Help is on the way to assist concession-holder households cover rising electricity costs. The Commonwealth Government and state and territory governments are pitching in to counter surging energy prices to protect vulnerable consumers.
From July 2023, Energy Bill Relief payments will be provided directly to the retailers, who then apply credits to shrink eligible customers’ energy bills. We’ll break out who is eligible, what’s on offer and what you’ll need to do (ps. Sit tight. It gets paid automatically if your retailer already knows about your concession status!).
Who can get Bill Relief?
You can get bill relief if you are the primary electricity account holder or another named account holder on your electricity account. You must also hold an eligible concession card or receive an eligible government payment in the state or territory you live in. Recipients of the Family Tax Benefit or Carer Allowance are newly eligible for bill relief which will broaden the scheme! There are also extra Cards added that vary by state – so check the link for details.
Each household gets one bill relief credit, even if more than one eligible person is living there. You can only receive bill relief for your principal place of residence.
How much energy bill relief on offer?
The total amount of energy bill relief varies depending on where you live.
If you live in NSW, Queensland, South Australia or Tasmania, you can get $500 per eligible household.
For those living in Victoria, you can get $250 per eligible household.
If you live in the Northern Territory or Western Australia, you can get $350 per eligible household.
And ACT residents can get $175 per eligible household.
When is this happening?
Energy bill relief payments will be spread across several bills, depending on where you live, starting in July 2023.
If you live in NSW, Queensland, SA, NT or the ACT, then bill relief credits will be applied quarterly over the 2023-24 financial year.
Those in WA get electricity bill relief in July and December 2023.
Tasmanians will get bill relief on their electricity bills in the September and June quarters of the 2023-24 and 2024-25 financial years.
If you live in Victoria, you will get bill relief in instalments through 2023-24.
How to get Energy Bill Relief
You don’t need to do anything if you already get an existing electricity bill concession scheme in your state or territory. Your electricity provider will automatically apply the bill relief to your electricity account. This will reduce the amount you owe on your electricity bill.
However, if you are eligible and aren’t named on the bill and you pay for electricity, contact your electricity provider to change this to get the bill relief (this is not necessary if you live in Western Australia).
Also, if you think you are eligible for an existing electricity bill concession scheme in your state or territory but aren’t receiving it, contact your electricity retailer to apply. You must be an account holder or named on the household electricity bill to be eligible. Those with Cards from Services Australia or the Department of Veterans Affairs (DVA) will be contacted from July to explain how to apply for the scheme – even if you aren’t already eligible for electricity concessions from your state or territory. Also recipients of the Family Tax Benefit or Carer Allowance payments will be contacted by Services Australia and advised on what they need to do about Energy Bill Relief .
Compare properly and save.
It’s never been more important to shop around and compare energy plans. WATTever’s comprehensive energy comparison is designed to help Australians find the best deal for energy. That’s why WATTever compares every retailer and every publicly listed energy plan – making it easy to pick the cheapest and save big time. Plus, WATTever’s comparison includes the opportunity to apply your concession. As a result, you can get a better estimate of your new bill.
Compare now and start saving.