Need help with paying power bills?

Hira Siddiqui from Citizens Advice Bureau Pakuranga/Eastern Manukau

🥶🧣🌧 Winter is just around the corner, and the cost of power is increasing. There are supports available to help with the cost of power bills.

If you are receiving a Work and Income benefit (including NZ Superannuation or Veteran’s Pension), you will automatically receive the Winter Energy Payment. This is around $20 to $30 per week, depending on whether you are single or a couple and whether you have dependent children. It is paid from 1 May until 1 October.

You may be eligible for help from Work and Income to pay for an urgent bill if you have no other way of covering it – even if you are not receiving a benefit. Work and Income can give you up to $200 to help with an outstanding bill, or to reconnect your electricity or gas. They can also help with the cost of bedding, blankets, curtains or heaters. Depending on your situation, you may have to pay the money back.

You may also be eligible for the Power Credits Scheme. It is for helping those affected by the phase-out of low-user charges, to help cover the extra cost of power. Eligible households can receive a $110 credit every year, and those using a budgeting service can receive an extra $110 (a total of $220 per year). To be eligible, you must be struggling to pay your energy bills, you must have been on a low-user fixed charge for at least six months, and your power retailer must be a member of the scheme.

For other support options and more information on help with the cost of power, go to: cab.org.nz/article/KB00001989

Info and image credit: Citizens Advice Bureau: cab.org.nz