Electricity Costs Emergency Benefit Scheme IV

On 8 October the Government approved the Electricity Costs Emergency Benefit Scheme IV, paving the way for two payments of €114.68 (excl. VAT) to be credited to all domestic electricity accounts. This is in recognition of pressures on households due to the continued high cost of energy prices. Two payments of the Electricity Costs Emergency Benefit Payment will be made, in the November/December 2024 and January/February 2025 billing cycles.

The credit will be applied automatically. Households do not need to apply for it. They do not need to contact their electricity supplier.

The Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU) will be charged with oversight of the scheme. The scheme will be operated by the Distribution System Operator (ESB Networks) because of its existing interface with all electricity suppliers. ESB Networks will make payments to energy suppliers, who in turn will credit each of their domestic electricity accounts.

How do I sign up?

There is no need to sign up, the scheme is automatic and applies to all domestic electricity accounts either as a bill credit or as a top-up on your prepay meter.

Who is eligible?

The scheme applies to almost all domestic electricity accounts, held with suppliers on 30 October 2024 for the first payment and 20 December 2024 for the second payment. The payments will be applied automatically. This is a measure which uses the single eligibility criterion of a meter point registration number (MPRN), to ensure payments to each domestic electricity account are made as soon as possible. The only qualification for receiving a credit is that electricity usage for a property as registered through an MPRN with the ESBN must past a Low Usage Threshold Check. If a customer passes this threshold check, conducted by the ESBN, they will receive the credit.

What is the Low Usage Threshold Check?

The only qualification for receiving a credit is that electricity usage for a property as registered through an MPRN with the ESBN must past a Low Usage Threshold Check, conducted by the ESBN. To pass this check, a property must have registered at least 150kWh of electricity usages, in one or more of the quarters between 1 September 2023 and 31 August 2024. The average annual use of electricity in a four-person household is approximately 4,200kWh. To fail the Low Usage Threshold Check and not receive the credit, a property would need to have recorded less than a quarter of this amount or 600kWh between September 2023 and August 2024.

This amount of energy is roughly what you would use over three months if:

• you had a fridge-freezer plugged in
• you boiled a kettle twice a day, and
• you had one light bulb on for two hours a day

Should this check be passed, then the credit will be applied automatically to any domestic electricity accounts which were or are held with suppliers on 30 October 2024 in respect of the first payment and which were held with suppliers on 20 December in respect of the second payment. The payment is being applied to domestic electricity accounts i.e., those which are subject to distribution use of system charges at the rate for urban domestic customers (DG1) or the rate for rural domestic customers (DG2), as set out in section 1 of the Act.

The payment will not be withheld for accounts with a financial hardship meter, accounts held by registered as a vulnerable customer or accounts which have low usage due to the exporting of energy to the grid through micro-generation.

Micro-generation accounts refer to those domestic electricity accounts who have registered their micro-generation capacity with ESBN, through the NC6 notification process or similar.

If your micro-generation was registered with ESBN on the effective date, and your maximum export capacity is above zero, you should receive the credit. If you think you meet the criteria and did not receive the credit, you should contact your supplier.

What if I am excluded based on the Low Usage Threshold but have additional needs as a Vulnerable Customer?

As a vulnerable customer, you can still receive the credits if you:

• have signed up to be on your electricity supplier’s vulnerable customer register, or
• are not registered as a vulnerable customer with your electricity supplier, but you are eligible to be (you do not have to sign up to the register to receive the credits), or
• have a hardship meter account with your electricity supplier

Who is Eligible to be on Vulnerable Customer Register?

There are two categories of customer who are eligible to self-register with their supplier on the supplier’s Vulnerable Customer Register;

1. Household customers who are critically dependent on electrically powered equipment (this includes but is not limited to life protecting devices, assistive technologies to support independent living and medical equipment). These customers are added to the ‘Priority Services Register’.

2. Household customers who are particularly vulnerable to disconnection during winter months for reasons of advanced age, or physical, sensory, intellectual or mental health. These customers are added to the ‘Special Services Register’.

More information in relation to the protections available to registered vulnerable customers is available on the CRU website.

I have a prepay meter, will I still receive the credit?

Yes. The scheme applies to all domestic electricity accounts, including pay as you go customers.

Prepay customers are being notified by their supplier via a letter or email to explain how they can receive the credit.

There is a small population of older prepayment meters which, due to their age and inbuilt monetary limits, will require the customer to redeem their credit over three separate transactions over the space of a few days. In these cases, to redeem each stage of the credit, customers will need to buy a (minimum) €10 top up. When they do this, they will receive a new 40-digit code which will credit their meter with the government electricity credit when entered. Once the credit is applied to the customer’s account/meter they can access it by vending three times.

When will I receive the payment?

Two credits of €114.68 (excl. VAT), as set out in the Electricity Costs (Emergency Measures) Domestic Accounts Act 2024, are being made to all domestic electricity accounts as their bills are issued through November/December 2024, in respect of the first payment and January/February 2025 in respect of the second payment with facility in the operational arrangements for suppliers to continue to make payments to allow for any follow ups.

Are there additional supports available to help with electricity/heating costs?

Yes. The Department of Social Protection has a number of supports available including:

Fuel Allowance

Households Benefits Package

Item was unpublished or removed

My electricity bill is included in my rent, will I still get the credit?

For operational reasons the scheme can only credit the domestic electricity account holder.

