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The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is handing state pensioners an extra £450 this winter to help them cope with the Cost of Living crisis. The DWP will administer Warm Home Discount AND Winter Fuel Payments. All State Pensioners in England and Wales will receive a Winter Fuel Payment this winter, though those who earn over £35,000 will see it clawed back through the tax system. It means nine million pensioners will get the £200 or £300 top-up. The Winter Fuel Payment is usually £200, with an extra £100 for households where there is someone aged 80 or over (up to £300 in total). If both people are 80+, the total will be split evenly, with each person being paid £150 (£300 total). READ MORE UK households urged to spend £1,700 after loved ones die If one is 80+ and the other under 80, the older person will be paid £200 and the under-80 will be paid £100 (£300 total). If both people are under 80, each will be paid £100 (£200 total). The Warm Home Discount is available in England, Wales and Scotland and offers £150 to those who are living on low incomes or pensions. To be eligible as a pensioner, you need to be either claiming the Guarantee Credit or Savings Credit element of Pension Credit, which means your income must be less than about £227 a week. On the Winter Fuel Payment, BBC and ITV star Martin Lewis said: "The payments will then be means-tested based on each person's individual income – if it's over £35,000, the amount they get will be clawed back. "So, for example, in a scenario where there's an over 80 living with an under 80, if the older person earns over £35,000, they will have their £200 clawed back. If the younger person earns under £35,000, they will keep their £100. "So the net benefit to the household would be £100."
