[DLC]

So got a letter November… Stating I will receive the £150 automatic home discount… I’m on pre-payment old one not smart!!!
as you know Iv not received my £67 December voucher yet!!!!!
so what hope have I got In getting this discount before March as your supposed to!!!!!!
also will this be in voucher form also..???
if so they really need to have a back up plan like send by email…. As the first option doesn’t work does it people……………
wint hold my breath… I just bloody freeze and buy a torch.

[retrotecchie]

@DLC

You had the letter from the DWP saying you are eligible on the benefits side of things. That's all. Unless you get Pension Credit in which case you get the payment no matter what, for any other group, your home will need to qualify on the grounds of High Heating Cost. That part which is assessed by the Valuation Office Agency is still going through the system.

Once both the boxes are ticked and you qualify, your energy supplier will send you a voucher if you are a traditional prepay customer.

The spiel from gov.uk says :

If you’re on a low income

If you do not get the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit, you may still be eligible for the Warm Home Discount.

If you live in England and Wales

You may be eligible if on 21 August 2022 all of the following apply:

• your energy supplier is part of the scheme
• you (or your partner) get certain means-tested benefits or tax credits
• your property has a high energy cost score based on its characteristics
• your name (or your partner’s) is on the bill

This is known as being in the ‘core group 2’.

Qualifying benefits and tax credits

The qualifying means-tested benefits are:

• Housing Benefit
• income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income Support
• the ‘Savings Credit’ part of Pension Credit
• Universal Credit

You could also qualify if your household income falls below a certain threshold and you get either:

• Child Tax Credit
• Working Tax Credit

Check if you’re eligible for the discount online.

How to get the discount

You’ll receive a letter between November 2022 and January 2023 telling you about the discount if you’re eligible.
Most eligible households will receive an automatic discount. Your letter will say if you need to call a helpline by 28 February 2023 to confirm your details.

[DLC]

I am eligible…. For the discount

[retrotecchie]

@DLC

In which case if you are eligible and you qualify, you will get a voucher sent to you by the end of March.

[Tracy]

I can understand where dlc is coming from before you saw that you had been excepted Wen you applied online not everyone gets the new way and it's like a waiting game for the actual voucher to come threw door with so many ups and downs this year and late letters I get it can be frustrating and confusing to many we have to understand everyone thinks differently but yes you will get it eventually hopefully very soon

[gbhxu]

Originally Posted by Tracy

I can understand where dlc is coming from before you saw that you had been excepted Wen you applied online not everyone gets the new way and it's like a waiting game for the actual voucher to come threw door with so many ups and downs this year and late letters I get it can be frustrating and confusing to many we have to understand everyone thinks differently but yes you will get it eventually hopefully very soon

There are a couple of flaws with the system.

1) How does The Government know which supplier you are with?
With all the different suppliers it's not like it was before privatisation when your location dictated which supplier you were with.

2) We really need the payment during the winter due to EON Next billing monthly rather than quarterly.
Payment should have been made in November when letters were sent to those of us that qualified. Spring is not when we need paying it's in winter while we are using the extra energy.

As for the Alternative Fuel Payment, this also needs to be paid before winter

[retrotecchie]

@gbhxu

1. The government accesses the Meter Point Administration Number database held by UK Energy Networks. This lists every meter in the UK, along with the associated DNO and supplier registered to the MPAN.

2. It's not a payment, it's a supplier-applied discount. Not actual cash coming from the government. Paid for by the increase in everyone's standing charges to the tune of £20 a year. Unless you get the Guaranteed Credit Element of Pension Credit, which is the only AUTOMATIC way of getting the discount, you are in the 'Broader group' who also need to qualify by having a High heat cost home. Just because the DWP say you are eligible on the grounds of benefits does not guarantee that you will get the discount unless the VOA also verify you have a qualifying property. It's complicated, but that's how it is. If you live in a modern, well insulated home on mains gas, you likely won't qualify on the High heat cost, so may not get the discount. On the other hand, if you live off the gas grid in a 19c 'stone and slate' with solid walls and no damp proof course, it is likely you will.

The AFP is a completely unrelated issue. A one off. Too late to pay for the last lot of oil/coal/Calor that you may have already bought but if the AFP didn't exist you would have had to pay for your order anyway. Now this IS a taxpayer funded payment, in actual cash money, so when you think you ought to get it is a matter for debate, but it's up to HMG. It'll be in the pot by the time I next need to order oil, hopefully. They have said first week of Feb, alongside the Feb EBSS payment.

By the way anyone living in Wales on any kind of benefit, means tested or otherwise, don't forget to apply to your local authority before 28/2/23 for your Winter Fuel Assistance if you haven't already done so. I only realised I was eligible today when the council phoned me up and asked why I hadn't applied yet. £200 cash in the bank is not to be sniffed at. An hour after I applied, I had the text confirming this will be credited to my bank account within ten working days. You must be the lead name on your council tax bill and you must be responsible for your energy bills at your property, and only one application per household.

[gbhxu]

Originally Posted by retrotecchie

@gbhxu

1. The government accesses the Meter Point Administration Number database held by UK Energy Networks. This lists every meter in the UK, along with the associated DNO and supplier registered to the MPAN.

2. It's not a payment, it's a supplier-applied discount. Not actual cash coming from the government. Paid for by the increase in everyone's standing charges to the tune of £20 a year. Unless you get the Guaranteed Credit Element of Pension Credit, which is the only AUTOMATIC way of getting the discount, you are in the 'Broader group' who also need to qualify by having a High heat cost home. Just because the DWP say you are eligible on the grounds of benefits does not guarantee that you will get the discount unless the VOA also verify you have a qualifying property. It's complicated, but that's how it is. If you live in a modern, well insulated home on mains gas, you likely won't qualify on the High heat cost, so may not get the discount. On the other hand, if you live off the gas grid in a 19c 'stone and slate' with solid walls and no damp proof course, it is likely you will.

I live in a 1938 ex-council house, in receipt of Income related ESA and house EPC E rated.

I think you've solved the payment method in a back-handed way.

Just scrap the standing charge for those of us entitled to WHD.

[meldrewreborn]

@gbhxu

the policy is led by the government not your energy supplier. You need to address your proposal to your MP but the new system is likely to last some years.

[gbhxu]

Any updates?

I know that the following companies have paid those with the Letter Type WHDS3

Octopus
Utility Warehouse
Ovo

Both Ovo and Utility Warehouse paid WHD before those entitled to it received their letters!

I wouldn't be complaining but it boils down to Eon Next billing monthly rather than quarterly. March would have been the first bill of the year.

The payment is supposed to help keep us warm during the Winter and not the Spring