Cost of living 2023: Dates for DWP payments, benefits and pensions

Get the free Morning Headlines email for news from our reporters across the world Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email Sign up to our free Morning Headlines email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Here are the payment windows that have been announced so far, with more precise dates expected later in the year: £301 – First cost of living payment – already issued between 25 April and 17 May £150 – Disability payment – during summer 2023 £300 – Second cost of living payment – during autumn 2023 £300 – Pensioner payment – during winter 2023/4 £299 – Third cost of living payment – during spring 2024 Energy Price Guarantee still in play There was some good news in Jeremy Hunt’s Budget of 15 March when the chancellor announced that the Energy Price Guarantee – introduced by Liz Truss last September to ensure households paid no more than £2,500 for their electricity and gas, with the government subsidising the remainder owed to providers under Ofgem’s Energy Price Cap – would be extended for a further three months. “With energy bills set to fall from July onwards, this temporary change will bridge the gap and ease the pressure on families, while also helping to lower inflation too.” Without that help in place, the average household would have been paying an annualised bill of £4,279 between January and April but, because of the EPG, that was reduced to £2,500 with the government picking up the remaining £1,779. Universal credit State pension Pension credit Disability living allowance Personal independence payment Attendance allowance Carer’s allowance Employment support allowance Income support Jobseeker’s allowance For more information on how and when state benefits are paid, please visit the government’s website. Additional help Other recent announcements from the DWP concern the date from which manual applicants can apply for the next Winter Fuel Payment later this year – which could be worth between £250 and £600, according to need – and a reminder that those of state pension age suffering from a medical condition or disability could be entitled to £272.40 or £407 per month to pay for their care under the Attendance Allowance scheme.