FAQs for the Warm Home Discount scheme

The Warm Home Discount scheme was established by the Warm Home Discount Regulations in 2011. The government has extended the scheme through to March 2026. The scheme is split up in scheme years. Scheme year 11 ended on 31 March 2022, followed by the scheme year 12 which will run until the 31 March 2023. Spending incurred by a compulsory scheme electricity supplier between 1 April 2022 and the commencement day may be counted towards the WHD spending for scheme year 12. SY12 of the WHD commenced on 7 July 2022 in England and Wales. The WHD Scotland is yet to commence once the Order comes into force. The following scheme years 13, 14, and 15 each run from 1 April for a 12-month period. 

The scheme requires participating domestic energy suppliers, including those who volunteer for the scheme, to provide support to persons on low-income and who are vulnerable to cold-related illness or living wholly or mainly in fuel poverty in Great Britain.

This support may be direct, through energy bill rebates of £150 to eligible customers. Indirect support is available through third parties acting on behalf of suppliers who help customers by offering them services to reduce fuel poverty and the associated impacts -these are known as Industry Initiatives.

In order for you to benefit from the £150 WHD rebate, you must buy your energy from an obligated energy supplier and meet certain eligibility requirements. Even if you don’t buy your energy from an obligated supplier, you may be able to benefit under the Industry Initiative element of the scheme since these tend to target wider groups of fuel poor consumers. 

Scheme year (SY) 12 has a supplier participation threshold of 50,000 domestic customer accounts in GB. This threshold will be lowered to 1,000 from SY 13 in 2023/24 onwards and we expect the list of obligated suppliers to increase as a result.

The following energy suppliers are compulsory participants in SY 12 of the scheme:

• British Gas
• Bulb Energy
• E (Gas and Electricity)
• E.ON
• Ecotricity
• EDF Energy
• So Energy Outfox the Market
• Good Energy
• Octopus Energy
• OVO Energy
• Scottish Power
• Shell Energy
• Utility Warehouse
• Utilita

The following supplier are voluntary member of the scheme and only offers support under the ‘Core Group’ element

• Green Energy (UK)
• Rebel Energy

Some obligated energy suppliers work with ‘white label’ energy providers who themselves do not hold a licence to supply electricity and gas to domestic properties. Instead, they partner with the licensed supplier to offer gas and electricity using its own brand.

This means that those white label providers also offer the WHD to their customers. You can view a full list of these on the government’s website.

To be eligible for the £150 WHD rebate you must firstly buy your energy from a participating energy supplier. Secondly, you need to meet the eligibility criteria for the England and Wales Core 1 or Core Group 2 or Scotland Core Group or Broader Group elements of the scheme. Not all energy suppliers are part of the WHD scheme.

You may be able to benefit under the Industry Initiative element of the scheme even if you don’t buy your energy from a participating supplier, since these tend to target wider groups of fuel poor consumers. You can speak to any obligated energy supplier about the Industry Initiatives they offer, you do not have to buy your energy from them.

We have outlined the Warm Home Discount eligibility requirements for each aspect of the scheme below. Consult your energy supplier for further detail on eligibility requirements. However, please note that list is non-exhaustive, and you should consult our WHD guidance version 1 for England and Wales, our draft WHD guidance for Scotland v0.1. Further information on the schemes can be found in the government response to the consultation on the WHD from 2022 for England and Wales as well as Scotland.

Customers on a direct debit are credited the amount of the rebate to their electricity account or if requested by a customer, to their gas account. Customers that prepay for electricity or gas are credited against future energy use. Suppliers can also tender payment to the customer.

Some customers, for example prepayment meter (PPM) customers or Core Group customers who have since switched supplier, often receive their rebate via a voucher, cheque or Special Action Message (SAM). Where such a payment is not redeemed, or accepted suppliers must make at least one reasonable attempt to deliver the rebates to customers and make sure that the voucher is redeemed.

What is the Core Group 1?

