The household benefits package (HHB) comprises the electricity or gas allowance, and the free television licence. The package is generally available to people living in the State, aged 66 years or over who are in receipt of a social welfare type payment or who satisfy a means test. It is a universal payment from the age of 70. The Department will spend approximately €227 million this year on the household benefits package for approximately 416,000 customers.
Qualifying schemes for people aged between 66 and 70 are as follows:
- State Pension(Contributory/Non Contributory/Transition)
- Widow’s/Widowers/Surviving Civil Partner’s Contributory or Non Contributory pension
- One-Parent Family Payment, Deserted Wife's Benefit / Allowance or Prisoner's Wife's Allowance
- An ordinary Garda Widow's Pension (from Department of Justice and Equality)
- a Social Security Pension/Benefit from a country covered by EC Regulations, or from a country with which Ireland has a Bilateral Social Security Agreement.
A person aged between 66 and 70 (i.e., who has not reached their 70th birthday) who is not in receipt of one of the above qualifying payments may alternatively qualify for the package if they satisfy a means test and a household composition test. The means test involves calculating a person’s appropriate weekly means limit. This limit is €100 above the current maximum rate of State pension (contributory) including any increases, e.g., for living alone, and adult/child dependents.
The recipient of a State pension (contributory) will have qualified for that payment, and for secondary benefits such as Household Benefits, based on their PRSI contribution record. Similarly, the recipient of a Widow’s contributory pension will have qualified for that payment, and for secondary benefits such as Household Benefits, based on the PRSI contribution record of either their late spouse, or of their own PRSI record.
While full-rate Class A contributions provide coverage for such payments, reduced rate contributions may not. Class D contributions, which have a much lower Employee contribution than Class A, provide coverage for Widow’s, Guardians, Occupation Injuries and Carer’s contributory benefits. While there is no entitlement to those benefits if the required contributions have not been made, equivalent means-tested payments may be available if the same contingency arises and the person has an income need.
In cases where the required PRSI contributions have not been made for an appropriate benefit, and where a person does not satisfy the required means test, a person will not qualify for the Household Benefits package until their 70th birthday. Expanding eligibility to people who do not currently qualify for the package would have cost implications which would have to be met either through increased spending (which is funded by taxation/PRSI), or through reducing the level of support under the package, and neither option is being considered by the Government.
As I do not believe that any legal questions arise as a result of the above, legal advice has not been sought on this matter.
