Over Seven Million £324 Payments Made To Families By Government In Last Week Alone
16th November 2022
Over seven million payments of £324 have already been made to low-income families through the government's cost of living support.
This means £2.3 billion has been paid out to over 99% of those eligible via DWP across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland since the beginning of the rollout last Tuesday.
A further one million families eligible solely through tax credits will receive their payment between 23 and 30 November 2022.
Eligible claimants who have not yet received their payment should not be concerned, as the DWP expects some payments may take until 23 November to come through. After this date, a GOV.UK page for reporting missing Cost of Living Payments will become available and the DWP will begin processing claims to ensure outstanding payments reach those eligible as quickly as possible.
There are also a small number of cases where an automated payment has not been possible, for example Universal Credit cases where benefit payments are split between a couple, or where the emergency payment system (EPS) cannot recognise their claim details. A dedicated team of agents are currently working through these cases to pay them manually.
Work and Pensions Secretary, Mel Stride said, "This Government promised to protect those on the lowest incomes, and it is great to be able to confirm today that we have delivered on this commitment with our latest Cost of Living Payment reaching over seven million households in the last week alone.
This payment is just part of a wider support package the Government has provided, with millions of families benefiting from a Council Tax rebate and pensioners across the country receiving winter fuel support as the weather gets colder and disabled people getting help with additional costs they face. We will continue to support the most vulnerable as we deal with the impact of Putin's illegal war in Ukraine and the aftermath of the pandemic.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Jeremy Hunt said, "We know families are struggling with the rising prices caused by Putin’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. That is why we’ve delivered over 7 million cash payments directly into the bank accounts of the most vulnerable households in just one week and will make over a million more to those on tax credits later this month.
This is part of the £1,200 cash support we’re giving to the poorest members of society during this difficult period.
At the upcoming Autumn Statement we will continue to prioritise helping the most vulnerable, as we make the tough decisions needed to drive down inflation and fix our public finances.
To be eligible for the £324 Cost of Living Payment, claimants must have been entitled to one of the qualifying benefits between 26 August and 25 September, with the exception of pensioner households, who may be able to have a new Pension Credit claim backdated.
Pensioners have until 18 December to submit a valid claim for Pension Credit, which could entitle them to the £324 Cost of Living Payment. Anyone can check their eligibility for Pension Credit using the online calculator or by calling the freephone claim line (0800 99 1234).
Even if you are not on a qualifying DWP benefit you may still be eligible for the £324 payment, as HMRC is also making payments to over one million families who only receive Working Tax Credit or Child Tax Credit. These will be automatically paid into bank accounts between 23 and 30 November.
Those eligible do not need to contact the government or apply for the payment at any stage. Payments will appear on bank statements with a reference including the recipients National Insurance number followed by:
‘DWP COL’ for those on DWP means-tested benefits
‘HMRC COLS’ for those on tax credits only
This is the second instalment of the £650 Cost of Living Payment - part of the Government’s £37 billion support package for households – with millions also benefiting from the £400 grant to help with energy bills and 85% of households in bands A to D receiving the £150 Council Tax rebate.
On top of this, nearly one in 10 people have received the Government’s additional £150 disability payment this Autumn, and an estimated eight million pensioner households will receive an extra £300 in their Winter Fuel Payments this winter.
More Information
Low-income households are benefiting from government support in a variety of different ways. You can read more about the government’s cost of living support and what is available on GOV.UK.
The cost of living support package was announced in May 2022 and includes six one-off support measures:
a £650 Cost of Living Payment, made in two payments, to claimants of certain means-tested benefits including Universal Credit, most of the legacy benefits and tax credits it is replacing (except Housing Benefit), and Pension Credit;
a £150 Disability Cost of Living Payment for recipients of certain non-means-tested disability benefits, including Personal Independence Payment (PIP) and Attendance Allowance (AA);
a £300 Pensioner Cost of Living Payment, paid as an addition to the Winter Fuel Payment, to households with at least one person entitled to a Winter Fuel Payment for winter 2022/2023;
a £150 Council Tax rebate for 85% of all UK households;
an expansion of the Energy Bills Support Scheme, providing households with £400 of support towards their energy bills; and
additional funding to extend the Household Support Fund.
To be eligible for the second payment of £324, families must have been entitled to a payment (or later found to be entitled to a payment) of either:
Universal Credit for an assessment period that ended in the period 26 August to 25 September
Income-based JSA, income-related ESA, Income Support or Pension Credit for any day in the period 26 August 2022 to 25 September 2022.
Tax credit-only customers, who will receive the second payment shortly after DWP payments, must have received a payment or an annual award of at least £26 of tax credits for any day in the period 26 August 2022 to 25 September 2022, or later found to be entitled to tax credits for this period.
For DWP claimants eligible for the £324 payment, in a small minority of complex circumstances, households may be paid after 23 November 2022 – for example, if they were deemed unable to claim certain benefits, but won backdated entitlement on appeal, or where payments were rejected due to invalid account details. The DWP will seek to contact claimants directly in the very small minority of cases where there are issues or delays.
This payment will be tax-free, will not count towards the benefit cap, and will not have any impact on existing benefit awards.
These payments are being delivered in two slightly different amounts of £326 and £324. The distinct value relates to a specific qualifying period, so it is simpler to determine if a payee received the correct payments, reducing the fraud risk of people who claim not to have had one of the specific two payments, as DWP will be able to clearly track those who have.
