When postal applicants in Hull will get energy cash

HULL households who applied for the £150 energy rebate by post will receive their payments by July, with around a third of applications processed so far.

A Hull City Council spokesperson said 7,500 payments have been made to households who applied using paper forms, with 25,000 claiming in total.

The council paid out 64 per cent of the total number of payments due as of Thursday (May 19), with the majority via direct debit. So far, 77,214 payments have been made, totalling more than £11.5m.

East Riding Council has paid out 102,751 rebate sums so far, totalling more than £15.4m, or 84 per cent of the total, but the authority has not issued paper application forms.

It comes as councils have until the end of September to process remaining rebate payments after households began receiving them in April.

The rebates were first unveiled by Chancellor Rishi Sunak as part of a £9.1bn package designed to ease the pressure of spiralling living costs on households. Households in Bands A to D are eligible for rebates.

For those who pay their council tax by direct debit, authorities paid the rebate money directly to households, once they paid April’s local levy instalment. But Hull City Council and East Riding Council do not hold direct debit details for around 90,000 households between them.

Hull City Council sent households paper forms to apply for the rebate, while East Riding Council asked people to give bank details to them online, with help for those who could not.

A Hull City Council spokesperson said anyone who wished to receive the rebate quicker could apply online, even if they had already sent in a paper form.

The spokesperson said: “The paper form is the slowest way to receive the payment. It is hoped all paper forms will have been processed by the end of June and will receive payment by early July.”

East Riding Council’s spokesperson said they were working to process payments as quickly as possible. They said: “The Government requires councils to undertake pre-payment checks before issuing payments to households that do not pay by direct debit. The processing time depends on whether these checks flag up any anomalies and there are many cases where we have been unable to validate the bank account details provided.

“We are unable to give a precise timescale for resolution of these as that depends on the complexity of each individual case. The council understands that the rising cost of energy is a concern for many households.

“We suggest that residents who are struggling to pay their bills contact their supplier for help. We will also be contacting households in receipt of council tax support with high barriers to work, during May and June, to provide them with additional financial support through the Household Support Fund.”

Applications for Hull City Council’s discretionary payments scheme have also opened for those who are not eligible for the main scheme, but who are responsible for paying energy bills. The form is available at www.hull.gov.uk/ council-tax/council-tax-account/£150energy-rebate-payment