The ultimate guide to energy bill help available from suppliers – households can get up to £1,500

Customers struggling with high energy bills can get help from energy firms including grants of up to £1,500, free electrical goods and better insulation.

The average home currently pays energy bills of £1,834 a year, but all suppliers have to give some support for certain customers, such as the elderly, vulnerable and those in fuel poverty, under government rules.

The first step for someone struggling with energy bills is to speak to their energy firm.

These firms have to try to set up an affordable payment plan under Ofgem rules, or review one already in place.

Not for everyone: Much of the help available is targeted at the vulnerable and pensioners

Energy firms can also offer help such as payment holidays and a review of any debt repayments.

But they can also go further, with measures such as grants, replacement of old white goods and free help to make homes warmer. The larger energy firms tend to offer more extra financial help than the smaller ones.

However, many of the details of this energy firm help is tricky to track down, and many have rigid criteria for who can apply. Additionally, all energy firms offer slightly different support.

Here is a comprehensive breakdown of all the extra financial help available according to which energy company you are with, as well as details of firms planning to bring in this support in time for the winter.

Help from individual energy firms 

British Gas

British Gas has grants of up to £1,500, for both its own customers and those signed up to any other energy firm.

Customers of British Gas can access this money through the British Gas Energy Support Fund, which opened on October 2.

The fund can give grants to households struggling to pay energy bills, but they will have to meet the criteria.

To be successful, you must:

• Be in England, Scotland or Wales
• Not have had a British Gas grant in the past 12 months
• Want the money to clear outstanding energy debt of between £250 and £1,500 for you or your household
• Be in, or face, fuel poverty, defined as spending at least 10 per cent of your income on energy bills
• Have already had help from a money advice agency

To access these grants you will also have to show proof of income and spending, to meet the criterium about fuel poverty.

Seeing double: British Gas runs two schemes to help both its own customers and those signed up to any other energy company

If you are not a British Gas customer, you can still get grants of up to £1,500 through a different scheme the energy firm runs called the British Gas Energy Trust and Individuals Family Fund.

To access this money, you must:

• Be in England, Scotland or Wales
• Not have had a British Gas grant in the past 12 months
• Want the money to clear outstanding energy debt for your household
• Not have more than £1,000 in savings
• Have already had help from a money advice agency

You will also have to show proof of income and spending.

You can apply for both grants on the British Gas Energy Trust website.

EDF Energy

Customers of EDF can access the firm’s Customer Support Fund, which can write off energy debt for vulnerable customers and supply energy-efficient white goods, as well as freeze daily standing charges.

To get access to this fund you must first get independent debt advice and then apply here.

EDF will require details of your household finances and why you consider yourself or your household to be vulnerable.

E.On Next

Customers of E.On Next on low incomes can get up to 50 per cent knocked off their energy bills until March 2024.

The energy firm launched its Winter Affordability Support Scheme in October 2023, which is open to its customers with lower incomes or with medical requirements.

To apply, you must:

• Have been a customer of E.On Next by September 25, 2023
• Have a smart meter or agree to get one fitted
• Pay energy bills via monthly direct debit or be on a prepayment meter

You must also meet at least one of the following three criteria:

• Have a yearly household income of less than £19,000 and permitted to get the Warm Home Discount mentioned above, or have previously received the ‘broader group’ Warm Home Discount open to those of working age
• Have a yearly household income of less than £19,000 and spend more on bills than you are able to afford
• Have a yearly household income of less than £31,000 and medical needs such as a ventilator or dialysis machine

If you meet these requirements but have no energy debt you can still apply to get 25 per cent off your E.On Next bills this winter.

An E.On Next spokesperson said customers that access the scheme can also have energy debt written off at the end of March 2024.

Additionally, the E.On Next Energy Fund pays grants towards bills, as well as other help such as replacement of old inefficient white goods and the writing off of debt for customers that cannot afford to pay their bills.

You can access the E.On Next Energy Fund online.

Good Energy

Good Energy customers can get some of their energy debt written off if they contact the firm.

Octopus Energy

Octopus customers can apply for grants of up to £500 and have their standing charges waived by contacting the Octo Assist fund. 

You will need to share your financial details, including income and spending, to be able to get any grants or standing charges waived.

The energy company can also offer to send experts to your home to work out ways you might be able to cut your energy use, and therefore bills.

Ovo

Ovo has a £40million fund going live on October 30 that can give energy bill reductions for all eligible customers as well as credit top-ups for those on prepayment meters.

Last year Ovo also ran a hardship fund that offered grants to struggling customers too, though the scheme was pulled after the winter of 2022.

Exact details of how this will work in 2023 should be available soon.

Shell Energy

Shell Energy customers can draw on a £20million hardship fund the firm set up to help pay energy bills.

However, customers cannot apply for the fund directly.

Instead, Shell Energy customers must contact the firm, who then look at their circumstances and decide if they should get any money from the pot.

Customers can do this online.

Octopus Energy has signed a deal to buy Shell Energy, which is meant to happen before the end of the year.

Scottish Power

Scottish Power has a hardship fund that can pay variable levels of grants to help with energy bills.

To be eligible, you must be claiming Income Support, Jobseekers Allowance, Pension Credit or Employment and Support Allowance.

Otherwise you may qualify by having a low household income or have special circumstances such as losing income due to illness.

From there, you must speak to a debt charity such as Step Change, who can then refer you on to Sigma Connected Support, that handle hardship fund payouts for Scottish Power.

You can see more details on the hardship fund here. 

So Energy

The energy firm has pledged to set up a hardship fund in time for this winter.

Help from all energy firms 

In addition to the help provided by individual energy companies, there is also assistance provided by broad swathes of these firms. 

Warm Home Discount

The Warm Home Discount is a £150 discount to energy bills, and is run by all energy firms with more than 1,000 customers – effectively all of them.

It goes out to two groups: those who get the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit and those on certain means-tested benefits.

Households with a standard meter get the £150 as a rebate on their bills, while those with pre-payment meters get a voucher.

Customers do not need to apply, as the Government tells energy firms which customers should get the money.

Payments will be made between October 2023 and March 2024.

Energy Company Obligation

The Energy Company Obligation fits eligible homes with energy-saving upgrades such as insulation, better boilers and heat pumps.

The scheme uses Government money and all medium and large energy firms have had to sign up to run it.

These include British Gas, E, E.On, EDF, Octopus Energy, Ovo Energy, Scottish Power, Shell Energy and more.

To be eligible, you must like in a home with an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) rating of D or below and be claiming one of the following benefits:

• Child Benefit
• Pension Guarantee Credit
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income Support
• Tax Credits (Child Tax Credits and Working Tax Credits)
• Universal Credit
• Housing benefit
• Pension credit saving credit

You must also own your own home, or be a renter whose landlord has agreed to upgrade a let property.

You do not need to be a customer of a participating energy firm to apply, as the scheme is open to all eligible households.

The programme is now on its fourth version, called ECO4.

If you are not claiming any of the above benefits, but are on a low income, you may still be able to get energy upgrades to your home through a sister scheme, ECO4 Flex.

To qualify you will need to be in fuel debt that your energy firm is helping you with, or using a prepayment meter and unable to afford to top it up.