Tory ministers are "absolutely" to blame for over-75s being stripped of free TV licences after the Government "abrogated" responsibility for social welfare, a campaigner fumed on the first anniversary of the lifeline being axed.
Millions of pensioners were robbed of the benefit a year ago after the Conservatives broke a manifesto pledge.
Only over-75s who receive pension credit have been eligible for free licences since last August, worth £159-a-year.
Elderly people risk falling into poverty as a result of a grace period for licence payments for the over-75s ending, the National Pensioners Convention warned.
With 260,000 pensioners yet to pay, according to recent figures from the BBC, an extra bill could push some people into financial hardship, the NPC feared.
General secretary Jan Shortt said: "This is a group that is just above the pension credit limit threshold and they get no extra help, so they don't get any assistance to pay any bills.
“They are already having to make decisions every day about how they spend their money and particularly in the winter when you have competing bills coming in for extra heating, and sometimes they have to make the decision whether they have a hot meal or put the fire on to keep warm.
“Then all of a sudden, they find there is another bill to be paid, which is their TV licence.
“That's a group that is potentially going to fall into poverty now because of having to pay for their TV licence."
She was “absolutely" laying the blame at the Government's door, blasting ministers who "abrogated" responsibility on welfare.
She added: "Our campaign has always been and continues to be to get the Government to take back responsibility to pay for over-75s' licences for TV."
Silver Voices director Dennis Reed said: "There has never been any democratic legitimacy for scrapping the free licence.
“There has been no vote in Parliament to axe this welfare benefit and most politicians from all parties do not support it.
“The Conservatives have broken a manifesto promise to keep the benefit until at least 2022.
“If one 80 or 90-year-old ends up in prison because of licence non-payment, the ultimate responsibility will lie at 10 Downing Street".
Tories pledged at the 2017 election to maintain the benefit for the rest of that Parliament, which was due to run for five years.
But the BBC had already been handed responsibility for funding the concession from summer 2020, under a deal agreed in 2015.
A TV Licensing spokesman said: "So far nine out of 10 over-75 households have made arrangements and we are grateful for their support for the licence fee.
"We will continue to support the small group of older customers who are yet to get set up, which is why we have written to them outlining the simple steps they need to take.
"In addition, customer care visits, which will begin in autumn, have been carefully designed for those who may require further assistance.
"They are not enforcement visits and will be carried out by a specially trained customer care team."
