The Government announced in July 2024 that, from this year onwards, to be eligible you must have reached State Pension age and also receive a qualifying means-tested benefit. If you worry about making payments on your home energy bills over the winter period, you should be aware of the benefits you may be entitled to if your live in the UK. Winter Fuel Payment is one such benefit that provides a huge amount of help to many people each year. Here, we are breaking down everything you need to know about this, including what it is, how much you could receive, how you access it, whether or not you are eligible, and a few reasons you may not be eligible. We will also cover when you are likely to receive payment, how to make a claim and how to challenge a decision.At Home Instead, our aim is to help people age positively and in place by bringing expert care to their home. For nearly 20 years, we have been providing the highest standard of domiciliary care, and creating industry-leading training programmes for our Care Professionals that are accredited by nursing and medical professionals. Today, we are the world’s largest global home care network, supporting over 100,000 older adults with personalised, tailored care at home. So whatever questions you have about whether or not benefits could help you access home care, we can help.
The Winter Fuel Payment is an annual, tax-free payment from the government for certain older adults living in the UK. It is designed to help them cover heating costs in winter, which are often higher than at any other point in the year. This payment was not previously means tested, but in July 2024 the Government announced that this would be means tested from 2024 onwards, and to be eligible you must have reached State Pension age and receive a qualifying means-tested benefit. For this reason, even if you previously received Winter Fuel Payments, you should read the following information to find out if you are still eligible.
You may be eligible for Winter Fuel Payment in winter of 2024/25 if:
You could receive between £200 and £300 to help pay your heating bills over winter if you were born before 23 September 1958; £200 for households where the oldest person is under 80 years old, and £300 for households with someone aged 80 years old or over. You can get this on top of other Cost of Living Payments you get with your benefit or tax credits, such as Cold Weather Payment and Warm Home Discount. Exactly how much you will receive depends on your age and several other factors, and it is important to note that these payments will go to the individual claiming the benefit, and are for the household.If you live in a care home, you could still be entitled to Winter Fuel Payment if you are eligible in age and the benefits you are receiving, according to the above criteria, or if you have lived in a care home for less than 13 weeks, including the week of 16 to 22 September 2024.
There are some circumstances in which you may not be entitled to Winter Fuel Payment, such as:
Many people wonder about how to make a claim for Winter Fuel Payment so they receive it in plenty of time before the temperatures start to drop. The qualifying week for this is usually the week beginning the third Monday in September, but you do not normally need to make a claim if you already receive one of the following benefits:
If you do not receive any of the above benefits you may need to make a claim.In most cases, pensioners will receive Winter Fuel Payment automatically (if eligible).If you believe you may need to make a claim for a Winter Fuel Payment claim form, you can reach out to the Winter Fuel Payment Centre via:
Your Winter Fuel Payment should be paid into your bank account (the same one you have your pension paid into) between mid-November and Christmas.If you believe you might have missed a Winter Fuel Payment, check that this has not been missed on your bank statement before calling the Winter Fuel Payment Centre. Your payment will usually appear with a reference that begins in the same way as your National Insurance Number, with ‘DWP WFP’ somewhere in the reference.
Sometimes benefits decisions are made based on incorrect information or a lack of available information. In these instances, you may need to challenge the decision. This is not always as difficult and stressful as it sounds. If you think you have been wrongly denied Winter Fuel Payment or believe you should be entitled to more than you have been paid, you can appeal the decision and ask for your situation to be reviewed. You can find out more about appealing a benefit decision on the GOV.UK website. If you still disagree with the decision after this step has been taken, you can appeal to an independent tribunal, however in many cases the issue can be resolved with the first escalation.
Knowing what benefits you are entitled to can be extremely helpful, as you could be eligible for payments that you aren’t aware of. Additional payments could relieve any financial worries you are facing and improve your quality of life, so it is always worth looking into. It can be difficult and sometimes confusing to figure out which benefits you are eligible to claim for, but most information can be found online if you have access to the internet. If not, try speaking to a loved one to see if they can help you find what you need. To learn more about the benefits you could be utilising, you can use the Age UK benefits calculator, or visit the GOV.UK website for a list of all available benefits you could look into. You will also find more information on financial benefits in our guide: Financial Benefits For Pensioners: Topping Up Your Income.Home Instead is an award-winning home care provider and part of a worldwide organisation devoted to providing the highest-quality relationship-led care for older people in their own homes. Arranging care for yourself or your loved one shouldn’t be stressful, so whatever questions you would like answered, feel free to reach out to the team to discuss your needs.