The cost-of-living crisis has brought a huge amount of attention to spiralling bills and the increasing costs of household essentials like water, energy and broadband. But the reality for many of the two million older people living in poverty in the UK is that these costs were already unmanageable.
That’s why we’re campaigning to ensure older people in financial hardship are supported with their household costs.
What needs to change?
At Independent Age, we regularly hear from people in later life who are forced into impossible positions so their budget can cover their essentials. Whether that’s not turning on the heating, reducing water use or cutting off their internet access, these decisions have a real impact on the lives of older people in financial hardship.
Working across broadband, water and energy, we’re calling on the UK Government, service providers and regulators to make sure that older people in financial hardship are given the support they need to meet essential household costs.
Find out more by reading our report about how older people are managing rising household costs.
In some areas, such as water and broadband, there are specific tariffs that older people on a low income can select to receive discounted prices. However, too many older people simply don’t know these deals exist. That means older people are not receiving the support they’re eligible for, which is straining their income even more.
Read our latest blog to find out more about our work on broadband.
How can I support your campaign?
In the coming months, there’ll be plenty of opportunity to support our campaigning activity on household costs.
You can stay up to date with our campaigning by joining our Campaigns Network. As a part of our Campaigns Network, you will receive regular emails about our campaigning activity and how you can make a difference.
If you have a story you want to share about how you’re managing rising prices, you can email our campaigns team. We’ll get in touch with you to learn how you’d like your story to be used, and we’ll never use your story without your permission.
What else are you doing?
We’re also supporting calls made by other charities such as Age UK and Scope to create an energy social tariff. For older people who are on a low income or receive benefits such as Pension Credit or Attendance Allowance, this would reduce the cost of energy. We strongly believe nobody should be made to live in a cold home or not feel able to make a hot meal.
What have you done about household costs before?
We know that the cost-of-living crisis has affected lots of people, so working for older people in financial hardship has been a top priority. Since the start of 2022, we’ve been campaigning to make sure financial support around rising energy bills and other costs is available to all older people who need it.
In June 2022 then-chancellor Rishi Sunak announced cost-of-living payments for everyone of State Pension age, with extra support for older people receiving Pension Credit. We successfully influenced the UK Government to take this approach, so that the hundreds of thousands of older people who are eligible for Pension Credit but don’t receive it didn’t miss out on this much-needed support.
In autumn 2022 we worked with other charities to campaign on increasing income top-ups like Pension Credit and other benefits by the rate of inflation. We did this so that older people in financial hardship were able to better manage sharply increasing prices. This change meant that a single person receiving Pension Credit will receive an extra £900 in 2023/24.
'A constant struggle' – our new report on rising household costs
Deciding between whether to wash with cold water or eat dinner is not a choice anyone wants to be presented with. This report shares the often-hidden experiences of how pensioners facing financial hardship are being impacted by increasingly high household costs, across water, energy, broadband, and Council Tax.