Pensioner's Winter Heating Allowence

anniewoo

Mine arrived in my account today.

georgiesmum

margaretclare wrote: »

It's not meant to be for buying a new telly.

I hope this comment was tongue-in-cheek.

No it wasn't t.i.c. I pay my energy bills monthly and deliberately paid extra each month so we could have the winter allowance for something to help us through the winter months,and at the moment am nearly £200 in credit. As winter approaches it is very difficult to go out because of poor health, so because we have to stay in a new modern TV will be a great boon.
Is that OK with you.

silverjay

DWP are not running checks this year to ensure everyone who is eligible gets their payments. If you are entitled to it get on the phone and chase it.

I have a relative working at DWP and we were discussing this during claiming it as part of the estate of a deceased friend.

Marcusp

It's not meant to be for buying a new telly

Why not?

Money is money whatever the source.

So I get £120 towards my fuel bill so I have £120 more to buy something I wouldn't have been able to buy if I hadn't got the £120 warm allowance.

Or are we meant to burn £120 more gas or electricity than we would have.

margaretclare

Marcusp wrote: »

Why not?

Because....A Winter Fuel Payment is a one-off payment to help older people with their winter heating bills.

That's from one of the official government websites.

Money is money whatever the source.

So I get £120 towards my fuel bill so I have £120 more to buy something I wouldn't have been able to buy if I hadn't got the £120 warm allowance.

Or are we meant to burn £120 more gas or electricity than we would have.

At the risk of getting flamed yet again, I can't adequately express how much I disapprove of benefits like this being handed out purely on basis of age. No other criteria. Not on basis of 'need'. I feel the same about bus passes, but at least with those, you're not forced to have one if you don't want. I haven't got one.

And before anyone asks, when mine arrived I gave it away to where it is likely to be needed more.

Marcusp

At the risk of getting flamed yet again, I can't adequately express how much I disapprove of benefits like this being handed out purely on basis of age

So you think that when someone puts money into a works/private pension so that they have more than someone who only gets state benefits shouldn't be allowed any other benefits from the state?

Between my wife and I we get private pensions that give us £340 a month more than if we only got our state pensions. But we paid into pension funds to get this. We did without when we were working so that we wouldn't be on the breadline like my parents were when my father retired.

It would have been more except for me being made redundant and my firm raiding the pension fund.

My mother, 25 years ago, was happy when she had £2 left over at the end of the week and they had no savings to speak of.

I swore I would never be like that when I retired.

I worked all my days paying tax and NI and if the government wants to give me extra money I will take every penny of it I can.

Pity it isn't cold enough for the £10 cold weather payment this year.

McKneff

Have to agree with MarcusP, my oh gets state pension, I get 60% state pension, private pension of £220 a month. he gets £78 DLA.

Both of us have worked since we were 15 years of age but because we have saved we cannot get any pension credit so each month we have to dip into our savings or if we want a short holiday.

I too accept the £200 a year, thank you very much.

[Deleted User]

I allso feel after working 50 years in low paid jobs and living within our income and saving when we could that I will except our heating allowance and enjoy it on my retirement. I worked in a shop opposite a pub that had a betting shop next door and the same people every day were outside having a smoke before going in the bookies and back in the pub and the back for another smoke and back to the bookies. I often thought I wish it was me on benefits at that level and not paying my taxes and NI. Other than my pension the heating allowance is the only thing I will get off the government because we have savings.

Errata

margaretclare wrote: »

Because....A Winter Fuel Payment is a one-off payment to help older people with their winter heating bills.

That's from one of the official government websites.




At the risk of getting flamed yet again, I can't adequately express how much I disapprove of benefits like this being handed out purely on basis of age. No other criteria. Not on basis of 'need'. I feel the same about bus passes, but at least with those, you're not forced to have one if you don't want. I haven't got one.

And before anyone asks, when mine arrived I gave it away to where it is likely to be needed more.

You just don't get it, do you. The WFA is handed out as a sop because the government realised it was a damn site cheaper than uplifting the SRP. You also seem blissfully unaware that subsidised travel for the retired has been in existence since shortly after WW2.
I've spent mine on internal winter fuel - gin! Might change that to brandy next year, if that's ok with you.

retiredalso

I also got £120 warm assist credited to my Eon account, I'm not turning that down either.

And I have a bus pass, I use it occasionally even though I have a car. Saves on parking charges when I have to go someplace and the only parking is chargable.

Every little helps.