How you'll receive the £400 energy bill discount from your supplier
Millions of households in Britain will get £400 this winter to help with rising energy bills as part of the Government's Energy Bills Support Scheme. Exactly how you'll be paid this money depends on your supplier and how you pay for your energy bills. Below we round up everything you need to know.
The scheme – which was initially announced in February as a £200 payment – will see households in England, Scotland and Wales with a domestic electricity account get a non-repayable grant of £400 between October 2022 and March 2023. It'll be paid as £66 in October and November, then £67 from December to March. There will also be equivalent support for people living in Northern Ireland.
If you need further help, see our Struggling to pay your energy bills guide.
Round-up of suppliers and how they'll pay your £400 discount
How you'll get the discount depends on how you pay for your energy bills – and how your supplier is applying it. We've updated the table with the latest info we've been told by firms, including how long it should take to get the payment and any delays now we're a few weeks into October.
Electricity supplier (1) | Monthly direct debit | Standard credit | Smart prepayment meter | Traditional prepayment meter (2) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
British Gas | Credited automatically to your bank account about three working days after your direct debit payment is taken | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your electricity account within five working days of the start of the month | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on electricity-only when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
Bulb | Direct debit reduced automatically | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your electricity account within five working days of the start of the month – though it plans to allow users to switch it to gas accounts | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
E.on/E.on Next | Direct debit reduced automatically | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your gas and electricity accounts (split evenly) within five working days of the start of the month | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
EDF Energy | Credited automatically to your bank account about five working days after your direct debit payment is taken | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your electricity account within five working days of the start of the month – but will be able to switch it to your gas account by contacting EDF | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
Octopus Energy | Direct debit reduced automatically | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your gas and electricity accounts (split evenly) within five working days of the start of the month | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
Ovo Energy | Credited automatically to your bank account about five working days after your direct debit payment is taken | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your electricity account within five working days of the start of the month | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
Scottish Power | Credited automatically to your bank account about five working days after your direct debit payment is taken | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your electricity account within five working days of the start of the month | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
Shell Energy | Direct debit reduced automatically Note: Shell customers that pay their direct debit in the first week of the month won't have their payment reduced in Oct – it told us you'll instead get your payments reduced between Nov and Apr. | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your gas and electricity accounts (split evenly) within five working days of the start of the month | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
So Energy | Direct debit reduced automatically | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your electricity account within five working days of the start of the month - but will be able to switch it to your gas account by contacting So Energy | N/A |
SSE | Credited automatically to your bank account about five working days after your direct debit payment is taken | Credited automatically to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your electricity account within five working days of the start of the month | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
Utility Warehouse | Direct debit reduced automatically | Credited to your energy account within five working days of the start of the month | Credited automatically to your electricity account within five working days of the start of the month - but it may be able to switch it to your gas account by contacting Utility Warehouse | Voucher sent within 11 working days of the start of the month (via text, email or post) to be used on gas or electricity when you're topping up as normal – make sure supplier has up to date contact info |
Last updated: 18 October 2022. (1) If you have separate suppliers for gas and electricity, the discount will come via your electricity supplier and only its rules will count. You'll still get the discount even if you switch suppliers. (2) You'll have three months to redeem each voucher – and if you lose them or they expire, they can only be reissued up until 31 March 2023.
Two of the largest energy suppliers still won't confirm if they'll let their smart prepay customers use their £400 energy rebate on BOTH electricity and gas. Currently, British Gas and Ovo, will only allow the payment to be used on electricity, even though most will need the help with their gas bills this winter.
MSE has been calling on these firms to let their customers decide how best to use it.
Two of the largest energy suppliers still won't confirm if they'll let their smart prepay customers use their £400 energy rebate on BOTH electricity and gas. Currently, British Gas and Ovo, will only allow the payment to be used on electricity, even though most will need the help with their gas bills this winter.
MSE has been calling on these firms to let their customers decide how best to use it.
Two of the largest energy suppliers still won't confirm if they'll let their smart prepay customers use their £400 energy rebate on BOTH electricity and gas. Currently, British Gas and Ovo, will only allow the payment to be used on electricity, even though most will need the help with their gas bills this winter.
MSE has been calling on these firms to let their customers decide how best to use it.
Two of the largest energy suppliers still won't confirm if they'll let their smart prepay customers use their £400 energy rebate on BOTH electricity and gas. Currently, British Gas and Ovo, will only allow the payment to be used on electricity, even though most will need the help with their gas bills this winter.
