Energy bill support: More than 700,000 households miss out

More than 700,000 households successful Great Britain person missed retired connected £300m worthy of enactment for vigor bills, according to BBC investigation of authorities figures.

These are households successful places specified arsenic parkland homes and houseboats who did not person an vigor supplier to use a one-off £400 outgo automatically.

But lone astir 200,000 applications were made earlier the 31 May deadline.

The authorities announced past twelvemonth that each households would get £400 taken disconnected their vigor measure implicit winter. For households who wage their bills by nonstop debit, the enactment was fixed done monthly payments from October to March.

However, for those with non-conventional vigor set-ups the authorities launched the £400 Energy Bill Support Scheme Alternative Funding earlier this year.

BBC Verify investigation of information from the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero shows that of the much than 200,000 applications made nether the scheme:

Matt Cole from the charity, the Fuel Bank Foundation, said it was disappointing that truthful galore radical had missed retired and believed it was down to a fig of factors.

"The motorboat of the strategy successful outpouring this twelvemonth alternatively earlier wintertime erstwhile it was needed most, the reliance connected families self-identifying that they were eligible alternatively than them automatically receiving it, and the somewhat analyzable process to assertion assistance volition each person contributed."

The authorities said it had spent much than £50m "supporting 130,000 households without a home vigor supplier".

This information suggests conscionable implicit £300m of the imaginable £360m successful Great Britain had not been claimed earlier the deadline.

People who thought they were eligible needed to use connected the authorities website oregon telephone a helpline, which is what Mark, who lives connected his narrowboat, did.

"A batch of radical [on canal boats] tried to enactment an exertion done for claiming for it [but] we deed a obstruction erstwhile it said: 'Do you unrecorded successful a marina oregon are you disconnected grid?'

"The infinitesimal you clicked 'off grid' you went done to a container that said 'you are not eligible astatine this time'."

Mark uses 3 and a fractional bags of ember for his multi-fuel stove each week successful winter. He had been paying astir £9 per container but past wintertime the terms astir doubled.

"[The £400 payment] would've been a large help. That money's had to travel from determination truthful it's had to travel retired of the remainder of my budgeting oregon my savings.

"It would've made my wintertime a spot easier, possibly I could person spent a spot much wealth connected the grandkids."

A authorities spokesperson said: "We spent billions to support families erstwhile prices roseate implicit winter, covering astir fractional a emblematic household's vigor bill.

"We're present seeing costs autumn adjacent further with wholesale vigor prices down by implicit 2 thirds since their peak.

"We are urging councils to process applications and implicit last checks arsenic rapidly arsenic imaginable to guarantee each those eligible person the enactment they need."

The authorities said anyone who did not use earlier the deadline should sojourn its Help for Households page.

Carol lives connected a parkland location tract southbound eastbound of Runcorn. She says the exertion process was simple, but she was forced to use 3 oregon 4 times due to the fact that she kept getting rejected.

"We got refused, I don't cognize however galore times. I kept going, I wouldn't springiness up. Because I thought, 'Why should I springiness up?' I've worked each my life, I've paid into the system.

"[The £400] was precise important due to the fact that 99.9% of radical connected these sites are each retired and a batch of them lone person a basal pension, oregon possibly a spot of a top-up pension.

"But it's not going precise acold due to the fact that food's gone up, petrol's gone up, truthful the £400 was perfectly a godsend."

Park homes were the largest azygous radical seeking the £400 support, with 47,400 households retired of the 203,580 who applied.

Tenants successful backstage accommodation had the highest rejection and cancellation rates, with 47% of applications from this radical being stopped. Applications were rejected if radical had already received support, made a duplicate exertion oregon were not eligible.

The Office for National Statistics estimated that astir 137,000 attraction location residents successful England wage for immoderate oregon each of their care, and these were eligible to use for the support.

There were conscionable nether 22,000 applications from households successful attraction homes crossed Great Britain.

In a akin strategy for Northern Ireland, 28,000 households were eligible for £600 worthy of support, totalling astir £16.8m.

There were conscionable implicit 8,000 applications successful Northern Ireland from those without a home energy supply, with conscionable implicit 4,000 already paid by 1 June 2023 and 160 awaiting payment.

Of the rest, conscionable implicit 2,700 were cancelled oregon rejected and conscionable implicit 1,000 were inactive being worked on. This means astir 23,000 Northern Ireland households whitethorn person missed retired connected an estimated £13.6m.

Here are immoderate vigor redeeming ideas from biology idiosyncratic Angela Terry, who acceptable up One Home, a societal endeavor that shares green, money-saving tips: