Dáil Éireann Debate, Thursday - 1 April 2021
234. Deputy Louise O'Reilly asked the Minister for Social Protection the number of persons in receipt of the fuel allowance; the number of applications for the fuel allowance; the number of refusals for the fuel allowance over the past three years; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [17707/21]
View answerFuel Allowance is a means tested payment to assist pensioners and other long-term social welfare dependent householders with their winter heating costs. The payment is a contribution towards heating costs. It is not intended to meet these costs in full. The payment is made at the weekly rate of €28.00 or, if preferred, by way of two lump sum payments and is paid over the winter season (28 weeks in the 2020/2021 fuel allowance season). Only one Fuel Allowance is payable per household.
Current figures indicate that approximately 372,000 households are in receipt of Fuel Allowance. Those who qualified for Fuel Allowance last year automatically receive the payment again this year provided they continue to fulfil the eligibility requirements. They do not therefore need to re-apply.
Due to the payment of Fuel Allowance across different IT platforms, accurate numbers of claims received and disallowed are not readily obtainable. However, based on the information available, approximately 16,400 applications have been received in 2021 to date, with 4,700 disallowed. Approximately 17,200 were disallowed in 2020, 21,600 in 2019 and 22,000 in 2018.
I trust this clarifies the matter for the Deputy.
