Millions of homes in England, Wales, and Scotland have been asked to keep an eye out for letters sent out by the government to those eligible for the £150 Warm Home Discount starting from Thursday, Oct. 22, 2026.
The number of households set to receive the one-time discount in the upcoming winter season will grow by 2.3 million to reach six million households, including one million families with children, following the expansion of the scheme by the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero.
The only requirement for being eligible for the discount now is to receive a means-tested benefit such as Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, income-related ESA, or Pension Credit.
Letters will be issued through Jan. 2027, either notifying people of automatic payment or asking them to call a helpline with a unique code by Feb. 26, 2027.
Polly Billington, the Energy Minister, told eligible households to keep an eye out for a letter “confirming that you are eligible” for the discount while the government has already slashed the VAT on electricity bills.
This discount is applied automatically by way of bill credits from October through March or as top-up vouchers for traditional prepaid meter consumers.
This is after the increase in the Ofgem cap to £1,723 in October, with estimates that there could be an increase to £2,165 in January due to the conflict in the US and Iran.
MoneySavingExpert has advised that there could be an increase in scams following the announcement. The government will use letters only and will not send any e-mails, text messages, or telephone calls.
Those people who automatically qualify will not have to do anything. For those people who are not sure whether their letter is genuine, the government helpline number is 0800 030 9322.
