[Rebecca]

As a result of rising wholesale energy costs, we expect that the October price cap will take the average household energy bill above £3,000 a year. However, the government has announced a range of measures to help support households with the rising cost of living.

While we believe that more could be done for lower income households, and we’ll continue to push for this, the government has announced an updated support package, including:

£400 Energy Bill Support Scheme
The government announced the Energy Bills Support Scheme will double from the initial £200 of support to £400 in total. This will now be paid as a grant, so will no longer need to be recovered through future energy bills.

You don’t need to apply for this scheme – we’ll be adding this onto customer accounts over a six-month period, starting in October.

£650 Cost of Living Payment
An additional one-off payment of £650 will be given to households who receive means tested benefits, such as: Universal Credit; income-based Jobseekers Allowance; income-related Employment and Support Allowance; Income Support; working tax credit; child tax credit and pension credit.
You don’t need to apply for the payment. However, you must have been entitled to your benefits payment between 26 April 2022 – 25 May 2022.

The government will be paying this directly to households and will be splitting this payment into two - the first payment in July and the second in autumn.

£300 Pensioner Cost of Living Payment
Pensioner households, who currently receive the Winter Fuel Payment, will receive an additional one-off payment of £300 this year. You don’t need to apply for this scheme, but you’ll need to be over the State Pension age (66 years or above) between 19-25 September 2022.

The government will make these payments directly to households as a top-up to their annual Winter Fuel Payment in November/December.

£150 Disability Cost of Living Payment
Households who receive disability benefits will see a one-off payment of £150 on top of the £650 Cost of Living Payment. You don’t need to apply for the payment, but you must have received a payment for one of the following qualifying benefits as of 25 May 2022: Disability Living Allowance, Personal Independence Payment, Attendance Allowance, Scottish Disability Benefits, Armed Forces Independence Payment, Constant Attendance Allowance, and War Pension Mobility Supplement.

The government will be paying this directly to eligible households in September.

£150 Warm Home Discount Scheme
The Warm Home Discount is a government scheme funded by energy suppliers, designed to help low income and vulnerable households with their energy costs over winter. To qualify for the payment of £150, you’ll need to meet eligibility criteria set by Ofgem.

We’ll be announcing further details about the Warm Home Discount very soon, so stay tuned to the Utilita Community and our Facebook, Twitter or Instagram to find out more.

Are Utilita providing additional support to customers?
We understand that it is a worrying time for many of our customers and we want to support you in the best way possible! Here are just some of the ways we can help:

- If you’re worried about your bill and need some help, get in touch with our Billing Team on 0330 053 5669 or visit our website.

- If you’ve run out of credit and need a little extra time to top-up, you can either activate the £15 Emergency Credit on your smart meter or request an energy advance of up to £50 (£20 for electricity and £30 gas) through the POWER UP feature on My Utilita.

- We’ve expanded our Extra Care team to offer vulnerable customers a number of benefits, including: account credits (terms apply), eligibility checks for the Energy Company Obligation (ECO) scheme and tailored energy saving advice.

- Save the planet and your pocket by cutting down on energy waste with Smart Score and Energy High 5 – you could save up to £332 a year on your energy bill!