The Core Group 1 is an element of the WHD scheme intended to support some pensioners, through a direct annual rebate of £150 to their electricity or gas accounts.

You are eligible for the rebate in scheme year 12 (England and Wales WHD from 7 July 2022 / Scotland WHD yet to commence until 31 March 2023) if on the qualifying date all of the following criteria applied:

• You are an England or Wales domestic customer
• Your energy supplier is a participating compulsory or voluntary supplier,
• You or your partner’s name is on the energy bill, and
• You receive the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit.

Most customers identified as eligible for the Core Group 1 rebate receive this automatically because of a data matching exercise between energy suppliers and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

If you qualify for the WHD under the Core Group 1 you will receive a letter in autumn or winter telling you that you’ll get the discount.

What is the Core Group 2?

The Core Group 2 element of the Warm Home Discount scheme places an obligation on compulsory participant suppliers to provide £150 rebates to low-income households that are more likely to have high energy costs and therefore most in need of support with energy bills. Households in receipt of certain means-tested benefits and income-capped Tax Credits would be deemed as low income and are eligible under the Core Group 2. These include:

• Income related Employment and Support Allowance
• Income based Jobseeker’s Allowance
• Income Support
• Universal Credit
• Housing benefit
• Child Tax Credits and Working Tax Credits
• Pension Credit Savings Credit (PCSC).

Government-held data is used to identify low-income and high-energy-cost households under Core Group 2. Data is matched on benefits and Tax Credit receipt, which is held by DWP, property characteristics, provided by the VOA, and customer accounts held by the participating energy suppliers. Other data sources would also be used by the government where data is missing or by customers to provide alternative evidence. Further information on this process can be found in the government consultation on the WHD from 2022.

Those households who, in absence of VOA data, have had any of their property characteristics imputed, will be contacted by letter. The Government would therefore send additional letters informing you either that:

• You are eligible to receive an automatic rebate and do not need to take any action or
• You may call the helpline to use alternative evidence. If your energy costs are below the threshold and your costs have been calculated on the basis of imputed characteristics, you will be contacted and directed to the helpline should you wish to challenge the decision.

What is the Scottish Core Group?

The Scottish Core Group is an element of the WHD scheme intended to support some pensioners, through a direct annual rebate of £150 to their electricity or gas accounts.

You are eligible for the rebate in scheme year 12 (England and Wales WHD from 7 July 2022 / Scotland WHD yet to commence until 31 March 2023) if on the qualifying date all of the following criteria applied:

• You are a Scotland domestic customer
• Your energy supplier is a participating compulsory or voluntary supplier,
• You or your partner’s name is on the energy bill, and
• You receive the Guarantee Credit element of Pension Credit.

Most customers identified as eligible for the Scottish Core Group rebate receive this automatically because of a data matching exercise between energy suppliers and the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP).

If you qualify for the WHD under the Scottish Core Group you will receive a letter in autumn or winter telling you that you’ll get the discount.

What is the Broader Group?

Customers must apply directly to obligated energy suppliers to get the rebate, with suppliers often publishing on their website details on how to apply over the summer months (this may vary in SY12 due to the Warm Home Discount reform timelines)

The eligibility criteria for benefitting under the Broader Group are set out in the Regulations and in our draft Scotland WHD guidance version 0.1. Participating suppliers must offer the Broader Group WHD rebate to customers who meet the compulsory set of criteria. The compulsory criteria can be found in the following table:

^{* “relevant periodic amount” means one twelfth of the relevant annual amount for the scheme year (rounded upwards to the nearest £1). “Relevant annual amount” means for scheme year 12, £17,005. For each subsequent scheme year, the relevant annual amount for the preceding scheme year will be increased or decreased by the percentage increase or decrease in the consumer prices index over the 12-month period ending with the 30th September in the preceding scheme year (the resulting figure being rounded upwards to the nearest £1).}

In order to offer the WHD rebate to a wider range of customers, suppliers can add their own additional eligibility criteria to the compulsory criteria, as long as Ofgem approve.  This is at a supplier’s discretion and means that they may vary in who they offer the Broader Group rebate to. We would advise contacting your energy supplier directly to find out if you are eligible to receive the rebate.

