Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced everyone in the UK will get £400 off their energy bills as part of a support package which also includes extra cash for people on benefits, pensioners, and those with disabilities. Mr Sunak revealed details of a package worth £15bn on Thursday which includes £400 for everyone plus £650 for people on benefits, £300 for pensioners, and £150 for disabled people.
Benefits will also be 'uprated' in September and a new levy will be charged temporarily on oil and gas companies while their profits remain high with the money raised used to help people in the UK. It follows the announcement that the energy price cap is expected to soar to around £2,800 in October, which experts have already predicted could plunge thousands into poverty.
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Here is exactly how the £400 payment will work including when and how you will get it
Households will get £400 of support with their energy bills through an expansion of the Energy Bills Support Scheme. As well as doubling the £200 of support announced earlier this year the full £400 payment will now be made as a grant, which will not be recovered through higher bills in future years as had been previously announced.
Energy suppliers will deliver this support to households with a domestic electricity meter over six months from October. Direct debit and credit customers will have the money credited to their account while customers with pre-payment meters will have the money applied to their meter or paid via a voucher.
This support will apply directly for households in England, Scotland, and Wales. It is Great Britain-wide and will deliver equivalent support to people in Northern Ireland. The support is in addition to the £150 council tax rebate for households in England in council tax bands A-D, which was announced in February, and the equivalent scheme in Wales.
A Treasury spokesman said the payments would be processed depending on how households pay their bills. They added: "Full details will be set out by July."
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