Martin Lewis is urging people to help spread the word about unredeemed energy vouchers for £66 or £67 that were issued between October 2022 and March 2023 to millions of households as part of the UK Government’s £400 Energy Bills Support Scheme. In a special edition of the Martin Lewis Money Show Live this week, the consumer champion warned 1.7 million vouchers have still not been used and will expire at the end of this month.
He urged anyone using a traditional non-smart prepayment meter who may not have received one or more vouchers, or perhaps lost them, or simply can’t remember if they redeemed them, to contact their energy supplier as soon as possible to have them reissued. This is the final chance for anyone to redeem the vouchers, or Martin said the money - roughly £112 million - will go back to the Uk Government.
Martin told ITV viewers: “It’s crucial money for some of the poorest in society.”
The founder of MoneySavingExpert.com said: “I don’t know how much more loudly we can spread this message, but if you’re a prepayment energy customer you only have a few days left to claim those £66 or £67 a month vouchers that you got.
“This is specifically for those on a non-smart prepay meter - there are 1.7 million of them still unused.
“The deadline for those in England, Scotland and Wales is the end of this month, and at that point, you cannot get them back, they will not be valid, and the money will go back to the UK Government.”
He continued: “We need to spread the word, this is crucial help. If you’ve not got the voucher, lost it or not sure you’ve used it, contact you energy firm and ask them to re-issue it as soon as possible.”
Any lost, missing or expired vouchers can be reissued as long as they are redeemed by June 30.
Almost a quarter of Scottish households with prepayment meters have not redeemed all of their energy rebate vouchers - worth £400 - increasing to one in three in Edinburgh and Glasgow.
At the end of March, there were more than 20,820 vouchers (34%) still unused in Edinburgh and 46,670 (30%) in Glasgow. Aberdeen had 16,890 (26%) vouchers unredeemed, and Dundee had 13,200 (19%) unused.
Energy vouchers help
Advice Direct Scotland is urging people to:
- Check unopened mail and junk email, in case the vouchers have been missed
- Contact energy suppliers, using details found on bills, statements, and official websites
- Contact energyadvice.scot on 0808 196 8660 (Monday to Friday, 9am-5pm) if there are any difficulties getting through to suppliers or resolving issues
Scotland’s consumer charity also urges households self-rationing energy due to the cost of living crisis to seek support from homeheatingadvice.scot.
To keep up to date with the latest cost of living news, join our Money Saving Scotland Facebook page here, follow us on Twitter @Record_Money, or subscribe to our newsletter which goes out Monday to Friday - sign up here.
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