Energy bill support vouchers MUST be claimed by 30 June
Prepayment meter customers have TWO DAYS left to claim utility bill vouchers worth up to £400: here’s what to do if you haven’t claimed yours yet
- There’s £100m left in unclaimed vouchers, which expire in two days
- Of the 15 areas with the most unredeemed vouchers, 13 are in London
Prepayment meter customers still have two days to claim vouchers worth up to £400 to help with their utility bills.
The vouchers will expire at 11:59 PM on Friday, June 30, so customers will need to put the money on their meter before then to take advantage.
The vouchers were originally due to be paid out in six installments of £66 or £67 from October 2022 to March 2023.
But many have not yet been redeemed by those on prepayment meters, and some £100 million remain unclaimed.
Time is running out: customers with prepayment meters have until June 30 to redeem support vouchers for utility bills
The vouchers sent by energy suppliers would have been issued by email, SMS or post.
The money was automatically put on the utility bills of direct debit customers, but those with prepayment meters must take their vouchers to a local post office or PayPoint store to have them credited.
Some of the reasons why vouchers have not been redeemed are customers who have not received them due to incorrect details, or the person has moved and their details have not been updated, or they have lost or deleted the voucher.
Here’s what to do if yours has gone missing, or if you received one but haven’t redeemed it yet and it has expired.
Lost, missing or expired vouchers can be reissued as long as they are redeemed by the end of June.
Tell your energy supplier if this is the case and they should be able to reissue one – although it now has to be via text or email to meet the deadline.
If you have trouble using the voucher or are unsure how to redeem it, you should immediately contact your electricity supplier for assistance, according to the government.
If you’ve banked up your vouchers to redeem them all at once, it’s worth noting that most prepayment meters can only hold a maximum of around £250 in energy credit at a time.
Many of the lowest take-up areas are in London, with 13 of the top 15 constituencies for unredeemed vouchers.
| % vouchers not redeemed | Constituency |
|---|---|
| 44% | Cities of London and Westminster |
| 44% | Hampstead and Kilburn |
| 41% | Ealing Central and Acton |
| 39% | Brent central |
| 39% | Finchley and Golders Green |
| 38% | Golder’s green |
| 36% | Hendon |
| 35% | Westminster North |
| 35% | Chelsea and Fulham |
| 35% | Hornsey and Wood Green |
| 34% | Brighton, Pavilion |
| 32% | Holborn and St Pancras |
| 31% | Greenwich and Woolwich |
| 31% | Ealing North |
| 30% | Ilford North |
| Source: National Energy Action | |
Adam Scorer, CEO of the charity National Energy Action said: ‘With energy bills soaring, National Energy Action knows how crucial the government’s energy bill support scheme has been. The £400, paid in six installments of £66 or £67, has helped many people this winter.
“But prepayment customers – often some of the most vulnerable – have been paid in vouchers and millions remain unclaimed. Some customers did not receive them, others had difficulty redeeming them.
“We are urging anyone who has not yet claimed their vouchers to do so before the June 30 deadline and if you have any friends and family who may not have used their vouchers please tell them.
“Maybe it’s the support that keeps their lights on, their ovens boiling, their hot showers running, all summer long. It is essential money at a time when it was never needed again.’