Ask Boo: How do I apply for the warm home discount?
This week, we’re looking at how to apply for warm home discount, the government funding of £140 payment that’s applied directly to your bills to help with the cost of energy over the chillier months.
Sadly, the summer is coming to an end. (Correction: what little summer we had is coming to an end.)
And that means one thing: it’s time to get that heating back on, dig out those blankets and throws and get prepared for winter.
Now, here at Bamboo we’re all about helping you save money during the winter months. We’ve talked about things you can do to prepare your home for winter, ways you can keep your bills down when it’s cold and how to stick to your budget during the winter months.
That’s why we thought we’d write this in-depth guide to one of the easiest ways to save money in the winter (if you qualify): apply for warm home discount.
What is the warm home discount?
The warm home discount is a government-led scheme designed to help people who find it difficult to pay their higher energy bills during the colder months.
(As a rule, energy bills are higher in the winter due to central heating and just generally being inside more…)
The warm home discount scheme offers a £140 rebate on your energy bills, if you qualify.
However, it isn’t a cash payment into your account or paid onto your meter, but a one-off discount applied to your account by your energy provider. So, you won’t actually see the money arrive in your account from the government, but you should notice a bit of extra cash there nonetheless.
Also, more great news: if you qualify for Cold Weather Payments or Winter Fuel Payments, the warm home discount doesn’t affect either of those payments!
Who qualifies for warm home discount?
Unfortunately, at the moment, there are only 2 groups of people that qualify for warm home discount:
Group 1: elderly people (that get the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit).
This is the “core” group of people that the government planned the warm home discount for. As elderly people spend most of their winter days indoors (which means higher energy bills) the government introduced the warm home discount to help them out financially.
But, they’re not the only group that get help…
Group 2: people on low income
Now, the government scheme also helps people on low income that meet a certain criteria. The eligibility criteria differs from energy supplier to energy supplier, but you might qualify if you receive any of the following:
- Income Support
- Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
- Universal Credit
(Or if you don’t meet the above criteria but your annual household income is less than £16,190.)
If you meet any of those criteria, you must also meet one of the following requirements:
- Have parental responsibility for a child aged 5 or under
- Receive Child Tax Credit
- Receive Disabled Child Premium
- Receive Disability, Enhanced Disability or Severe Disability Premiums
- Receive Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payments (PIP)
How can I apply for warm home discount?
To apply for warm home discount, you need to contact your energy provider directly or through their website and fill out a form that accesses your eligibility. If you qualify, your energy provider will let you know and help you take it from there.
We’ve included a few links to apply for warm home discount from the bigger energy providers below, but if you use a smaller energy provider, just Google the name of your energy provider and “warm home discount” and it should be one of the first results.
The process is super simple and, if you’re qualified, you’re guaranteed £140 knocked off your energy bills. Not bad, right?
Here are the links from some of the larger energy providers on how to apply for warm home discount:
British Gas Warm Home Discount
Eon Warm Home Discount
Scottish Power Warm Home Discount
- Author The Bamboo Team
- Posted 9 September 2019
