DWP told to make £15 change to Cold Weather Payment amounts as postcodes triggered

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The authors propose paying the benefit in advance, potentially through utility companies for smart meter users, and increasing the payment to £10 per day when minimum temperatures fall below −4°C.

They said: "A policy will only be effective when it is clearly communicated and understood by those it applies to. To prevent self-rationing, people need to know that payment support has arrived, otherwise they may hesitate to turn up the heating on the coldest days of winter, with all the risks that involves."