The Alternative Fuel Payment scheme has ended - So Energy has made all the payments to eligible customers as instructed by the Government. 

Those customers who didn't receive payments but believed that they should have would have needed to apply on the Government's website. Applications closed on 31st May 2023.


This article will tell you all you need to know about the Alternative Fuel Payment (AFP) scheme introduced by the Government to support customers who use alternative fuels (other than gas/electricity) for heating and/or cooking. These customers are likely to benefit less from the Energy Price Guarantee than customers using gas and electricity in their homes, so the Government has introduced this scheme to bridge the potential gap in support.

What is the Domestic Alternative Fuel Payment (AFP) scheme? 


Answer: Through the Alternative Fuel Payment (AFP) scheme, the Government will provide £200 to households who use alternative fuels for heating such as biomass, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) or heating oil. 



1. Do I need to apply to receive the £200 payment?


Answer: The vast majority of households that use alternative fuels for heating will receive a single £200 payment from their electricity supplier (if So Energy is your electricity supplier, then we will administer the credit). The Government will send us a list of households that they believe are eligible for the AFP scheme and we will credit all those accounts with £200.  


Though we are collaborating with the Government on administering this scheme, So Energy has no say over which households are deemed eligible; the list is compiled based on a combination of Census data, local records of connections to the gas grid and other statistics available to the Government.


If you are on the Government’s AFP list you do not need to do anything to receive the payment and we will let you know via email once we are processing the payment.


A small number of households will need to apply to the AFP Alternative Fund website for the £200 support - this process will be administered by the Government, not so Energy. This could apply to households that use alternative fuels and:


  • Do not have a direct relationship with an electricity supplier.
  • Are in an area mainly connected to the gas grid.

 

2. How do I know if I need to apply in for the AFP?


Answer: All households should wait until the end of February to see if they will receive their credit.


A small minority of households will need to apply for their payment, via the AFP Alternative Fund portal (found on the government's website). This will include households that do not have a direct relationship with an electricity supplier and those who live in an area on the gas grid but use alternative fuels as their main heating source. 


If you think you are eligible for the payment and have not received it by the end of February, you should make an application through the AFP Alternative Fund portal which the Government will open at the end of February.



3. When should I receive my AFP payment?


Answer: The vast majority of eligible households will receive the payment in February - please wait until the end of February to see if you will receive the payment.


 If you think you are eligible for the payment and have not received it by the end of February, you should make an application through the AFP Alternative Fund portal (which can be accessed on the government's website). There is no way for us to confirm if you are eligible before you receive the credit. 



4. What if I don’t receive my payment from my supplier? 


Answer: You should wait before the end of February to see if you will receive the payment. If you receive no payment by the end of February, it means that your household was not on the list of eligible households provided by the Government. 


If, at the end of February, you believe your household is eligible and have had no contact from us about the AFP, you should go to the government's portal to check what to do next. The Government has informed us that they will open an application portal at the end of February.



5. I have been receiving £66/67 a month from So Energy since October – am I eligible for AFP too?


Answer: If you use alternative fuels as your main heating source and your household is not connected to the gas grid, you will be eligible for AFP in addition to the £66/£67 monthly support from the government’s Energy Bills Support Scheme (EBSS).



6. Why do I need to apply in to the AFP Alternative Fund when I got EBSS paid to me directly? 


Answer: The Alternative Fuel Payment seeks to offer an equivalent benefit to the Energy Price Guarantee, which is providing a subsidy to those households who use electricity or gas for heating.


 In areas where the most recent Census shows that electricity is the most predominant heating source amongst households, the Government is asking the minority of customers who use alternative fuels to come forward and apply for the AFP. So Energy will have little to no involvement with the Government's application process.



7. Will I receive more than £200 (if eligible)? 


Answer: Not at the moment. However, the Government has advised that they are committed to continued monitoring of prices over the coming months and will consider further intervention if required to protect UK households from extraordinary fuel prices. 



8. I don’t use alternative fuels. Why have I received £200?


Answer: In order for the AFP to reach as many target customers as possible, the Government has accepted that some electrically heated homes will receive the payment. 


This is because there is no central register of alternatively fuelled homes, and so the Government is using criteria such as being in an area off the gas grid, and where electric heating is not predominant, as the best possible approximation of the likelihood you use alternative fuels.