Help with energy bills

Energy suppliers should provide extra support to people who are vulnerable – this can include people with medical conditions who need a constant supply of energy at home to stay well. It’s important that you let your energy provider know that you or someone in your home has cystic fibrosis (CF).

The Priority Services Register is a free support service to help people in vulnerable situations with their energy supply. Joining the Priority Services Register ensures you're given advance warning of power cuts, are at the front of the queue when electricity is reconnected, and in some cases could receive portable generators, hot meals and drinks, and alternative accommodation. 

We’ve written a template letter that you can download and send to your energy supplier to explain why your household should be on the priority services register

Use this letter to explain CF and the importance of having a warm home. This may help if you’re in debt to your energy supplier, are having any difficult conversations or just need some support explaining your condition to your supplier.

How to use: 

• Download the letter
• Fill in the boxes that are empty with your energy supplier’s information, account details and your name.
• There’s also a bit at the bottom if you want to explain more about your individual circumstances.
• Save the letter to your device or print if off.
• Send this off to your energy provider, by post or email.

Prepayment meters are a way of paying for your gas and electricity. With a prepayment meter, also known as a Pay-As-You-Go meter, you pay small amounts in advance. These ‘top ups’ are then used to pay for the electricity or gas you use in your home. As well as the actual energy costs, prepayment meters will also usually involve a ‘standing charge’ every day, whether or not you use your gas or electricity, and you’ll pay this even if you don’t have any credit on your meter.

Some people find prepayment meters suit them, and in some parts of the UK they are really common. It requires some planning in advance to ensure you don’t run out of credit, but can be helpful if you struggle to manage monthly bills. Moving to a prepayment meter is not generally recommended for people who have a serious health condition, like CF, where going without heat or light might cause a serious problem.

If you’re not sure if being on a prepayment meter is right for you, Citizens Advice have some useful information to help you decide. You can also contact our Helpline to arrange to speak to our Welfare Officer, or contact Scope’s energy advice service.

Ofgem, the energy regulator in England, has guidance for energy providers which says that energy companies cannot legally force certain people onto a prepayment meter. This includes where someone has a medical need for a warm home, which will be the case for most, if not all, households where someone has cystic fibrosis.

We have prepared a template letter that you can send to your energy company if they are asking you to move to a prepayment meter. You can also use this letter if you are on a prepayment meter but want to be moved to a credit meter (where you pay a bill for the energy you have used).

The letter explains why it might not be safe or practical for the home of someone with CF to be on a prepayment meter. There is space for you to add some information about the health of the person with CF in your household.

How to use: 

• Download the letter
• Fill in the boxes that are empty with your energy supplier’s information, account details and your name.
• There’s also a bit at the bottom if you want to explain more about your individual circumstances.
• Save the letter to your device or print if off.
• Send this off to your energy provider, by post or email.

If you need any help filling in the letter, please contact our Helpline or speak to the specialist social worker on your CF team.

Fuel vouchers

If you can’t afford to top up your prepayment meter, you can ask your local council or food bank for a fuel voucher and they may be able to provide one. This is a code given to you in a letter or in a text message or email, which you can use at a PayPoint shop, Payzone shop or Post Office to add credit to your gas card or electricity key.

Making sure you're on the right energy tariff for you can help you make sure you're not paying too much for energy. 

You can contact your supplier to find out what your current tariff is, what other tariffs they are offering, and whether you can switch to a new supplier. 

Our welfare team can help you look into the tariffs that might work for you – to get help with this, contact our Helpline.

You can also check out the Citizens Advice guide to energy tariffs [citizensadvice.org] for more information.

Being in debt can be stressful and worrying, especially when you need to keep your home warm because someone in the house has cystic fibrosis. There is help available, and it’s important to get support as quickly as possible. You can find lots of helpful information from Citizens Advice, and you can also contact your CF team to find out if you can access support from a specialist social worker.

