MARTIN Lewis’ Money Saving Expert has urged anyone earning up to £40,000 to check if they’re eligible for extra cash.
They say households should check if their total income is under £40,000 – or even up to £55,000 for larger families with high rent costs.
They say to check if you qualify to get Universal Credit (UC).
While the Money Saving Expert team say it’s possible to not be entitled, it’s always worth checking.
They said: “Earn under £40k-ish (or possibly more) and not claiming UC? Check now if you can get it.
“Martin’s rule of thumb is if your household income’s roughly under £40,000 (or £55,000 if you’ve a larger family & pay high rent), then it’s worth plugging your info into our 10-min benefits calc to see if you’re due anything (not saying you are, just it’s worth checking).
“If you qualify, you’ll get what’s called the ‘child element’, worth around £288/month per child (for your first two children), plus your standard allowance.
“And, if in work, you may get further help towards childcare costs on top.”
It comes as Money Saving Expert has revealed how thousands of households could be owed a tax refund worth up to £120 if they bought a new boiler this year.
Many of the UK’s top manufacturers hiked the prices of their boilers earlier this year in anticipation of the Conservative Government’s Clean Heat Market Mechanism (CHMM).
The scheme, which was supposed to come into effect in April, would have seen boiler firms fined if they did not sell a certain number of heat pumps each year compared to their boiler sales.
This was introduced to help meet environmental targets.
At the time, the Tories said they would push the proposal back to next March, but this timeline may change now Labour is in charge.
The Sun has asked the government if this date intends to change.
However, in anticipation of being fined, major manufacturers raised the prices of their gas boilers by £120.
It is suspected that thousands of customers who purchased at the start of the year would have had this so-called boiler tax added to their bills.
If you bought a new Baxi, Ideal, Worcester Bosch or Vaillant/Glow Worm boiler between January 1 2024 and March 21 2024, you may have had up to £120 (excluding VAT) added to the cost, according to a report in MoneySavingExpert.
You are entitled to a refund but the amount you can get varies from supplier to supplier.
