Pensioners in South Yorkshire & North Derbyshire 'dreading' their gas & electricity bills
It's as up to 10 million older people are no longer entitled to the winter fuel payment
Last updated 27th Nov 2024
Pensioners across South Yorkshire & North Derbyshire admit they're planning to be 'thriftier' over the next few months - when it comes heating their homes.
More than half of those who've retired across the UK predict they'll have to turn down or reduce the hours they use it - because of government cuts to the winter fuel payment.
It means around 10 million older people in the country aren't entitled to it anymore - including 71-year-old Stephen Thompson from Killamarsh:
"It's something that certainly helped with the bills.
"Obviously, with them going up each year it's harder to budget for that sort of thing.
"£200 is what we used to get - it certainly used to pay at least 3 months' worth of bills for us, so it was useful.
"When we get the bill, we're definitely going to see an increase over the next few months.
"We do tend to wrap up and use blankets, and we'll heat the house as we need to.
"However, with gas prices going up and up, the winter fuel payment certainly helped us.
"We do keep our heating at a fairly low temperature, and we do feel the cold sometimes because of that."
The government says 1.3 million pensioner households started receiving up to 300 pounds in Winter Fuel Payments - across England and Wales - earlier this week.