Warm Home Discount offers £150 off energy bills – what is it and who can get it?

The colder months generally lead to higher heating bills – but there’s support on offer to the most vulnerable through the Warm Home Discount.

The Warm Home Discount (WHD) is a £150 rebate which is applied to eligible people’s energy bills once a year.

The Department for Energy Security and Net Zero has extended the Warm Home Discount until 2031. It was due to end in March 2026 but will now run for a further five years.

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The eligibility criteria for households in England and Wales has also been streamlined meaning those that fit into one single “core group” will qualify for a rebate. Households were previously assessed on whether they fit into two different core groups.

Hundreds of thousands more households in Scotland will receive the Warm Home Discount automatically from 2026/27 as well.

Ed Miliband, energy secretary, said tackling the “affordability crisis” was the government’s “number one priority”.

He added the extension of the Warm Home Discount will “give families much-needed peace of mind that they will continue to receive vital support in the cold winter months”.

How exactly does the discount work, who is eligible and when is it issued?

What is the Warm Home Discount?

The Warm Home Discount is a government scheme designed to help households cover additional heating costs that can rack up over the colder months.

It was introduced in 2011 and gives eligible households £150 off their energy bills.

It is not a cash payment like the Winter Fuel Payment. Rather, it’s applied as a credit on eligible households’ energy accounts at some point between October and March.

The vast majority of households in England and Wales receive the discount automatically, but some have to apply for it.

Who can get the Warm Home Discount?

The Warm Home Discount is not available to all households. Instead, you have to be on a means-tested benefit.

Households in England and Wales are eligible for the discount if they are in receipt of any of the following benefits:

• Housing Benefit
• Income-related Employment and Support Allowance (ESA)
• Income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA)
• Income Support
• Pension Credit (Guarantee Credit and Savings Credit)
• Universal Credit

Roughly six million households are expected to get the discount in 2025/26, 2.7 million more than last year, according to the government.

Not all energy suppliers participate in the Warm Home Discount scheme. A full list of suppliers that do can be found on gov.uk.

You may be able to get the discount if your household is on the Ofgem energy price cap or if you switched to a fixed energy tariff.

Households that are eligible for the benefit should receive a letter in the post confirming they will get £150 off their energy bills each winter. Typically, letters arrive between October and January.

How to get the Warm Home Discount

The Warm Home Discount is usually issued automatically, as energy providers use the names and addresses on energy bills to check if you are eligible for the credit.

This winter, 96% of eligible households are receiving their discount automatically.

However, a small minority need to provide the government with extra details in order to get the credit added to their energy bills.

These households may need to provide an electricity bill or statement to confirm the billpayer’s name and account number.

If you think you should have received the discount and did not automatically get it, then the government says you should contact your energy supplier in the first instance.

If your supplier cannot help, then they advise you to write to the Warm Home Discount scheme. Details of how to do this are on gov.uk.

Meanwhile, anyone who has not received a letter detailing their eligibility for the Warm Home Discount or who has not received a discount by 27 February should get in touch with the Warm Home Discount scheme.

Last year, the government also urged those who recently moved home or switched energy suppliers to make sure they were named on their energy bills by 24 August to ensure they could get the discount.

Households on pre-payment meters using keys or cards to top up were also told to ensure their household’s account was registered in their name.

Can you get the Warm Home Discount and the Winter Fuel Allowance?

If you are eligible for the Warm Home Discount and also the Winter Fuel Payment, you can get both benefits as they are two separate government schemes.

While the government had previously restricted the Winter Fuel Payment to pensioners on Pension Credit, they backtracked from this position in June 2025.

This winter, pensioners with an annual income over £35,000 did not get the cash payment worth up to £300.

We explain how to boost your chances of getting the Winter Fuel Payment in a separate piece.