We are working with the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage, and the Residentials Tenancies Board (RTB) to publicise and increase awareness of the Electricity Costs Emergency Benefit Scheme IV to ensure those in rented accommodation who hold the electricity account receive benefit from the payment. If a dispute should arise, there are existing dispute resolution mechanisms provided by the RTB to landlords and tenants. The RTB encourages parties to engage with its mediation service where agreements are reached in over 70% of cases.

Will people with multiple residences like holiday homes be eligible?

The scheme applies to every domestic electricity account which passes the Low Usage Threshold Check. As a result, some residence with low usage year-round such as vacant properties and some holiday homes will not receive the credit.

What if my bill is less than the amount credited?

Should your first billable amount, after the credit is applied to your account, be lower than the value of the credit, the credit will remain on your account and pass onto your following bills.

What happens if closed accounts are credited?

If there is a change of legal entity (that is, a change in the account holder), it is the account holder registered to the supplier on 30 October and 20 December 2024 who is eligible to receive the credit. Where accounts are closed prior to these dates, they will not receive each respective credit.

Suppliers are required to maintain records of any accounts they have been unable to credit, and to return these unallocated credits for the purpose of the scheme to ESB Networks. Where accounts were closed prior to 22 October 2024, they will not receive the credit.

I am a landlord and the tenants who were living in the premises on 22 October 2024 have moved out – what happens with regards the credit?

This is a measure which uses the single eligibility criterion of a meter point registration number (MPRN), to ensure payments to each domestic electricity account as soon as possible. The credit is being applied automatically to all domestic electricity accounts which were held with suppliers on 30 October and 20 December 2024, as identified by the MPRN.

It is a matter for the landlord and tenant to agree, but in instances where the landlord holds the account (as identified by the MPRN) it would seem practical that the relevant portion of the payment, would be passed on to a tenant, whose tenancy was in operation at this time, in a single payment.

I am a landlord who owns multiple apartments – how will tenants receive the credit?

While most residential tenants will hold their own domestic electricity accounts, and therefore receive the credit directly, others would have tenancy agreements where tenants pay their actual share of each bill and, in those cases, will benefit from the payment because the amount of the bill will be reduced by the amount of the payment. A small proportion would have other arrangements in place whereby electricity costs are part of the rental cost.

Where tenants have a dispute relating to tenancies including any terms relating to electricity payments, these can be referred to the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) for dispute resolution.

I am a business owner, and my electricity for domestic and commercial use all comes through the same metering system – how will I receive the credit?

This is a measure which uses the single eligibility criterion of a meter point registration number, to ensure payments to each domestic electricity account as soon as possible, without any additional means testing. As such, it will be applied automatically to all domestic electricity accounts which pass the Low Threshold Usage Check held with suppliers on 30 October and 20 December 2024. The payment is being applied to domestic electricity accounts, that is, those which are subject to distribution use of system charges at the rate for urban domestic customers (DG1) or the rate for rural domestic customers (DG2), as set out in section 1 of the Act.

I am a full-time mobile home resident – how will I receive the credit?

This is a measure which uses the single eligibility criterion of a meter point registration number, to ensure payments to each domestic electricity account as soon as possible, without any additional means testing. The payment will only be applied to domestic electricity accounts and will be made to the account rather than an individual.

In cases where non-ESBN meters are used, these meters are not installed by ESBN and are not regulated by the CRU. Such meters are usually installed behind the meter and are contractual matters between residents and the operators of such parks.

In cases where residents of mobile homes hold a tenancy agreement, disputes relating to terms of the tenancy can be referred to the Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) for resolution. Section 78 of the Residential Tenancies Acts prescribes a non-exhaustive list of matters or complaints that can be referred for RTB dispute resolution.

Will Traveller households in Local Authority accommodations get the payment?

While the previous schemes did reach over 2 million domestic electricity accounts, the need to have a MPRN resulted in certain cohorts not being able to access the payment. Some Traveller families in certain Local Authority accommodations where the MPRN is registered to the Local Authority did not receive the payment. Officials from the Department are in contact with their colleagues in the Department of Housing, Heritage and Local Government on the matter. Complementary measures were established to ensure payments were made to approximately 1,000 Traveller families living on local authority sites, following implementation of the previous two Schemes. These measures will be established again, to ensure payments can be made to these households over winter 2024/2025.

Further information is also available on the Commission for Regulation of Utilities (CRU) website.

What happens if I do not receive the credit?

If you did not receive a credit automatically, and you think you are eligible to receive it, you can ask your supplier to review their decision. They will do this under their usual complaints process. After this review they will either provide the credit to you or, if they still think you are not eligible, they will explain their reasons in writing. If you still think you are eligible after receiving this decision, you can raise an objection to the CRU Customer Care Team. Make sure to explain why you think you are eligible. Please note, the CRU will assess whether your electricity supplier operated in line with the legislative framework for the scheme. If you were not eligible for the credits under the legislation, we will not be able to direct your supplier to provider the credits to you. The CRU provides a free and easy to use complaint resolution service for customers with unresolved complaints. We will deal with all complaints as quickly as possible and provide you with an outcome that is clear and easy to understand.

Please note that you have to complete your supplier’s complaint process first before the CRU can investigate. This makes sure the supplier has an opportunity to address the issue first, and is a requirement under our legislative remit as set out in S.I. 463 of 2011. The process for submitting an objection to the CRU’s Customer Care Team is on our website here. You can also contact the team by email or phone, and they will send you a complaint form.