Cost of Living Guide - Managing Your Energy Bills Part 2

With the cost of living having an impact on everyone's energy bills, it's important to be aware of the steps you can take to help make your energy bills more affordable.

There’s lots of support that is available to help protect Islington residents against rising energy prices.  Age UK Islington has put together a guide to let you know:

• What financial help you might be eligible to receive and why pension credit is so important, yet often goes unclaimed
• Help available from utility companies, including potential discounts and other support; what to do if you are in trouble paying your bill
• What else you can do to reduce your energy costs and bills

Part 2 of this guide is published here, but you can download the full guide at the bottom of this page.

Part 2: Help from Utility Companies

Talk to your Energy Supplier

Make sure you’re on the best tariff. Tariffs are the rate you pay for your gas
and electricity. Talk to your supplier or look at their website to see what
tariffs they have available and if you can pay less.

It’s useful to have some meter readings, if possible, as well as your latest
bill. This is so they know how much energy you’re using, and how much it
is costing you.

Asking to change your payment method from prepayment and standard
credit to Direct Debit can also help reduce your tariff.

Look at your energy bills to find the name and contact details of your gas
and electricity suppliers. If you need help to find who they are, see this
webpage.

Thames Water

WaterHelp – people with a household income of £20,111 or below (in
London) can apply for a 50% reduction in their bill.
WaterSure bill cap – if you’re on a water meter but finding it hard to save
water because you have a large family or water-dependent medical
condition, Thames Water may be able to cap your bills through WaterSure.

They always use the average price based on what other customers pay. For the year (2022/23), for example, they’d cap your bills at £423. If you
already use less, you’ll keep paying less.

For more information:

https://www.thameswater.co.uk/help/account-and-billing/financialsupport/waterhelp

Or contact Thames Water Extra Care Services team on 0800 009 3652
from 8am to 5pm.

Priority Services Register

If you’re older or have a disability or long-term health condition and are
vulnerable, it is important to register for the Priority Services Register. It
can help with things like:

• A gas appliance and installation safety check (if everyone in the
  home is eligible)
• Help to maintain power supply for medical equipment in the event of
  a power cut
• Bills supplied in different formats, such as large print or Braille or in a
  different language
• Bills sent to a friend or a family member on their behalf
  A personal password system for gas and electricity staff to use every
  time they call at the person’s home, to confirm they are genuine
• Supported meter reads for those with limited mobility
  Help in moving a meter if it is in an inconvenient position

For more information & to register:

https://www.ofgem.gov.uk/getting-extra-help-priority-services-register

If You Are in Trouble Paying Your Bill

Call Your Energy Supplier

If you are struggling to pay for your gas and electricity bills or if you get into
debt, you should contact your supplier as soon as you can and find out
what help they can give you.

Your supplier will be able to:

• Work with you to agree a regular payment plan (for example every week or month) to spread your bills so you can better budget for them.
• They might also suggest schemes and grants to help with
  money you may owe them.
• Check your gas or electricity bill for your supplier’s contact details. If you
  don’t know who your supplier is see ofgem.gov.uk/find-my-supplier.
• You might be paying too much for your energy. Many people are on their
  supplier’s standard tariff, which is unlikely to be the best deal.
• Your supplier will offer a range of tariffs, some of which might work out cheaper for you.

Get Help with Debt

The following ‘Debt Advice’ guide from Age UK provides useful steps that
you can take to start getting debt under control.

https://www.ageuk.org.uk/information-advice/money-legal/debtsavings/debt-advice

Join our monthly Let's Talk sessions

For a regular update about local support and the financial support that's available, why not book to attend our monthly Let's Talk sessions?  They are currently taking place on Zoom.

For September's session, we'll be joined by the government sponsored Money & Pensions Service who will give a talk on pensions and help you to cut through the complexities. The talk will focus on a range of different pension topics:

• Planning and budgeting for retirement – how much money will you need?
• Knowing what to expect from your State Pension and general overview of Pension Credit
• Understanding your private pensions and what your options are Tracing old pensions and what should you do with them

For more information and to book, see the Let's Talk webpage.

Further information from Islington Council

Find out how you can get help to manage your money with the Council here. Information includes: · Help with Council tax and rent · Maximising your income · Help to Save · Childcare costs · Energy bills · Resident Support Scheme · And more!

https://www.islington.gov.uk/advice/money-and-debt-advice

Useful Contact Numbers

Department of Work and Pensions - Universal Credit Enquiry Line: telephone 0800 328 5644 or for other ways of contacting them, see the webpage.

Department of Work and Pensions - Pension Credit Enquiry Line: telephone 0800 99 1234 or for other ways of contacting them, see the webpage.

Age UK Islington Helpline: 020 7281 6018 / gethelp@ageukislington.org.uk (Monday to Friday, 9am – 5pm).

Islington Carers Hub Helpline: 020 7281 6018 / 3319 info@islingtoncarershub.org (Monday to Friday, 9am – 5pm).