Almost a million low-income pensioners eligible have been urged to make an urgent Winter Fuel payment check. Labours' decision to scrap the universal winter fuel payments - worth up to £300 - has proven extremely controversial, with commentators such as Martin Lewis calling it a potential disaster. Those living in rural communities are also thought to be affected the worse, given the conditions in the countryside.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said last month the payments would instead only be awarded to those eligible for pension credit and other means-tested benefits. Energy prices are forecast to rise to £1,714 a year in October. This comes at a time when many older people are worried about how they will be able to afford to heat their homes without the Winter Fuel Payment.
Sign our petition https://t.co/vO7IhNeky2https://t.co/oWuCqsYcoo — Age UK Campaigns (@ageukcampaigns) August 19, 2024 She said she had to make the "difficult decision" after being left with a £22billion black hole in the public finances left by the Conservatives.
However, hundreds of thousands of pensions could wrongly miss out on the winter fuel payments because they are not claiming pension credit. According to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), around 1.4 million older people are already in receipt of pension credits.
The support is worth almost £4,000 per year and helps struggling pensioners with housing costs, council tax, and heating. But a staggering 880,000 households eligible for the .