MSE has been calling on these firms to let their customers decide how best to use it.
What should I do if I haven't got my payment?
With millions of payments to be made, there will be occasions where suppliers can't make your payment as expected. Yet there are plans in place if it can't make it in the usual way, so don't worry too much.
Direct debit. The main problem here is likely to be if the provider can't take your direct debit. If that's the case, the provider should try again later in the month to take the payment, or if it needs you to move to a different payment method, it should pay it in line with the new method as above.
If your supplier credits your payment directly to your bank account, there may be cases where it won't pay it in the same month – for example, if your direct debit comes out very late in the month, it can take a few days to hit your bank account, so you might get it early next month. Don't worry, suppliers will still pay it.
Standard credit. There shouldn't be too much to go wrong here, as suppliers are simply adding the payment to your energy account each month. If you do have any problems, contact your provider.
Smart prepayment. The payment should be added to your account automatically, but in the small number of cases where this isn't possible, the supplier has to make a second attempt to make the payment – either by trying to add it remotely again or by an alternative method, such as giving you a code you can enter on the meter to add the payment. Some suppliers will let you use your payment for both gas AND electric, however some still don't, which is why we've written to all suppliers in Britain asking them to allow prepayment customers to use their payment for both. See our MSE News story for full details.
Traditional prepayment. With traditional prepayment you'll be sent the vouchers, so you need to make sure it has correct details for you. If there are problems, suppliers can re-issue vouchers – but bear in mind the scheme ends at 11.59pm on 30 June 2023, and you can't claim any payments after this date. You should have received at least one of the £66 payments by now but, if you haven't, we've got all you need to know in our MSE News story.
If you do have issues, and if you've given your provider plenty of time to make your payment, you'll need to contact it directly to sort it.
If you don't pay your bill directly to your supplier or live in Northern Ireland, you will be entitled to equivalent support
Those who live in park homes or pay their energy bill through their landlord via a commercial contract will also be eligible for the non-repayable £400 Government grant to help pay for energy bills. In addition, legislation is set to be introduced to ensure landlords pass the discount on to tenants who pay all-inclusive bills. However, it is still yet to be confirmed when or how this payment will be received.
Households in Northern Ireland will also receive the non-repayable £400 grant. This will be paid by your electricity supplier, similar to how it works in the rest of the UK. However, again it is still yet to be confirmed when this will be paid. We'll update this story when we know more. See our Northern Ireland energy guide for more info.
BEWARE fraudulent texts or emails asking you to apply for the £400 payment – they're a scam
Some people have been receiving text messages inviting them to click on a link to apply for their £400 payment – but these are a scam. The messages tell you that you are eligible to apply for a discounted energy bill as part of the Energy Bills Support Scheme. But this is a scam and should be ignored or reported – see how to do this in our full MSE News story. The £400 grant will be paid automatically.
Here's an example of one of the messages:
Energy supplier grants and other support with energy bills you may be able to get
As well as the Energy Bill Support Scheme, there is other help available:
Those on certain means-tested benefits will get an extra £650 this year. This will come in two payments, the first of which has already been paid to most of those eligible. See What to do if you haven't got the cost of living payment.
You could qualify for an energy supplier grant. Many of the major energy suppliers are providing grants – in some cases worth thousands – to households experiencing financial difficulties. EDF and E.on Next are among those offering support to their own customers, while British Gas's hardship scheme is available to customers of other suppliers too. See more on how to access these grants in our Energy supplier grants MSE News story.
You could be paid by your supplier for reducing your energy use at peak times. British Gas, E.on, EDF, Octopus and Ovo have all revealed plans to launch similar schemes this winter aimed at preventing power shortages in Great Britain - which could see customers save up to £100 over the winter. However, details are currently limited and we don't know yet when these schemes will launch. See our MSE News story for more.
See if you qualify for other energy bill grants and discounts. For example, millions of people on lower incomes can get the £150 warm home discount from October, while those over state pension age can get up to £600 through the winter fuel payment from November. Our Energy bills help guide has a full list of payments you may be able to get.
Check if you can get help from your council. Under the Household Support Fund, local authorities in England have access to a pool of £1 billion in funding to help those most in need. Eligibility varies, as it's up to councils to decide, but generally the grant is for vulnerable households, and those in most need of support. To find out what your council offers and whether you might qualify for support, and to apply, contact your council as soon as you can, as funding could run out at any time.
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10 September 2024
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