HUNDREDS of households missing out on a winter fuel payment can apply for £200 to cover energy bills within weeks.
The help comes via the latest round of the Household Support Fund which is worth £421million.
The fund is designed to help hard-up households cover the cost of living, mostly through cash grants, supermarket and energy vouchers.
Each council across England has been allocated a share of the £421million pot and decides who to distribute money to.
North Devon Council has set aside £200,000 for pensioners receiving a council tax reduction but not pension credit.
The local authority said just under 1,000 pensioner households will receive £200 grants, the BBC reports.
Councillors in North Devon have expressed concern the roughly 1,000 who don’t qualify for pension credit could struggle to cover their energy bills this winter.
It comes after the Government changed the eligibility criteria for the winter fuel payment meaning only those on certain benefits, including pension credit, will receive the up to £300 payment.
We have asked North Devon Council how the £200 payments will be made, and when, and will update this story when we have heard back.
Eligible residents will be able to apply in the next few weeks via the council’s website.
What about if I don’t live in North Devon?
You should be able to get help via the Household Support Fund if you don’t live North Devon.
Each council across England has been allocated a share from the £421million pot.
But each local authority gets to decide its own eligibility criteria.
That means what you are entitled to will vary depending on where you live.
Not all councils have decided what they will do with their share of the £421million yet either.
The best thing to do is contact your local authority to see if any help is currently on offer.
You can find what council area you fall under by the using the Government’s council locator tool via gov.uk.
The Sun recently shared a guide and interactive map to help those unsure figure out what they may be able to claim.
Other help on offer
If you’re not eligible for the Household Support Fund, you might be able to get a grant from your energy firm to cover energy debt.
British Gas is handing out grants worth £1,700 to struggling households through its Individual and Families Fund.
The fund is available to British Gas and non-British Gas customers living in England, Scotland or Wales.
You won’t be eligible if you received a grant from the British Gas Energy Trust within the last two years.
And you must be seeking a grant to clear outstanding debt on a current or open gas, electricity or dual fuel energy account.
Crucially, you also need to have received help from a money advice agency within the last six months.
If you don’y qualify for help with British Gas, a number of other energy firms offer help to customers struggling with energy bill debt.
This includes OVO, Boost, E.On, E.On Next, EDF, Scottish Power, Octopus, Shell Energy, SSE and Utilita.
How has the Household Support Fund evolved?
The Household Support Fund was first launched in October 2021 to help Brits pay their way through winter amid the cost of living crisis.
Councils up and down the country got a slice of the £421million funding available to dish out to Brits in need.
It was then extended in the 2022 Spring Budget and for a second time in October 2022 to help those on the lowest incomes with the rising cost of living.
The DWP then confirmed a third extension of the scheme through to March 31, 2024.
Former chancellor Jeremy Hunt extended the HSF for the fourth time while delivering his Spring Budget on March 6, 2024.
In September 2024, the Government announced a fifth extension.
