Struggling with energy bills? All the help you can claim
If energy bills are a struggle, there’s more help available than most people claim — some automatic, some you have to ask for, and some sitting in hardship funds that go under-used because nobody’s heard of them. Here’s the full list for 2026/27, with who qualifies and how to get it.
Warm Home Discount: £150, mostly automatic
The Warm Home Discount takes £150 off your electricity bill (or gives prepayment users a voucher) once a winter, in England, Wales and Scotland. It closed for last winter and reopens in October 2026 — and it’s now bigger than many older articles suggest: since 2025 it covers households on the Guarantee Credit part of Pension Credit and most households on means-tested benefits (Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, income-related ESA, income-based JSA, Income Support, Pension Credit Savings Credit). The old “high cost to heat” test was scrapped, and the scheme has been extended for five years, to 2030/31.
In England and Wales it’s almost entirely automatic — government data-matching finds you and your supplier applies the discount; a letter confirms it. In Scotland, the Pension Credit route is automatic but other low-income households need to apply directly to their supplier, whose own criteria apply — so ask early, funds are limited.
Winter Fuel Payment: £100–£300 for pensioners, with a catch
If you were born on or before 27 June 1960 and live in England, Wales or Northern Ireland during the qualifying week of 21–27 September 2026, you’ll normally get a Winter Fuel Payment of between £100 and £300, paid automatically in November or December. (Scotland has its own equivalent, the Pension Age Winter Heating Payment.)
The catch introduced in 2025 still applies: if your individual taxable income is over £35,000, HMRC claws the payment back through your tax code or tax return. Your partner’s income doesn’t count. If you’d rather not receive it at all, there’s an opt-out — the window for 2026/27 opened in April.
Cold Weather Payments run alongside: £25 for each seven-day spell of freezing weather between 1 November and 31 March if you’re on certain benefits. Automatic, nothing to claim.
The Priority Services Register: free protection, five minutes
The PSR is a free register for people who need extra care from their energy company: state pension age, disabled or chronically ill (including mental health conditions), pregnant or with very young children, or temporarily vulnerable after a bereavement, injury or job loss.
Being on it gets you priority support and advance notice in power cuts, help reading meters, accessible bills, a password scheme against doorstep scams, and — importantly — protection around prepayment meters. Register with your supplier and your network operator, and again if you switch. There is no downside; if anyone in your home fits the list, do it today.
In debt to your supplier? Know your three rights
One: an affordable payment plan. Ofgem’s rules require your supplier to offer a repayment plan that takes account of your ability to pay — your actual income and outgoings, not a number that suits them. Phone, explain, and if the offer isn’t affordable, say so and ask them to recalculate.
Two: protection from forced prepayment meters. Suppliers can’t force a prepayment meter on homes that need continuous power for medical equipment, where someone is 75+ without support, or with a child under two, among other protections — and they owe you £30 compensation per meter if rules are broken during an involuntary installation.
Three: benefit deductions if you want them. “Fuel Direct” pays debts straight from certain benefits at a manageable fixed rate (£4.80 a week per debt on most benefits). It can be steadier than juggling top-ups — and you can stop the ongoing-usage part whenever you like.
If debts have piled up beyond energy, Breathing Space (England and Wales) freezes enforcement, interest and creditor contact for up to 60 days while a debt adviser helps you sort a plan. Access is through a free debt adviser — MoneyHelper lists them.
Hardship funds: the £1,700 nobody applies for
The British Gas Energy Trust is a charity that clears energy debts of up to £1,700 — and its main fund is open to customers of any supplier in England, Scotland and Wales. Broadly: energy debt between £50 and £1,700, household income under about £20,300 (or a disabled person in the household), and you must have had money advice in the past six months — which the free advice services above provide. Apply at bget.org.uk with proof of income and a meter reading.
Several other suppliers run their own hardship funds for their customers (Octopus, EDF and E.ON among them) — if you’re with one, ask directly; we haven’t verified each fund’s current status, so treat “ask your supplier” as the reliable route.
Do these in order
Claim the automatic money first (Warm Home Discount, Winter Fuel and Cold Weather Payments happen to you, not by you — just make sure you’re on the qualifying benefit if you’re entitled to it, especially Pension Credit, which unlocks several of these). Then the PSR. Then, if there’s debt, the payment plan and the Trust. And in parallel, cut the bill itself: our guides to cutting your energy bill and free insulation grants cover the other half of the problem.
Sources
- gov.uk — The Warm Home Discount Scheme
- gov.uk — Winter Fuel Payment
- gov.uk — Cold Weather Payment
- Ofgem — Join your supplier's Priority Services Register
- Ofgem — Prepayment meters: consumer guidance
- British Gas Energy Trust — Grants available
- Citizens Advice — Struggling to pay your energy bills
- gov.uk — Breathing Space (debt respite)
Just so you know: this guide is information and journalism, not financial advice, and we don't recommend specific financial products. Your circumstances are your own — if you need personal advice, speak to a suitably qualified adviser. Information was correct at the "last updated" date above but things change; always check the linked primary sources.