Energy suppliers who voluntarily participate in the Warm Home Discount scheme do not provide Broader Group rebates.

It is important to note that receiving the Broader Group rebate one year does not guarantee you’ll receive it in the future. Many suppliers operate a first-come first-served approach to paying their Broader Group rebates, and an energy supplier’s eligible customers under the Broader Group may exceed the number of rebates they are required to deliver.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) administers the Core Group elements of the WHD, along with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). You can contact the Warm Home Discount Team if you do not get a letter but believe you qualify. You can also contact them if you want further information about the scheme, using the details below:

Warm Home Discount Team

Blue Zone, Ground Floor Phase 1

Peel Park

Brunel Way

Blackpool

FY4 5ES

Industry Initiatives can indirectly help fuel-poor customers through third parties. Depending on the obligated supplier’s programmes and third-party providers it can include advice on energy saving, help with reducing energy debts, provide smart meter advice and energy efficiency measures. All obligated suppliers will have Industry Initiatives as they meet their non-core obligation under the WHD through providing Industry Initiatives.

You may be able to benefit under the Industry Initiative element of the scheme even if you don’t buy your energy from a participating supplier, since these tend to target wider groups of fuel poor consumers.

Yes, those living in park homes can apply for the Park Home WHD rebate. This has been established as an Industry Initiative project.

You can apply for the park Homes WHD rebate if you are resident on a park home site and pay for your electricity through your park, or as part of your pitch fees. If successful, customers will receive a one-off payment of £150 towards their energy bills. This scheme is independently administered by Charis Grants Limited.

Funding for the Park Home WHD scheme is limited and all applications are reviewed in order of date received up until the scheme closes.

For more information please visit the Park Homes Warm Home Discount website.

Core Group 1, Core Group 2 and Scottish Core Group

If you were with a participating supplier on the qualifying date for the respective scheme year and you were eligible under a Core Group element, the supplier you were with will be instructed to pay you. We would advise you to contact the supplier you were with on the qualifying date to check they still have your contact details and to ask how and when you will be paid the rebate.

If you were not with a participating supplier on the qualifying date and you have switched to a participating supplier after that date, even though you may be eligible under the Core Group element, you will not receive the rebate as part of the Core Groups in the respective scheme year.

Broader Group

If you are eligible to receive the WHD rebate with your current supplier and are thinking about changing suppliers, you may wish to check that the supplier you are considering moving to also participates in the WHD scheme and that you are eligible under their scheme.

If you are successful in applying for a Broader Group rebate with one energy supplier, then we would suggest you wait until you have received the rebate before switching to a new supplier. If you received a Broader Group rebate from your old supplier, you should not assume that you will be entitled to receive a Broader Group rebate from your new supplier.

Ofgem’s Confidence Code is a code of practice that governs independent energy price comparison sites. This means that sites covered by the Code must inform you whether the supplier you are considering moving to participate in the WHD scheme or not. 

In most cases suppliers must provide the Core Group rebates by 31 March of each scheme year. We encourage suppliers to provide Core Group rebates over the winter months as far as possible to help consumers when they need it most.

If you are eligible, you should receive a letter from Government in November and December. In most cases, you will not need to do anything. Some people may be asked to contact a government helpline to confirm their eligibility. The helpline will be open from mid-November until the end of February for any claims. 

If you think you should be eligible for a rebate under the Core Groups but you have not received a letter, you should check the Warm Home Discount gov.uk website for more information about eligibility and details about the helpline. 

If you have been told you are eligible for a rebate but have not received it by March 2023, or for any other payment issues, contact your energy supplier. 

