Warm Home Discount 2026 — Who Qualifies and How to Get It
The Warm Home Discount is a credit on the electricity bill of eligible households. Check the current amount, availability and official route below.
What the Warm Home Discount is
Can you get it right now?
The scheme is running. GOV.UK says letters go out between late October 2026 and early January 2027 and suppliers apply the discount by 31 March 2027. If you think you are eligible and have no letter by early January 2027, contact the Warm Home Discount Scheme before 26 February 2027. In Scotland, if you need to apply to your supplier, do it as early as possible: the number of discounts suppliers can give is limited.
- What you get
- £150A one-off £150 off your electricity bill. Your electricity supplier applies it to your bill and the money is not paid to you. If the same supplier provides your gas and electricity you may be able to have it on your gas bill instead, so contact your supplier to find out. On a pre-pay or pay-as-you-go electricity meter your supplier can tell you how you will get it, for example a voucher to top up the meter. It does not affect a Cold Weather Payment or Winter Fuel Payment.
- Where it applies
- England, Scotland and Wales
- Who qualifies, as published
- A one-off discount on an electricity bill, applied by the electricity supplier rather than paid to the household. GOV.UK says you may be eligible if all of these applied on 23 August 2026: your energy supplier was part of the scheme, you or your partner got certain means-tested benefits, and your name or your partner's was on the electricity bill. In England and Wales the qualifying benefits are Universal Credit, Housing Benefit, income-related Employment and Support Allowance and Pension Credit, and this is called the "core group". Scotland is different. Its "core group", who get the discount automatically, is where you or your partner get Pension Credit, get an extra amount of Universal Credit because you or your child has a disability or health condition, get a disability premium or pensioner premium of income-related Employment and Support Allowance, or get one of those premiums and have a Support for Mortgage Interest loan. It also covers you if you or your partner are responsible for a child under 5 who normally lives with you and you are unemployed and get Universal Credit, get income-related Employment and Support Allowance, or have a Support for Mortgage Interest loan. If you are in Scotland and do not get it automatically you are in the "broader group" and must apply to your electricity supplier, which may set extra criteria and will say which benefits count. Not available in Northern Ireland.
- How you get it
- In England and Wales, and for Scotland's core group, you will usually get it automatically. A letter between late October 2026 and early January 2027 will either confirm you do not need to do anything, with the discount applied by 31 March 2027, or ask you to call the helpline by 26 February 2027 to confirm your details. If you think you are eligible and have no letter by early January 2027, contact the Warm Home Discount Scheme on 0800 030 9322 before 26 February 2027. In Scotland's broader group, contact your electricity supplier to check whether you are eligible and how to apply, even if you were eligible last year. There is no letter from the scheme on this route, the discount is applied by 31 March 2027, and you must stay with that supplier until it is paid. If your supplier has stopped trading, check with the new supplier Ofgem appoints. Park home residents apply a different way, through the Park Homes Warm Home Discount.
- Who runs it
- Participating energy suppliers, under Ofgem administration
Whether you qualify is not decided here
This page states the published criteria and nothing more. The decision is made by the people running the scheme, using facts about your household that this site cannot see. Anyone telling you the answer without those is guessing.
Check your eligibility on GOV.UKThis summary was checked against GOV.UK on 6 November 2026.
| Scheme | Where it applies | Who runs it |
|---|---|---|
| Warm Home Discountthis page | England, Scotland and Wales | Participating energy suppliers, under Ofgem administration |
| Winter Fuel Payment | England, Wales and Northern Ireland | Department for Work and Pensions |
| Pension Age Winter Heating Payment | Scotland | Social Security Scotland |
Which suppliers run it
Not every supplier takes part, and the list can change each scheme year.
Being on this list is one of three conditions
Your energy supplier has to be taking part, you or your partner have to get certain means-tested benefits, and your name or your partner’s has to be on the electricity bill. Finding your supplier below does not mean you get the discount, and this site cannot see the other two conditions for you.
Check the other conditions on GOV.UKGOV.UK lists 24 suppliers. GOV.UK does not specify a scheme year for this list. Names are shown exactly as GOV.UK writes them, because some are brands of others and the pointer is the useful part.
- 100Green (formerly Green Energy UK or GEUK)
- Boost
- British Gas
- E - also known as E (Gas and Electricity)
- Ecotricity
- EDF
- EnergyCoop – see Octopus Energy
- E.ON Next
- Fuse Energy
- Good Energy
- Home Energy
- London Power
- Octopus Energy
- Outfox Energy
- OVO
- Sainsbury’s Energy
- Scottish Gas – see British Gas
- ScottishPower
- So Energy
- Square 1 Energy Ltd
- TruEnergy
- Tulo Energy
- Utilita
- Utility Warehouse
Read from GOV.UK on 6 November 2026. If your supplier stopped trading, Ofgem appoints a new one and you may still be eligible — check with whoever supplies you now. See the official list
How the rules differ by nation
In England and Wales, eligible households are usually identified automatically. Scotland also has a broader group that may need to apply through its electricity supplier. Northern Ireland is not covered. Use the official checker for the rules where you live.
This is not the Winter Fuel Payment. Warm Home Discount is an electricity-account credit; Winter Fuel Payment is a separate cash payment for older people.
If you think you should have had it
Check your electricity account first because the discount appears as a credit rather than a cash payment.
If you were confirmed eligible and the credit is missing, contact your electricity supplier. The official page gives the deadline and next steps if the supplier cannot help.
Frequently asked questions
Do I qualify for the Warm Home Discount?
This page cannot tell you, and neither can any other page that does not know your benefits, your energy supplier and whose name is on your electricity bill. In England and Wales, and for the core group in Scotland, GOV.UK says the answer usually arrives as a letter. In the broader group in Scotland, your electricity supplier tells you. What this page can do is state the published criteria and send you to the official guide.
Is the Warm Home Discount paid to me in cash?
No. It is a credit applied to your electricity account by your supplier, not money paid into your bank. That is the single most common misunderstanding about it, and it is why it is worth knowing the difference from the Winter Fuel Payment, which is a cash payment from the DWP. If one supplier provides both your gas and your electricity, you may be able to have the credit against the gas bill instead — contact your supplier to find out.
Do I have to apply?
Usually not. In England and Wales, and for what the scheme calls the "core group" in Scotland, GOV.UK says you will usually get it automatically. A letter then either confirms you do not need to do anything or asks you to call the helpline to confirm your details. If you are in Scotland and do not get it automatically, you are in the "broader group" and must apply directly to your electricity supplier, which may set extra criteria and will tell you which benefits count. If you are in Scotland and expecting it automatically, that assumption is worth checking. Park home residents apply a different way.
Can I get it in Northern Ireland?
No. The Warm Home Discount covers Great Britain — England, Scotland and Wales. Northern Ireland has no equivalent scheme of this name, which is why this page never describes the scheme as UK-wide. Northern Ireland households are covered by the Winter Fuel Payment, which is a different scheme with a different scope again.
Where should I check the current rules?
Use the official GOV.UK checker linked on this page. It gives the current rules and is the only place that can confirm what you need to do.
