Cold weather payments

Get £25 during freezing weather

Senior Energy & Utilities Analyst

Edited by Andrew Capstick

Updated 1 April 2025

With the cold weather payment, you can get £25 to help with heating bills for each seven-day period of freezing weather during winter. We've full info below on who can get it, how to apply, and how to check if you're due a payment.

The Cold Weather Payments scheme for 2024/25 has now closed. It will reopen on 1 November 2025. The information in this guide is based on last winter's scheme. We we will update this guide when we have details for the 2025/26 scheme.

What is the cold weather payment?

The cold weather payment is a grant paid by the Government to older people and those on certain benefits in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, to help pay for heating costs when temperatures hit zero or below in your area. If you live in Scotland, there's a similar, separate scheme.

If you're eligible, you'll get £25 each time the average temperature in your area is – or is forecast to be – 0°C or below for seven days in a row between 1 November and 31 March.

If you're eligible, you should receive £25 in your bank account automatically within 14 working days. The latest Cold Weather Payments have been triggered for 2024/25. Thousand of households across 18 postcodes in Northern England, will receive the latest £25 payment. A Cold Weather Payment was previously triggered in mid-November.

You can check if you're due the payment using the Government's postcode checker (if you're in Northern Ireland, you'll need to use this postcode checker).

Who's eligible for cold weather payments?

You'll usually get the payments if you receive:

Pension Credit. Though only if you don't live in a care home.
Income Support and income-based jobseeker's allowance. You'll qualify if you have a disability or pensioner premium, a child who is disabled, get Child Tax Credits that include a disability or severe disability element, or you have a child under five living with you.
Income-related employment and support allowance. You'll be eligible if you have a severe or enhanced disability premium, a pensioner premium, a child who is disabled, get Child Tax Credits that include a disability or severe disability element, or you have a child under five living with you.
Universal Credit. You'll be eligible if you have a health condition or disability and have a 'limited capability for work', or you have a child under five living with you.
Support for mortgage interest (SMI). You'll be eligible if you get SMI and also have a severe or enhanced disability premium, a pensioner premium, a child who is disabled, get Child Tax Credits that include a disability or severe disability element, or you have a child under five living with you.

See full cold weather payment eligibility criteria.

In Scotland, you'll get a £59 winter heating payment

If you live in Scotland, the cold weather payment has been replaced by the winter heating payment. Instead of a payment based on weather conditions, all eligible households will get a flat £58.75 each year to help with heating bills.

Eligibility is exactly the same as the cold weather payment scheme, but you'll need to be receiving an eligible benefit during the 'qualifying week'. For 2024/25, the qualifying week is between 4 and 10 November. See full winter heating payment eligibility criteria.

The Scottish Government makes payments to eligible households throughout December and January. The payment will be made into the same bank account you receive your qualifying benefit into, and will have a reference that includes 'WHP'. You'll receive a letter from Social Security Scotland before it makes the payment.

You don't need to claim cold weather payments

You don't need to do anything to get the payments – if you're eligible you should be paid automatically for any seven-day period of freezing weather.

You should get the money within 14 working days of each cold weather period, and it will be paid into the same bank or building society as your benefit or pension payments (except in Scotland where it's paid in December and January as a flat £58.75 lump sum).