Sign Age UK's petition to save the Winter Fuel Payment
![Winter Fuel Payment](/bp-assets/globalassets/north-tyneside/photos/winter-fuel-payment-720-x-343.png)
Published on 02 August 2024 12:54 PM
At the end of July, the Government announced that the Winter Fuel Payment will become means-tested in England and Wales.
Only those receiving Pension Credit or other means-tested benefits will receive Winter Fuel Payment this year and beyond. In Scotland and Northern Ireland decisions about the payment are devolved and are not yet clear, but it's likely that the UK Government will no longer provide the money to cover the cost of what pensioners in those nations receive now.
Are you entitled to Pension Credit?
800,000 older people don’t receive the Pension Credit they are eligible for. Are you one of them?
Our Information & Advice team can help you apply for Pension Credit and other means-tested benefits. Call us on 0191 280 8484 or email enquiries@ageuknorthtyneside.org.uk.
Cutting the Winter Fuel Payment this winter, with virtually no notice and no compensatory measures to protect poor and vulnerable pensioners, is the wrong policy decision.
Millions of struggling pensioners won’t receive up to £300 they rely on to pay their bills.
We believe as many as 2 million pensioners who find paying their energy bills a real stretch will be seriously hit by this cut:
- Those on low incomes who just miss out on Pension Credit,
- Those with high energy needs because of disability or illness,
- The 800,000 who don’t receive the Pension Credit for which they are eligible.
The Government should halt their proposed change to the Winter Fuel Payment and think again.
Save the Winter Fuel Payment
Sign our petition to save the Winter Fuel Payment for struggling pensioners.
Age UK's response
Caroline Abrahams CBE, Charity Director at Age UK said: "We strongly oppose the means-testing of Winter Fuel Payment (WFP) because our initial estimate is that as many as two million pensioners who badly need the money to stay warm this winter will not receive it and will be in trouble as a result – yet at the other end of the spectrum well-off older people will scarcely notice the difference – a social injustice.
“A big reason for this disastrous outcome is that more than one in three pensioners entitled to Pension Credit, the qualifying benefit for WFP under this proposal, don’t receive it, a proportion that’s been roughly constant for many years. More than 800,000 older people living on very low incomes – under £218.25 a week for single pensioners and under £332.95 for couples – who are already missing out of the Pension Credit they are entitled to get to boost their incomes, will now lose the WFP that helps them to pay their fuel bills.
“In addition, there are also about a million pensioners whose weekly incomes are less than £50 per week above the poverty line, who will also be hit hard by the loss of the Payment. Older people in this group often tell us they really struggle financially; the proposed change will make it even harder for them to afford to stay warm when it gets chilly.
“Finally, there is a third group who will find it extremely difficult to heat their homes adequately this winter as a result of the proposed change: older people whose incomes are a little higher though still limited, but who live in energy inefficient homes and/or who are seriously unwell and need to keep the thermostat turned up high in order to protect their health.
“It is well established that pensioners tend to do everything possible to avoid going into debt, so if they are worried about their future energy bills, we know their likely response will be to ration their fuel use and economise by reducing their spending on other essentials. This proposed policy change is therefore certain to result in more older people experiencing a horrible 'eating or heating' dilemma.
“Means-testing WFP this winter, with virtually no notice and no compensatory measures to protect poor and vulnerable pensioners, is the wrong policy decision, and one that will potentially jeopardise their health as well as their finances – the last thing they or the NHS needs. With winter now just over the horizon, the Government should halt their proposed change to WFP and think again, given the clear evidence of how it will hurt the older people who need it the most.”
Where to get help
If you've been affected by this change to Winter Fuel Payment, our Information & Advice team can help you see what other benefits you may be entitled to.
Our friendly team are here to help you with free and confidential advice and support.
Call us today on 0191 280 8484 or email enquiries@ageuknorthtyneside.org.uk.