Advice to help you keep warm this winter

A elderly man wearing glasses sits at a table holding energy bills. He has a laptop in front of him.

As the weather gets colder, we’re here with practical advice to help you keep your home warm and manage your energy costs. If you’re struggling to pay your bills, we can also help you understand your options and find out what grants and benefits you might be entitled to.

If you need extra support from your energy supplier

If you find it hard to deal with your energy supply you could get extra help from your energy companies, such as moving your prepayment meter if you find it difficult to get to or making your call a priority when you contact them.

You'll normally be able to get priority services from your energy companies if you're disabled or have a long-term health condition. This includes hearing, sight and mental health conditions. Your supplier might also agree to sign you up for priority services if you:

  • Have reached your State Pension age

  • Would struggle to answer the door or get help in an emergency

  • Are recovering from an injury

  • Have no sense of smell, or would struggle to smell gas

If your situation isn't listed, you might still be able to sign up for priority services for other reasons - for example, if you're recently bereaved.

You can sign up by going to thepsr.co.uk and entering your postcode - this will provide links to the forms you need to complete for both your gas and electricity supply.

If you’re struggling to pay your bills

If you’re struggling to pay your gas and electricity bills, there is help available.

Speak to your supplier as soon as you can. Your supplier has to help you come to a solution - putting you on a repayment plan that takes into account how much you can afford to pay.

Getting help to pay your energy bills

There are a range of support options available if you need help paying your energy bills.

Look out for:

If you have a prepayment meter

If you’ve run out of gas or electricity, your energy supplier might add emergency credit to your meter automatically - if they don’t, you should ask for it as soon as you can. You can contact your supplier to find out how to get emergency credit.

If you run out of emergency credit and are still struggling to top up, some suppliers may be able to give you additional support credit if you ask them.

You will have to pay any emergency or additional support credit back.

Check if you can get a fuel voucher

Your local council might be able to help you get a fuel voucher - find your local council on GOV.UK.

You'll get the voucher as a code in a letter, text message or email. You can use it to add credit to your gas card or electricity key.

Make sure you check your fuel voucher to see when it expires, as you might need to use it within 15 days. If you have problems using your voucher, contact the organisation that gave it to you, not your energy supplier.

If you’re still not sure if you can get a voucher, get help from an adviser.

Get help to pay off energy debt

Energy arrears are a ‘priority debt’. Priority debts are debts that can cause serious problems if you don’t do anything about them. If you have more than one debt, find out which debts to pay first.

If you owe money to your energy supplier, you might be able to get a grant to help you pay off your debt. This could be from your energy company or a charitable trust.

The following energy suppliers offer grants to their customers:

If your supplier isn’t listed, it’s a good idea to contact them directly to see what extra support they can give you.

If you can’t get a grant from your supplier, you might be able to get a grant from the British Gas Energy Trust. You’ll need to get debt advice before applying - talk to an adviser.

For more information about grants from charitable trusts, visit turn2us.org.uk/get-support.

Stay alert to energy scams

Some scammers are pretending to be from energy companies or government departments like the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). For example, you might get a text asking you to apply for a ‘heating allowance’ or Winter Fuel Payment.

Scammers do this to get your personal information.

If you think something might be a scam:

  • Don’t give out any personal information or bank details

  • Don’t use any contact details they’ve sent you or click any links

You can check if something is a scam here.

Contacting your energy supplier about a problem

If you have a problem with your energy supply, contact your supplier as soon as possible. There might be several ways to contact them, like a telephone number, app or webchat. You can choose the best contact method for you.

Keep a record of your contact, including dates, times, who you spoke to and what you discussed. If the problem isn’t resolved, follow up in writing and include your account and case reference numbers. If your supplier doesn’t respond, you can make a complaint.

Making a complaint

When complaining to your energy supplier, the first thing you should do is gather any supporting evidence. What you’ll need depends on your issue - for example you could:

  • Take photos of a faulty meter

  • Get together copies of unusual bills

  • Gather notes from phone calls you’ve had

  • Look for emails from your supplier about the problem

Look online for your supplier’s ‘complaints procedure’ - this should be listed on their website, and includes contact details for complaints. When you’re ready, you can complain to your supplier over the phone, or in writing by email or post.

Your supplier will get in touch with you if they need any more details about your complaint. They should send you a ‘decision letter’ or ‘letter of deadlock’ within 8 weeks. This explains how they’ll deal with your complaint.

If you need to take your complaint further, you can complain to the Energy Ombudsman after complaining to your supplier if you:

  • Have a letter of deadlock and aren’t happy with the decision

  • Didn’t get a decision letter or letter of deadlock within 8 weeks

The Energy Ombudsman is impartial - they’ll look into both sides of the case and make a decision. If they think your complaint was dealt with unfairly, the Ombudsman can make your supplier change their decision.

Saving energy at home

You might be able to save on your energy bills by using less energy.

There are quick and simple things you can do - for example:

  • Check your central heating controls so you stay warm but use less energy

  • Check the cost of running your electrical appliances so you can decide how best to use them

It’s important to keep using your heating and essential appliances. Otherwise, it could make you ill, or cause problems such as damp.

You can find more tips for saving energy when heating your home, and using your electrical appliances here.

Where to go for help

If you’re having difficulty taking the steps outlined on this page, you can call our consumer helpline for advice on energy on 0808 223 1133.

You can contact a Welsh-speaking adviser on 0808 223 1144.

Our helplines are available 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. They’re not available on public holidays and calls are free from mobiles and landlines.

Find out how else you can contact our consumer helpline for advice on energy here.

Last updated: September 2026