All households that earn less than £30,000 have been urged to check whether they can claim extra cash through benefits amid the ongoing cost of living crisis.
Martin Lewis explained that not everyone with a household income of less than £30,000 will be eligible for benefits. The MoneySavingExpert founder said this is his rough benchmark figure for when it is worth investigating.
He also said it only takes ten minutes to check online and urged people to check. Some families with an income of £50,000 or more could also qualify for help in certain circumstances, the Mirror reports.
Read more: Universal Credit, PIP, pensions and other benefits set for big rise in 2023
"Do you have total (family) income under £30,000?" he asked on Twitter. "If so and you don't get any benefits, it is worth ten minutes on our free benefits calculator… to see if you're missing out on entitlements. I’m NOT saying all will be due, just it's worth the time to check."
How much you could be due in benefits depends on your situation, but one MSE reader previously told Martin she was now £2,000-a-year better off after finding out she was eligible for help. The reader, known only as Christine, found out she could claim housing benefit and carer’s allowance.
MoneySavingExpert has a free benefit calculator you can use. Other popular online calculators include ones from Turn2us, Policy in Practice and entitledto.
To find out your eligibility, you’ll need to answer questions about your employment, income and living arrangements. You’ll need to answer as accurately as possible in order to get a correct figure.
Once you've found out if you're likely able to make a claim, you'll then need to physically apply for the benefits. Debt charity Turn2Us has previously estimated that seven million families are missing out on unclaimed benefits.
The warning from Martin Lewis comes as families continue to be squeezed by the cost of living crisis, with energy bills and inflation both rising.
The regulator Ofgem has confirmed it is increasing its price cap by £693 from £1,277 to £1,971 from April 1 - up by 54% and a huge hit to household bills. Prepayment customers will be worse off, with a jump of £708 from £1,309 to £2,017.
The energy price cap sets a limit on the rates a supplier can charge for each unit of gas and electricity you use and is currently reviewed twice a year.
Meanwhile, inflation has just surged to 6.2%, it was confirmed yesterday, with predictions that it will keep going up. It means we're all feeling the pinch and paying more for everyday goods.
