Domestic electricity customers will receive £400 of support with their energy bills, the government announced on 26 May 2022, and the payment will be made as a grant1. The Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS) is intended to support households with their energy bills through winter 2022 to 20231. Energy suppliers will deliver the support to households in Great Britain with a domestic electricity contract, in instalments over six months from October 20221.
Suppliers will be required to provide each eligible domestic electricity customer they serve on the Qualifying Date, the first of each EBSS delivery month, with either £66 or £67 a month during each month that they are eligible1. How a household receives the grant depends on its payment method1.
| Payment method | How the grant is delivered |
|---|---|
| Direct Debit | Reduction to the monthly Direct Debit amount collected, or a refund to the bank account after collection; Direct Debit dates remain unchanged1 |
| Standard credit (pay on receipt) | Credit to the account in the first week of each delivery month, appearing as if the customer had made a payment1 |
| Payment card | Credit to the account in the first week of each delivery month, as if the customer had made a payment1 |
| Smart prepayment meter | Remotely applied as credit in the first week of each delivery month1 |
| Traditional prepayment meter | Vouchers or Special Action Messages redeemable by the customer, from the first week of each delivery month; vouchers can be issued by SMS text, email or post1 |
The government said it was urgently working to ensure that the people of Northern Ireland receive the equivalent support as soon as possible1. The scheme's final policy decisions were set out in a government response published alongside a Draft Direction made by the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy1. The consultation on the technical proposals ran from 9:30am on 11 April 2022 to 11:45pm on 23 May 2022 and received 233 responses from organisations including large and small suppliers, Distribution Network Operators, consumer groups and interested charities; more than 93 interested parties were involved in stakeholder engagement sessions1.
The scheme's earlier description differed from the final one. When the Chancellor of the Exchequer announced the package on 3 February 2022, the consultation described a £200 reduction passed on to domestic electricity customers, recovered through electricity bills over five years starting from 2023-20241. The 26 May announcement set the figure at £400 and made it a grant1.
"As the government announced on 26 May, domestic electricity customers will receive £400 of support with their energy bills, which will be made as a grant."
Why it matters for households
The £400 is a universal measure, not a means-tested one, so eligibility turns on holding a domestic electricity contract rather than on income or benefits1. That distinguishes it from the home energy grants that require qualifying circumstances, and it means the support reaches households that would not pass a grant assessment.
Because the money is a grant rather than a levy recovered later, it does not add to a household's future bills in the way the originally described £200 reduction would have, which was to be recovered through electricity bills over five years from 2023-20241. For a household's energy independence, the practical effect is a fixed, time-limited reduction in the cost of grid electricity over one winter, delivered through the existing supplier relationship rather than through new equipment or a change of tariff. It does not alter how much energy a home uses or where that energy comes from.
The delivery method matters for timing. Direct Debit customers see the grant as a lower collection or a refund, with collection dates unchanged, while prepayment customers on traditional meters depend on redeeming a voucher or message, which can arrive by SMS text, email or post1. The closed energy bill support payments page covers how this scheme and its successors were administered.
What happens next
The scheme was to be implemented from October 2022, with the government working with Ofgem and suppliers on guidance ahead of that date1. A final version of the Secretary of State Direction to suppliers was to be issued ahead of the scheme launch1. The government and suppliers were to provide further information for customers ahead of scheme delivery before the autumn1.