Prime Minister Andy Burnham has confirmed which UK households will not automatically receive the £100 energy payment announced in the Autumn Budget and will instead need to apply for it.
The new £100 Household Energy Payment, set out in Wednesday's Budget, is intended to ease rising energy costs. Up to 20 million households in England are expected to be eligible, including an estimated 83% of fuel-stressed households and 88% of households in the bottom three income deciles.
Who gets the payment automatically
Payments are due to roll out from January. Households qualify if they are liable for council tax on, and live in, a property in Council Tax bands A to D as their main home.
Mr Burnham has confirmed that households paying by direct debit in qualifying bands will receive the £100 automatically and do not need to take any action.
Applying through your council
Households that do not pay by direct debit will need to ask their local council for the payment. Councils will invite eligible households to apply directly, and the Government has confirmed no one other than councils should contact residents asking them to claim the rebate.
In a Facebook post, Mr Burnham said: "If you're looking for answers on our £100 energy bill payment, read this. If your home is in council tax bands A-D, we're giving you £100 to help with your energy bills this winter. If you pay by direct debit, your council will invite you to apply directly. I know this won't fix everything, but I want to do everything I can to help."
Households claiming the payment should only provide personal information if they are certain it is their local council contacting them. Anyone unsure whether a message is genuine should check with their council. Information on eligibility and how to apply will be published on local council websites once arrangements are in place.
Devolved administrations and additional measures
The Chancellor said in the Budget that additional funding would be given to devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, with their governments deciding how best to provide it. He called on them to "do the same and give people of all nations in the UK breathing space on their energy bills this winter".
Speaking during his Budget speech, Mr Healey said: "Let me say this to families at home. I know that with the conflict in the Middle East, rising energy bills are a real worry. I know that people look to Government at times like this, not to solve all their problems, but to give them a bit of breathing space.
"So today I'm taking one further step. This winter, for 20 million households in council tax bands A to D, I am announcing a £100 energy payment for households, paid directly into people's bank accounts to deal with rising energy bills. That's a £2.6 billion scheme to take the pressure off in the coldest months and see people through to the spring."
The £100 payment comes alongside plans to scrap standing charges on gas bills for around 23 million homes and an extension of the previously announced VAT cut on electricity bills until July 2027, all announced in the Autumn Budget.
