?

They are getting an extra payment of £150.

This might be paid in addition to other help. 

If more than one person in your household gets disability benefits, you will get £150 for each person who qualifies.

For example: Jane lives with her son Ben, aged 9. Jane gets Personal Independence Payment and Ben gets Disability Living Allowance. The household will get a total of £300 extra help for disabled people. 

How do I apply for the extra help for disabled people?

You do not need to apply for the extra help. If you are entitled to it, it will be paid to you automatically.

When and how is the extra help being paid?

Most people will be paid the £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment automatically between 20 June 2023 and 4 July 2023.

Disability Cost of Living Payment 2022

Below is information about the Disability Cost of Living Payment in 2022.

What help is there for disabled people?

There was an extra £150 payment for disabled people for 2022. 

Can I get the extra help for disabled people?

You were eligible for this payment if you were getting any of these benefits:

• Attendance Allowance, or
• Disability Living Allowance (for adults or for children), or
• Personal Independence Payment, or
• Adult Disability Payment (in Scotland), or
• Child Disability Payment (in Scotland), or
• Armed Forces Independence Payment, or
• Constant Attendance Allowance, or
• War Pension Mobility Supplement

You were entitled to one of these benefits on 25 May 2022.

If you made your claim before 25 May 2022, but it was decided after 25 May 2022 that you were entitled to the benefit, you were still eligible to get the extra money. 

How much extra help are disabled people getting?

They were getting an extra payment of £150.

This might be paid in addition to other help. 

If more than one person in your household was eligible for disability benefits, you would get £150 for each person who qualified.

For example: Jane lives with her son Ben, aged 9. Jane gets Personal Independence Payment and Ben gets Disability Living Allowance. The household will get a total of £300 extra help for disabled people. 

How do I apply for the extra help for disabled people?

You did not need to apply for the extra help. If you were entitled to it, it was paid to you automatically.

2022 payment dates for the Disability Cost of Living Payment

Most people were paid the £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment between 20 September 2022 and the beginning of October 2022.

If you think you should have received a payment for 2022 and have not, contact the office that pays your benefit. 

Updated: May 2023

What extra help is available for people over 66?

For this winter (2022/23), the Winter Fuel Payment has been increased by £300.

For winter 2023/2024, the Winter Fuel Payment will be increased again by £300. This payment will be issued during winter 2023/2024.

Can I get the extra help for people over 66?

Anyone born on or before 25 September 1956 can get the extra help.

How much is the extra help for people over 66?

There is an extra £300 per household on top of the usual winter fuel payment.

If more than one person in your household is over 66, you will still only get one £300 extra payment.

How do I apply for the extra help for people over 66?

Most people will not need to apply for the extra help - it will be paid automatically alongside your Winter Fuel Payment.

Some people need to apply for Winter Fuel Payments.

When and how will the extra help for people over 66 be paid?

The extra help will be paid at the same time as your Winter Fuel Payment, from November 2022.

If you think you should have received a payment and have not, you can contact the Winter Fuel Payments helpline.

Updated: Jan 2023

Cost of living support 2023/2024

Below is a question and answer covering 2023/2024.

Will there be cost of living support for 2023/2024?

Yes. The government has announced the cost of living payment of £900 for 2023/2024. This will be paid in three instalments across the year. We don’t know exact payments dates and eligibility criteria yet. They will be announced by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP).  

Cost of living support for 2022

Below are questions and answers from 2022.

How do I tell if I was getting Universal Credit on the right date to qualify for the £650 payment?

The first instalment of the £650 payment was paid if you were getting Universal Credit in an assessment period that ended between 26 April and 25 May 2022.

The second instalment of the £650 payment was paid if you were getting Universal Credit in an assessment period that ended between 26 August and 25 September 2022.

You can view your Assessment Period dates by looking at your Universal Credit statements in your online journal.

For first instalment, you need to look for the statement where the assessment period ended after 26 April and before 25 May 2022. For second instalment, look for the assessment period ended after 26 August and before 25 September 2022. 

If that statement gave you entitlement to Universal Credit of any amount of money above £0, you were able to get the first or second or both instalments of the £650 payment.

Is it too late for me to qualify for the extra help?

It is not too late to qualify for the £400 off your energy bill.

It is not too late to qualify for the help for people in Northern Ireland, people who live in park homes, or people who heat their homes with alternative fuels.

I am entitled to several of these kinds of help - do I have to choose which I get?

No, you don't have to choose. 

You can get most of these kinds of help together.

For example, a disabled person over 66 living alone and getting Pension Credit and Attendance Allowance and paying an energy bill to an energy supplier received:

• £400 off her energy bill; and
• £150 off her energy bill from Warm Home Discount, and
• £300 extra payment for people over 66, and
• £500 Winter Fuel Payment, and
• £650 payment for people on the lowest incomes, and
• £150 payment for disabled people

The Northern Ireland £600 help with energy bills scheme is separate from the England, Scotland and Wales scheme for £400 off energy bills. You cannot get both of these.

There are several people living in my home with their own benefit claims, can we each get the payments?

The Disability Payments are paid per disabled person, so if multiple people in the property or household get disability benefits, then each of them is entitled to get the extra £150.

The £650 was paid per benefit household. For example, if someone lives with their adult son, or their friend, and each person has their own Universal Credit claim, each of them is entitled to get the £650 payment. If you live with a partner, you are only entitled one £650 payment for the two of you.

The £300 payment is paid per household that qualifies for Winter Fuel Payment. 

The £400 payment is paid as a discount on energy bills. It is only applied per energy bill, no matter how many people are named on the bill or live in the property.

I live on a park home. What help can I get?

If you are entitled to the help for people on low incomes, the help for disabled people, or the help for people over 66, you can get these.

Applications are closed now for the Warm Home Discount scheme for park home residents.

Is there any other help I can get as well as this? 

Warm Home Discount

• The government has made changes to the Warm Home Discount scheme for winter 2022/23. People in England and Wales no longer have to apply for the Warm Home Discount. People in Scotland should apply to their energy company for the Warm Home Discount scheme.
• Anyone getting guarantee pension credit will get an extra £150 off their energy bill. Pension credit is underclaimed. Lots of people are missing out on help they could be getting. If you are over 66, use our Benefits Calculator to check if you could get pension credit.
• Households getting Universal Credit, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, Income Support, income-based Jobseekers Allowance, Housing Benefit, Working Tax Credit, Child Tax Credit, or Savings pension Credit might also be able to get £150 off their energy bills. Your energy company will make an assessment to see if you have high energy needs. If you get the qualifying benefit and have high energy needs, you will get £150 off your energy bill automatically.
• Not all energy companies offer the Warm Home Discount.

Financial health check

Make sure you have checked out all the other help you can get to increase your income and reduce your spending. 

I'm struggling - is there anything I can access now? 

Councils have been given money to support people who are struggling. Contact your council to see what help they can offer.