You can also contact the Energy Saving Trust for advice on saving energy and on eligibility for support, and Citizens Advice and Simple Energy Advice for information on saving money on energy bills.

Finally, there is more information on the support for consumers on our website, including how to switch supplier. 

If you have any further questions, please contact us on our Warm Home Discount mailbox, WHD@ofgem.gov.uk.

The current scheme year (12) runs from 7 July 2022 in England and Wales and from the commencement date of the Order in Scotland. SY 12 will terminate on 31 March 2023 for both the E&W as well as the Scotland WHD. The scheme years 13 – 15 run from 1 April of each year until the following 31 March.  

If you think you will be obligated for the WHD scheme in the future, please read our WHD England and Wales guidance or draft WHD Scotland guidance v0.1 and contact us at WHD@ofgem.gov.uk.

Please note that each domestic supplier is required to notify us of the number of domestic consumers it has on the 31 December preceding the start of a scheme year. We contacted suppliers requesting this information in January – February 2022 for scheme year 12 of the scheme. We will contact suppliers in January-February of the following scheme years to establish their obligations for the respective scheme years. 

We use that information to determine who is obligated and the size of their non-core obligations.

We are happy to meet with all newly obligated suppliers to help them understand the scheme requirements and processes. 

If you are interested in becoming a voluntary supplier for Warm Home Discount, please first refer to our WHD England and Wales guidance or our draft WHD Scotland guidance v0.1 which outlines how we administer the Warm Home Discount scheme and how we expect participating suppliers to comply with scheme requirements. Please note that voluntary suppliers only have an obligation under the Core Groups and must comply with all aspects of the Core Groups for the relevant scheme year. For any questions and to express an interest in becoming a voluntary supplier for Warm Home Discount, please email WHD@ofgem.gov.uk.

If you are an obligated supplier under Warm Home Discount, you can meet your non-core spending obligation through Industry Initiatives.

These are activities which help fuel poor customers in ways other than providing energy bill rebates. They can often be delivered in partnership with other organisations, using funding from energy supplier(s). They can last over the course of a scheme year or extend across multiple years.

An Industry Initiative must be an activity permitted under by the WHD England and Wales 2022 Regulations or the WHD Scotland 2022 Regulations. Examples include:

• Providing energy advice.
• Paying organisations to refer customers who are in fuel poverty or a fuel poverty risk group and are, or may be, eligible to receive assistance through the WHD or for any other assistance from the supplier.
• Providing benefit entitlement checks and/or assistance in claiming benefits.
• Providing energy efficiency measures, thermal efficiency measures, energy efficient appliances or micro generation.
• Funding training for people to provide energy advice.
• Providing assistance with energy debts, as part of a package of measures aimed at giving customers long-term relief from fuel poverty.
• Provision of rebates to eligible occupants of mobile homes.
• Providing energy advice or energy efficiency measures to customers in off-gas grid homes, living in households with a person who has a significant health problem or disability, or living in communities where residents are wholly or mainly in fuel poverty.

See our WHD England and Wales guidance or our draft WHD Scotland guidance v0.1 for further information on Industry Initiatives.

Warm Home Discount Annual Reports for each scheme year can be found here:

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 1

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 2

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 3

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 4

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 5

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 6

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 7

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 8

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 9

Warm Home Discount Annual Report Scheme Year 10

Third parties wishing to deliver an Industry Initiative in conjunction with a compulsory participating supplier should first familiarise themselves with the eligibility requirements and process, as set out in our WHD England and Wales guidance or our draft WHD Scotland guidance v0.1.

Different energy suppliers have varying approaches to Industry Initiatives, and so organisations are encouraged to contact suppliers directly with proposals for projects. In order to help facilitate these discussions, Ofgem may run events with obligated parties and other stakeholders to make connections and discuss proposals. If you are interested in attending one of these events, contact WHD@ofgem.gov.uk.

Please contact WHD@ofgem.gov.uk for a copy of the notification template used by energy suppliers to gain approval for specific Industry Initiatives.