Millions of UK households to get £100 energy bill payment – check if you’re eligible
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The chancellor announced a £100 energy payment for around 20 million UK households this winter, aimed at easing pressure from rising bills. It will be paid automatically into bank accounts and is intended to help eligible households through the coldest months until spring.
Eligibility is limited to homes in council tax bands A to D, covering an estimated 80 per cent of fuel-stressed households and 88 per cent of households in the bottom three income deciles. The scheme is expected to cost £2.6 billion, funded in part by a temporary increase in the bank surcharge. The article also says the government will offer councils £100 million for crisis and housing support, and plans to scrap gas standing charges from next year.
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In short
- Around 20 million households are due a £100 payment this winter.
- Eligibility is based on council tax bands A to D.
- The scheme is expected to cost £2.6 billion.
How this story developed
- 52 minutes ago The chancellor announced a £100 energy payment for around 20 million UK households this winter, aimed at easing pressure from rising bills. It will be paid automatically into bank accounts and is intended to help eligible households through the coldest months until spring.
Full account
Up to 20 million households in England are expected to receive a £100 Household Energy Payment from January 2027, following an announcement in Chancellor John Healey’s Autumn Budget. The one-off payment is intended to help with winter energy costs as higher oil and gas prices linked to the conflict in the Middle East put pressure on household finances. The government has put the cost of the scheme at £2.6 billion. It is a payment to households, rather than a reduction applied to an energy supplier’s bill.
In England, eligibility depends chiefly on the council tax band of a household’s main home. People who live in, and are liable for council tax on, a property in bands A to D will qualify; the government says most households exempt from council tax will also be included, although it has yet to publish the full criteria. Second homes, empty properties and households whose occupants are not responsible for council tax are excluded. Residents can check their property’s band through the government’s council tax band service. Those who pay council tax by direct debit should receive the money in their bank account automatically. Councils will invite eligible households that do not pay by direct debit to apply.
The scheme announced for England does not itself set eligibility rules for Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland. Their governments will receive funding to provide comparable help and will decide how to deliver it. The UK government estimates that the English payment will reach 83% of fuel-stressed households and 88% of households in the bottom three income deciles, although council tax bands are not a direct test of income or energy need. It has also announced £100 million for councils to give discretionary help to households outside the payment scheme. The Budget extends the temporary VAT cut on domestic electricity, while a temporary increase in the bank corporation tax surcharge is intended to help fund the energy measures.
The two supplied reports approach the Budget from different angles. The first concentrates on who will receive the £100, how to check a council tax band and the government’s case for urgent winter support. The second places the payment among wider tax and wage measures and gives more space to economists’ concerns about weak growth in household income. That wider context matters: £100 may ease a winter bill, but it does not settle whether households will be better off overall. The reports also give conflicting figures for the bank surcharge; the published Budget specifies an increase from 3% to 6% for 15 months from January 2027.
Where outlets differ
From the full account, which is AI-written from the sources:
Both supplied reports are from The Independent, rather than different outlets. Source 1 emphasises eligibility and payment arrangements; Source 2 emphasises the broader Budget and criticism of its effect on living standards.
Source 1 describes the bank surcharge as rising from 5% to 8%, while Source 2 says it rises from 3% to 6%. The published Budget gives 3% to 6%.
Source 1 describes the payment broadly as reaching households across the UK. Official guidance specifies that the announced eligibility scheme applies in England, with funding provided to devolved governments for similar support.
Source 1 says the scheme covers 80% of fuel-stressed households; current government guidance gives an estimate of 83% in England.
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The case for
A £100 automatic payment could provide timely help with winter bills, especially for lower-income households facing fuel stress, while broad eligibility may reach people who need support without a complex application. Funding it partly through a temporary bank surcharge and adding council crisis support could spread the response across immediate relief and longer-term assistance.
The case against
A universal payment within council tax bands A to D also gives money to households that may not be struggling, while excluding some households in higher bands that could still face severe hardship. At an expected cost of £2.6 billion, critics could argue that more targeted support would direct public funds to those most in need and that a temporary bank surcharge may have wider economic effects.
Explained simply
Energy bills include the cost of the gas and electricity a home uses, along with fixed charges for being connected to the supply. In winter, households often use more energy for heating and lighting, and higher bills can put particular pressure on people with low incomes or homes that are costly to heat.
Council tax bands, which run from A to H in England and Scotland, are based broadly on a home’s value and are used to calculate council tax. They are also used in some government schemes to decide which homes qualify for support, though a home’s band does not show how much its occupants earn or how much energy they use.
The chancellor is the government minister responsible for public finances, including decisions about taxes and public spending. The bank surcharge is an extra tax on banks, so changing it can affect how the government funds measures such as household support.
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