Almost a million low-income pensioners eligible have been urged to make an urgent Winter Fuel payment check.
Labours' decision to scrap the universal winter fuel payments - worth up to £300 - has proven extremely controversial, with commentators such as Martin Lewis calling it a potential disaster.
Those living in rural communities are also thought to be affected the worse, given the conditions in the countryside.
Chancellor Rachel Reeves said last month the payments would instead only be awarded to those eligible for pension credit and other means-tested benefits.
Energy prices are forecast to rise to £1,714 a year in October. This comes at a time when many older people are worried about how they will be able to afford to heat their homes without the Winter Fuel Payment. Sign our petition https://t.co/vO7IhNeky2https://t.co/oWuCqsYcoo
— Age UK Campaigns (@ageukcampaigns) August 19, 2024
She said she had to make the "difficult decision" after being left with a £22billion black hole in the public finances left by the Conservatives.
However, hundreds of thousands of pensions could wrongly miss out on the winter fuel payments because they are not claiming pension credit.
According to the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), around 1.4 million older people are already in receipt of pension credits.
The support is worth almost £4,000 per year and helps struggling pensioners with housing costs, council tax, and heating. But a staggering 880,000 households eligible for the payments are yet to claim.
Seeking to minimise the impact of the cut to winter fuel payments, ministers are today launching the pension credit awareness drive to identify the households before the deadline to apply on December 21.
The DWP plans to tackle "myths" that may stop people from applying - such as how savings, a pension and owning a home are not necessarily barriers to support.
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Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said: “The £22 billion black hole in the public finances we have inherited has required us to take difficult decisions, but I am determined to ensure low-income pensioners are supported.
“That’s why I urge any pensioner, or their loved ones, to check if they could get Pension Credit. This government remains completely committed to pensioners which is why we’re protecting the income of over 12 million pensioners through the Triple Lock.”
The Chancellor Rachel Reeves added: “The dire state of the public finances we inherited from the previous government means we’ve had to make some very difficult decisions."