If you are struggling to pay your bill or are worried you won’t be able to pay, it’s important that you contact your energy provider as soon as possible. You can tell them that you, or someone in your household, has cystic fibrosis, and you can use our template letter (see above) to explain why it’s important you have a warm, dry home. Some energy suppliers offer grants to their customers. If you’re energy provider isn’t listed here, you can still contact them and ask if they can provide a grant:

• British Gas Energy Support Fund – apply for a grant on the British Gas Energy Trust website
• Scottish Power Hardship Fund – apply for a grant on the Scottish Power Hardship Fund website
• Ovo Customer Support Package – apply for help on the Ovo Energy Fund website
• E.ON Next Energy Fund – apply for a grant on the E.ON Next Energy Fund website
• EDF Energy Customer Support Fund – apply on the EDF Community Support Fund website
• Octopus ‘Octo Assist Fund’ – apply for a grant on the Octopus website

British Gas Energy Trust (BGET)

The BGET fund for individuals and families is open to credit and pre-payment meter customers. You do not need to be a British Gas customer to apply for this fund - you can be a British Gas Customer, or a customer from another supplier with arrears of up to £1,700. BGET will prioritise people who cannot get a grant from their energy provider. Read about the BGET online application form on the British Gas Energy Trust website.

• The Cold Weather Payment is a £25 payment for every week when the average temperature for a postcode area is recorded as, or forecast to be, zero or below for seven consecutive days between November and March. The Cold Weather Payment is available to people on certain benefits. If you're eligible to get a Cold Weather Payment you'll get it automatically. If you live in Scotland you cannot get Cold Weather Payments, but you might get an annual Winter Heating Payment instead. You’ll get this payment regardless of weather conditions in your area.
• The Warm Home Discount Scheme can provide a one-off discount on electricity bills for those on a low income. The money is not paid to you – it comes off your electricity bill, credited between September and March. The discount will not affect your Cold Weather Payment or Winter Fuel Payment.

In March 2026, the UK Government announced extra support with the costs of heating oil from 1st April 2026. We are waiting to hear more details of how this scheme will work across the UK. In the meantime, if you need help straight away because you can’t afford oil and you are about to run out, please contact our Helpline or take a look at the advice on alternative fuels from Citizens Advice [citizensadvice.org].

There is lots of advice available about how to stay warm in winter while energy costs are rising, but this often focuses on wearing extra layers and using hot water bottles to stay warm. While this is helpful, people with CF need a warm, dry home environment, so it can also help to look at ways to make your home more energy efficient. This can save money on your bills while also making sure you stay as warm and well as possible. You might be able to access a grant or financial support to make changes to your home.

Get help with the cost of energy efficiency (Citizens Advice)

Our welfare grants programme might also be able to help you if you can't afford the things you need to stay well with CF. 

Water Sure (England) and Water Sure Wales - The WaterSure scheme allows certain water users to have their bills capped, if you are on a water meter and someone in the home has a medical condition which requires a significant use of water, it’s worth checking out.

Check if you’d save money by switching to a water meter. You can use the Consumer Council for Water's calculator.

If you’re on a low income or receiving benefits, check what additional assistance your water company offers.

Check out these ideas from the Consumer Council for Water on how to save water and cut your bills.

We can help you reduce energy and water bills by offering practical guidance on saving water, gas, and electricity, the benefits of switching tariffs, and accessing priority services. We can also help you to apply for social tariffs and low-income schemes, grants, debt support, and emergency vouchers if you’re struggling with energy costs. To get this help, contact our friendly Helpline team. 

We also provide:

• grants for people with cystic fibrosis, which can help protect the health of people with CF at times of financial hardship and support access to goods and services needed to stay well with CF
• our benefits advice service, which can support you to find your way through the welfare benefits system and check you’re getting the right benefits
• our income maximisation service, which can support you to check you’re getting all the financial support available to you and help you make the most out of your money.

• Disability charity Scope offer free energy and water advice to disabled people, helping them to manage their energy and water needs.
• Citizens Advice provide information regarding energy costs and support available.
• Groundwork’s Green Doctors help UK residents stay warm, stay well, and save money on household bills.

Some people are receiving text messages or emails that claim to be from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) offering ‘energy support’. The messages say that you might be eligible for grants to help with energy costs. These are fake and are designed to steal your personal and financial information.

If you receive a message like this, do not click on the link, reply, or call the phone number in the message.

UK Government support is outlined above on this page. If you think you might be eligible for one of the schemes, click the links to be taken directly to the Government application pages.

Which? has some tips on how to spot scam texts
If you receive a suspicious text, here’s what to look out for:

• messages from unknown numbers
• requests for personal and financial information
• texts which include links
• poor spelling and grammar
• being pressured to take action quickly.

You can report scam texts by forwarding the message for free to 7726.