Help with heating costs for low-income households

When money is tight, heating is often the first thing people cut back on: one room warm, the thermostat turned down, the radiators off until the children come home. A cold home makes damp and mould worse, aggravates breathing and heart problems, and is hard on babies, older people and anyone who is disabled. If you live on Universal Credit, a legacy benefit, a small pension or low wages, there is more help with keeping warm than most people realise, and much of it does not involve borrowing at all.

This guide covers the whole picture for the UK: seasonal payments, emergency help when you cannot top up, grants that cut heating costs for good, what your supplier must do if you fall behind, and only at the end, credit as a last resort. If you heat with oil or wood, see also our pages on heating oil and firewood.

Winter payments to check before the cold arrives

Several national schemes exist specifically to help with heating. Some are paid automatically, but data matching is not perfect, so check that you have received what you are due.

• Warm Home Discount: a £150 reduction on the electricity bill each winter for eligible households on means-tested benefits. In England and Wales most people receive it without applying, provided the account is in their name and the address matches DWP records. In Scotland, the scheme works partly through suppliers, so ask yours.
• Cold Weather Payment: £25 for each seven-day period of very cold weather in your area, paid automatically in England and Wales to people on certain benefits, such as Pension Credit and some Universal Credit claimants. It does not need to be repaid.
• Winter Heating Payment: Scotland replaced the Cold Weather Payment with a single annual payment for people on qualifying benefits, paid whatever the weather.
• Winter Fuel Payment: an annual payment for people over State Pension age. Rules on income have changed recently, with the payment recovered through tax from pensioners on higher incomes. Scotland pays its own Pension Age Winter Heating Payment. Check the current rules rather than relying on previous years.
• Pension Credit: if you are a pensioner on a low income and not claiming it, apply. It is the gateway to other heating help, and many eligible people never claim.

If you think you qualify for one of these and nothing arrived, contact the DWP, Social Security Scotland or your supplier rather than waiting until spring.

Emergency help when you cannot afford to heat now

If the meter is running out or the house is already cold, act the same day.

• Prepayment meters: use emergency credit, and check whether your meter has "friendly credit" periods overnight or at weekends. If you are struggling, ask your supplier for additional support credit; under Ofgem rules, suppliers must consider extra help for customers who are cutting themselves off.
• Fuel vouchers: many food banks and advice agencies can issue vouchers to top up a prepayment meter, usually with a referral.
• Council crisis support: councils in England run local welfare schemes, funded through the Household Support Fund and the arrangements replacing it, which have often paid for energy top-ups. In Scotland ask about the Scottish Welfare Fund, in Wales the Discretionary Assistance Fund, and in Northern Ireland Discretionary Support. These are grants or interest-free help, not commercial loans.
• Charitable trusts: several energy suppliers fund independent trusts or hardship funds that can clear energy debt or pay for essentials. Some are open to customers of any supplier.

Register for your supplier's Priority Services Register if you are of pension age, disabled, have a long-term health condition or young children. It gives extra protection and support during supply problems.

Cut the cost of heating for good

Grants for insulation and heating upgrades can reduce bills year after year, which matters more than any one-off payment. Low-income households and people on benefits are the main target of these schemes.

• Supplier and government schemes fund loft and wall insulation, heating controls and boiler replacements for eligible households, often at no cost. Tenants can apply too, with the landlord's agreement.
• Council schemes in England offer grants for insulation and low-carbon heating to low-income homes with poor energy ratings.
• Home Energy Scotland and the Nest scheme in Wales give free advice and, for eligible households, funded improvements.
• Private tenants: landlords must meet minimum energy efficiency standards. If your home is very cold, damp or the heating is broken, ask the landlord in writing to fix it and contact the council's private housing team if they do not.

Be cautious with cold callers selling "free" insulation or solar panels: check the company through your council or an official advice service before signing anything. For broken boilers or damp problems you own, see our guide to urgent home repairs.

If you already owe your supplier

Suppliers must offer a repayment plan you can afford, based on your income and essential costs, not simply on the size of the debt. If you receive certain benefits, Fuel Direct lets you repay energy arrears directly from your benefit at a fixed rate, which stops the debt growing. Suppliers should not force a prepayment meter on vulnerable customers and must follow strict rules before doing so. Our pages on energy bill support and avoiding a disconnection explain your rights in detail.

Keep warm for less, safely

• Heat the rooms you use, and close doors and curtains at dusk to keep heat in.
• Bleed radiators and set the boiler flow temperature sensibly; ask your supplier or an energy advice service how.
• Use draught excluders and thick curtains, and keep furniture away from radiators.
• Wear layers and use a hot water bottle or a heated throw, which costs far less than heating a whole room.
• Never use a gas oven, barbecue or camping heater indoors to keep warm. Fit a carbon monoxide alarm near fuel-burning appliances and have them checked.
• Try to keep at least one room comfortably warm, especially for babies, older or unwell people.

Borrowing for heating: the last resort

Heating is a recurring cost, so a loan rarely solves the problem and can make next winter harder. Before borrowing, get a free benefits check and debt advice from Citizens Advice or a debt charity. If there is truly no other way:

• A credit union may lend small amounts at capped rates, even with a poor credit file.
• A Universal Credit budgeting advance is interest-free, though it reduces later payments.
• Compare the APR and total repayable on any offer, and avoid payday loans, doorstep lenders and rent-to-own heaters.

Ignore social media posts or calls promising energy grants or loans in exchange for a fee or your bank details: genuine schemes never ask you to pay to receive help.