Many people remain excluded from the Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS), despite the grant being promised to every household in the UK. You may still be excluded from the £400 EBSS Alternative Funding and £200 EBSS Alternative Fuels Payment if you:
• are a boat dweller on waterways that are not managed by Canal & River Trust (such as Bristol Harbour Authority etc) and you don’t have a mooring with its own dedicated residential address and postcode
• live on a mooring that does not have its own dedicated residential address and postcode: this applies to most moorings on inland and coastal waterways
• live on the road in a caravan, vehicle, or other structure
• live statically in any type of self-contained home on land but do not have your own residential address and postcode
Of 900,000 people thought to be eligible for the EBSS Alternative Funding grants, around 700,000 are still in limbo. These are some things you can do if you are still excluded:
• You can write to your MP – see https://www.writetothem.com/ – use the postcode of a nearby pub or post office if you don’t have an address, and say you live on a boat without a permanent mooring; if you are itinerant, your MP is the MP where you are now or where you spend a significant amount of time
• You can make a complaint to the Energy Bills Support Scheme by emailing
ebssaf-cc@energysecurity.gov.uk
• If you are on benefits or a low income and you think are eligible for Legal Aid, you might be interested in taking the Government to Court to obtain the grant that was promised to “every household”. This may be the most effective way of getting the grant, especially if you kept screenshots or other evidence of trying unsuccessfully to apply. The National Bargee Travellers Association (NBTA) is working with several solicitors who can represent boat dwellers and others who are still excluded from the scheme. At least one case of a household still excluded is ongoing. If you are interested in taking legal action to challenge your exclusion from the scheme, please contact info@boatingcommunity.org.uk and we can put you in touch with one of these solicitors.
Tags: Bargee Traveller's Association, cost of living, Energy Bills Support Scheme, fuel costs, heating, liveaboards, welfare