What are winter fuel payments?
Winter fuel payments are a state benefit for pensioners that are designed to help with their heating bills. They were introduced in 1997 by the last Labour government and have been available to everyone in the UK (and some countries beyond) who has reached state pension age.
Payments are worth between £100 and £300 – tax-free – with the basic rate paid automatically to anyone claiming the state pension. The higher sums are available to those who get other benefits, such as pension credit.
The payment is made annually each winter. In the winter of 2022-23 there were payments to 11.4 million pensioners in 8.4m households. That year and in the winter of 2023-24 there were extra cost of living payments made to the poorest pensioner households – for some this increased the payment to £600.
How is it changing?
Rachel Reeves, the Labour Chancellor, has announced that the payment will no longer be universal in England and Wales, and that only pensioners on means-tested benefits will qualify for it this winter.Â
Reeves said the government would continue to provide winter fuel payments worth £200 to households receiving pension credit or £300 to households in receipt of pension credit with someone over the age of 80.
Who will qualify this winter?
The payments will be targeted at households where there is someone who is over state pension age and receives one of the following benefits:
- Pension credit
- Universal credit
- Income support
- Income-based jobseeker’s allowance
- Income-related employment and support allowance
The basic payment will be £200, and households with someone aged over 80 will get £300.
How do I make sure I get the payment?
The only way to get the winter fuel payment is by qualifying for one of the above, so check if you do. The website Entitledto.co.uk has a benefits calculator that will tell you if there is anything you should be claiming.
The key is likely to be pension credit – about 800,000 people are missing out on payments they are due.
How to make a claim
You can check your eligibility for pension credit via the government’s online calculator, external.
Information is also available on how to make a claim, external. There is also a phone line available on weekdays – 0800 99 1234.
Guide to benefits, when you qualify and what to do if something goes wrong, are provided by the independent MoneyHelper website, external, backed by government.
Benefits calculators are also run by Policy in Practice, external, and charities Entitledto, external, and Turn2us, external.
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