Energy Bills Support Scheme - Rejection due to change of address

davidallen222

Good afternoon

The government have notified me that my application for the £400 assistance with energy bills has been rejected. Up until the end of February I was living in a park home, paying for my energy directly to the park owner, and therefore qualified to receive the funds.

I moved home at the end of February, just as the application portal opened for people to claim the £400.

It appears that gov.uk then do a check via the relevant council, to confirm that you are living in the property that you are claiming for. This process would have been early March, and of course by that time I’d already moved, so I assume the council responded that I was not living at the park home as at the time of check.

Speaking to the EBSS gov.uk helpline did not get me any further and the implication was that you have to be living in a park home (or other eligible property) at the time of applying! This is unfair since the £400 relates to October to February.

Has anyone else had this issue, or have any suggestions? I will continue to challenge it in the meantime.

Thanks
David

Spoonie_Turtle

Do you remember whether the application specified a date, i.e. 'this is based on your circumstances on X February'?

davidallen222

Hi

It was an online form on gov.uk that asked

details of the property type (eg park home)
address
confirmation that council tax was paid on it
confirmation that it was your only home
confirmation that you had not received the monthly £67 discounts
your name
and bank account.

No specific dates were mentioned and the information page refers to the fact that the £400 is in lieu of the £67 monthly payments from October 2022 (which I did not get as a residential park home owner)

It said that your council would be asked to confirm you lived there - I assume they hadn’t thought to specify to the Council whether you had been living there from October to Feb/March, and not at the time of the application.

rangout

You should be able to appeal

Call them on 0808 175 3287 to explain

davidallen222

rangout said:

You should be able to appeal

Call them on 0808 175 3287 to explain

 Thanks, however that is the helpline that I called where they said that you had to still be living in the property at the time of claiming. I’ve asked for it to be escalated to the next level - fingers crossed!

MrsWhippy

I've been rejected too. I live in a block of flats and I pay my electric bill through my maintenance company. The email I received said my address showed I had already received it  - which I haven't. Also I haven't changed address.

I've phoned the helpline and I've been told it's being escalated to the next level. I was told by the helpline that quite a few other people have rung up claiming they have been rejected unfairly.