Telephone claims for 2026 to 2027 Winter Fuel Payment open

Telephone claims for the 2026 to 2027 Winter Fuel Payment opened on Monday 19 October 2026, the Department for Work and Pensions has confirmed¹. The line is for pensioners who are not due to receive the payment automatically. The deadline for claiming is 31 March 2027¹.

Most eligible people are paid without claiming. Turn2us says people are usually paid automatically if they receive certain benefits such as Pension Credit, Universal Credit or State Pension³. The Express lists State Pension, Pension Credit, Universal Credit, Attendance Allowance, Personal Independence Payment, Carer's Allowance, Disability Living Allowance, income-related Employment and Support Allowance, War Pensions Scheme awards, Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit, Incapacity Benefit and Industrial Death Benefit as benefits that remove the need to claim¹. Birmingham Live gives a similar list². A claim is needed if you have not had a Winter Fuel Payment before, or if you have deferred your State Pension since your last payment³.

The Winter Fuel Payment Centre number is 0800 731 0160, with lines open Monday to Friday from 8am to 6pm². Relay UK users can call 18001 then 0800 731 0160, and British Sign Language users can use the Video Relay Service³. Claims can also be made by post from 21 September 2026 on the Winter Fuel Payment claim form, sent to the Winter Fuel Payment Centre, Mail Handling Site A, Wolverhampton, WV98 1LR³. Callers need their National Insurance number, the date of their marriage or civil partnership if appropriate, and bank or building society details³. They will also be asked about their circumstances in the qualifying week of 21 to 27 September 2026, including whether they were in hospital, a residential care home or prison³. Birmingham Live reports that payments cannot be made into a National Savings and Investments account unless other benefits are already paid into it².

The amount depends on date of birth and household circumstances during the qualifying week of 21 to 27 September 2026⁴. The Express reports the following rates for people living alone or with nobody else eligible¹:

The Express also reports that payments go to pensioners born on or before 27 June 1960 in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, and are worth between £100 and £300¹. The DWP statistics release for winter 2025 to 2026 applies to England and Wales⁵. The sources do not set out the position in Scotland.

Why it matters for households

The payment is a one-off, tax-free sum for households with someone over pension age³. For people who are not paid automatically, the opening of the phone line is the point from which a claim can be made by telephone, and the 31 March 2027 deadline is the last date for doing so¹. The amount is fixed by circumstances in the qualifying week of 21 to 27 September 2026, so events after that week do not change it⁴. The Express reports that anyone with total individual income over £35,000 has the payment taken back by HMRC, either through a change of tax code or on a Self Assessment tax return¹. The Express also quotes government guidance that the money does not affect other benefits⁴.

What happens next

Payments are due to start arriving in bank accounts from November¹. Letters telling eligible people how much they will get are sent in October or November⁴. The deadline for claims is 31 March 2027¹.