Hi, I'm woodward! Any help for people on CB-ESA and PIP to pay energy bills?

woodward

Is there any help for people on contribution based esa and pip I can afford to put the heating on at all you can see your breath and my health is getting worse 

durhamjaide2001

A whole hearty welcome to this community. I'm going to bring @poppy123456 into this conversation as she is an expert on benefits. As for as heating goes I would suggest Groundworks or Citizens Advice as they might be able to help you more 

poppy123456

Everyone named on an electric energy account will receive £400 from the Government with payments of £66/67 per month from Oct to March. How it paid will depend on your energy supplier.

You should also check your energy suppliers website as they may have extra help for those on low income.

Unfortunately, you will miss out on the cold weather payments if your ESA is all contributions based or New style ESA.

May i ask if your ESA is the old contributions based or is it New style ESA?

If it's new style have you used a benefits calculator to check entitlement to Universal Credit. It's a means tested benefit so if you live with a partner you'll need to claim as a couple and your joint circumstances will be taken into consideration. https://www.entitledto.co.uk/benefits-calculator/Intro/Home?cid=7723833c-1302-4a86-8cd2-a97a9881a893

If you're unsure which ESA it is you're claiming then if your ESA started after Dec 2018 then it's very likely to be New style.

If it's the old contributions based ESA do you have any other income apart from PIP? Did you live alone or with a partner?

durhamjaide2001

Thanks Poppy for stepping in

Cher_Alumni

Hello @woodward and welcome to our online community! I'm glad you found us.

Being cold is awful, and I'm really sorry you're in this situation. It shouldn't be the case that people are sitting in cold homes and I wish I could do more to get you warm right this instant.

Alongside Poppy's advice, I really wanted to signpost you to Scope's Disability Energy Support Service which is entirely free and lets you speak with an energy adviser for 45 minutes. Here's some more of the areas they offer support with:

• managing energy and water debt

• changing your meter

• energy and water efficiency

• accessing benefits, grants, and trusts

• free fuel vouchers (conditions apply)

• contacting or complaining to your supplier

• understanding your gas and electricity bills

• understanding how to use your heating systems

• support registering with the Priority Services Register

Here's a link to apply to the service.

Scope also have this 'Help with your energy bills' webpage that covers benefit support and more. Whilst, here's a link to 'Warm spaces' and Age UK's Warm Homes programme if there's one in your community you could easily visit for a cuppa and a warm at some point soon.

If you feel that your health is deteriorating because of the cold weather, please speak with your GP.

Wishing you all the very best. Please keep us posted with how you get on.

PS: to avoid confusion, I've moved your thread to our 'Benefits and financial support' category and changed the title to help others spot it, who may be in a similar situation.