Millions of pension-age Britons are due to receive more than £600 in one-off payments from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) before the end of next month.
The support is made up of several benefits offered by the Government during winter to help with rising living costs.
From Winter Fuel Payments and the Warm Home Discount to the DWP‘s Christmas Bonus, people need to be aware of the support available to ensure they watch out for it and receive it.
Warm Home Discount – £150 paid to energy supplier
People can get £150 off electricity bills between October 2023 and March 2024, and there are two ways to qualify.
To be eligible, people must either receive the Guaranteed Credit element of Pension Credit or be on a low income and meet their energy supplier’s criteria for the scheme.
Those who qualify for the scheme in England and Wales will have received a letter from October onward explaining the discount and instructions on what they need to do next, while customers in Scotland need to apply directly with their energy supplier as soon as possible.
For the full list of qualifying benefits in England, Wales and Scotland, click here, and the full list of qualifying energy providers can be found here.
Eligible people will receive a letter by early January 2024. Those who don’t get a letter and think they may be eligible are advised to contact the Warm Home Discount Scheme before February 29, 2024.
Winter Fuel Payment – up to £600
Winter Fuel Payments are distributed by the DWP and aim to help elderly people with energy bills. The amount a person gets is based on when they were born and their circumstances between September 18 to September 24, 2023.
This is referred to as the ‘qualifying week’. Eligible pensioners usually receive between £100 to £300. However, this year’s amount includes the Pensioner Cost of Living Payment, which raises the figure for potential payments to range from £250 to £600 instead.
People can be eligible if they were born before September 25, 1957, and most payments will be made automatically.
They usually need to live in the UK, but in some circumstances, people can be entitled to the benefit if they live abroad. People can also be eligible for the payment if they live in a care home, provided that both of the following do not apply:
- They get Pension Credit, Income Support, income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) or income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- They lived in a care home for the whole time from June 26 to September 24, 2023.
People will also not be eligible for the Winter Fuel Payment if:
- They have been in hospital getting free treatment for more than a year
- They need permission to enter the UK and their granted leave says they cannot claim public funds
- They were in prison for the whole of the week of September 18 to September 24, 2023.
Those who do not receive a payment by January 26, 2024, are advised to contact the Winter Fuel Payment Centre. People can see the full list of payment rates here.
Winter Heating Payment (Scotland only) – £55.05
The Winter Heating Payment is worth £55.05 and is only available in Scotland. Older people may be eligible for the payment if they received any of these benefits during the qualifying week of November 6 to November 12, although there are some exceptions.
The eligible benefits include:
- Pension Credit
- Universal Credit
- Income Support
- Income-based Jobseekers Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- Support for Mortgage Interest.
Payments for this winter will begin in the middle of December. Social Security Scotland expects to pay the majority of eligible people by the end of January 2024.
People will receive a letter from Social Security Scotland before they make the payment. The reference code people should look out for on their bank statements will include WHP.
People can see the full eligibility rules, as well as contact details for Social Security Scotland here.
DWP Christmas Bonus – £10
The Christmas Bonus is a one-off tax-free £10 payment made before Christmas to people who receive certain DWP benefits in a specified qualifying week. This year, the qualifying week was December 4 to December 10.
People do not need to claim the bonus, it will arrive automatically in the bank accounts of those eligible.
To get a Christmas Bonus people must be present or “ordinarily resident” in the UK, Channel Islands, Isle of Man or Gibraltar during the qualifying week.
Qualifying benefits include:
- Adult Disability Payment
- Armed Forces Independence Payment
- Attendance Allowance
- Carer’s Allowance
- Child Disability Payment
- Constant Attendance Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
- Contribution-based Employment and Support Allowance (once the main phase of the benefit is entered after the first 13 weeks of claim)
- Disability Living Allowance
- Incapacity Benefit at the long-term rate
- Industrial Death Benefit (for widows or widowers)
- Mobility Supplement
- Pension Credit – the guarantee element
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
- State Pension (including Graduated Retirement Benefit)
- Severe Disablement Allowance (transitionally protected)
- Unemployability Supplement or Allowance (paid under Industrial Injuries or War Pensions schemes)
- War Disablement Pension at State Pension age
- War Widow’s Pension
- Widowed Mother’s Allowance
- Widowed Parent’s Allowance
- Widow’s Pension.
To find out more about the payment rules, people can click here.