Warm Home Discount

mrsyardbroom

I'm just looking at the Warm Home Discount for 2013/14 and it seems that all sorts of people are eligible but once again not us. Loads of disabled people can claim providing they're not over 65 and people who are on income support can also claim. I can't believe that someone who is over 65 and disabled and claiming attendance allowance isn't able to get the discount, especially when that person really needs extra heating.

Blackpool_Saver

It depends on income, income from benefits depends on savings, not suggesting this is you but it may answer your question

Richie-from-the-Boro

DLA care and DLA mobility and AA are are non-means-tested benefits paid by the DWP / taxpayer.

WHD is means-tested benefits for both the core [GOV / DWP decides] & broader group [supplier decides] and paid by the supplier / billpayer.

Sorry mrsyardbroom, its targeted at the poorest and most vulnerable households, in particular the poorer pensioners. Unfortunately for you its paid to relieve fuel poverty, not as a measurement of age illness or disability.

NOTE - 4 year [April 2011 to March 2015] scheme :

£140 '15-16
£130 '13-14
£120 '12-13
£110 '11-12 when the statutory scheme replaced the previous voluntary scheme.

oldboy64

Richie-from-the-Boro wrote: »

DLA care and DLA mobility and AA are are non-means-tested benefits paid by the DWP / taxpayer.

WHD is means-tested benefits for both the core [GOV / DWP decides] & broader group [supplier decides] and paid by the supplier / billpayer.

Sorry mrsyardbroom, its targeted at the poorest and most vulnerable households, in particular the poorer pensioners. Unfortunately for you its paid to relieve fuel poverty, not as a measurement of age illness or disability.

NOTE - 4 year [April 2011 to March 2015] scheme :

£140 '15-16
£130 '13-14
£120 '12-13
£110 '11-12 when the statutory scheme replaced the previous voluntary scheme.

That's a very interesting lot of information but it certainly doesn't help us.

It is for those on a means tested benefit, but for some strange reason those that receive Guaranteed Pension Credit AND a little Savings Credit don't qualify! Guaranteed Pension Credit £114 a week and Savings Credit £2 a week stops all payments!!

macman

mrsyardbroom wrote: »

I'm just looking at the Warm Home Discount for 2013/14 and it seems that all sorts of people are eligible but once again not us. Loads of disabled people can claim providing they're not over 65 and people who are on income support can also claim. I can't believe that someone who is over 65 and disabled and claiming attendance allowance isn't able to get the discount, especially when that person really needs extra heating.

Everyone over 61 will already be getting £200 or £300 extra via the Winter Fuel Payment of course.

oldboy64

The

macman wrote: »

Everyone over 61 will already be getting £200 or £300 extra via the Winter Fuel Payment of course.

I agree, but that has nothing really to do with the situation.

The problems is much bigger than what the OP is seeing.

At one time there were 'social tariffs' for all vulnerable customers. Be them single mums on low income, to severely disabled pensioners on a low income.
In fact receiving a means tested benefit didn't feature for these tariffs.
All you had to show was that you were a vulnerable person.

Those discounted and cheaper tariffs over the past few years have now gone, and in their place one off payments ranging from £120 a year to £140 a year are supposed to be made to those same vulnerable customers to help out because they have had to go onto much more expensive tariffs.

However what has actually been happening is that very few of the original 'social tariff' customers are receiving this money. The restrictions being imposed by both the DWP and the energy providers are so draconian that severely disabled pensioners who are receiving Guaranteed Pension Credit may still not see any of these rebates - simply because they also receive a couple of £'s of Savings Credit. They don't get this money because they have savings, they get it because they have small private pensions which reduce the amount of Guaranteed Pension Credit they get!! In my case I get £2 a week Savings Credit, and £114 of means tested Guaranteed Pension Credit.

Being disabled at any age doesn't qualify either.

Nada666

But almost none of the tariffs for 'vulnerable' customers were market leading cheapest tariffs. Any of them could choose a cheaper tariff themselves and save money that way.

I note you do not specify how much your private pension is. If as a couple you do only receive £116 in total and are expected to draw £90 per week from your savings capital to achieve what other pensioners receive that is an anomaly that should be addressed in a different section.

Richie-from-the-Boro

oldboy64 wrote: »

That's a very interesting lot of information but it certainly doesn't help us.

It is for those on a means tested benefit, but for some strange reason those that receive Guaranteed Pension Credit AND a little Savings Credit don't qualify! Guaranteed Pension Credit £114 a week and Savings Credit £2 a week stops all payments!!

- it, my post and the information in it was not intended to 'help us all'
- its the rules, I don't find it at all strange that there is an arbitrary cut off point for free money
- guarantee element tops up your weekly income if below £145.40 single £222.05 couples
- savings element is a reward for those who saved towards retirement - that's ;
- single total income including pension of £189pw get an extra £18.06pw and couples [£277pw] get an extra £22.89pw

Richie-from-the-Boro

oldboy64 wrote: »

~~~ snip ~~~
Being disabled at any age doesn't qualify either.

- it, the WHD is not awarded for age, illness or disability, but for being 'fuel poor'
- you are correct they don't get this tariff designed for the fuel poor, because they are not classed as fuel poor
- sorry my friend they are the 2010-2014 rules

very few of the original 'social tariff' customers are receiving this money

- suggests that they had an easier ride under the old criteria, and were perhaps not 'poor enough'

severely disabled pensioners

- what level of a DLA award for care or mobility is severely ?

restrictions imposed by the energy providers

- are for the 'broader' group, the GOV decides how poor you are for the core group

mrsyardbroom

We get pension savings credit so of course will not benefit from the Warm Home Discount. What a lot of people don't realise is that it is very expensive to be disabled. You have to do that much more travelling, keep your home warmer, and pay for a special diet so yes, we may be just above the cut off point as far as income goes but when you take away all the extras we have to pay for we have no disposable income left and we're spending our savings.

macman

mrsyardbroom wrote: »

We get pension savings credit so of course will not benefit from the Warm Home Discount. What a lot of people don't realise is that it is very expensive to be disabled. You have to do that much more travelling, keep your home warmer, and pay for a special diet so yes, we may be just above the cut off point as far as income goes but when you take away all the extras we have to pay for we have no disposable income left and we're spending our savings.

Strange. My mother is registered disabled, and none of those factors apply to her. Some disabilities might produce these effects, but it's certainly not automatic.