Utility Relief Grants

Financial Assistance for gas, electricity and water bills

In Victoria, the State Government provides financial assistance for people experiencing financial hardship through the Utility Relief Grants scheme (URGs). The UGRs provides help in paying electricity, gas or water bills that are overdue due to a temporary financial crisis.

Eligibility

To qualify for the Utility Relief Grant scheme, you need to meet one or more of the following criteria:

• Pensioner Concession Card
• Health Care Card
• Veterans’ Affairs Gold Card
• Low income (they will assess your eligibility based on your income)
• Impacted by Family Violence
• Recent decrease in income
• Unexpected high bill
• Cost of housing is more than 30% of your income.

How much money can I receive off my bill?

You can claim up to $650 per service (gas, electricity or water) every 2 years. You can apply more than once during this period. If you only have a single source of energy – for example, electricity and no gas, you can apply for up to $1300 every 2 years. 

The money will be paid off your current bill if your application is successful.

How do I apply

You can contact your utility provider and apply over the phone. Note: you must have a balance outstanding on your current bill and can only apply for the amount owing. Example: you have $350 owing on your electricity bill, this is the amount of URGs you will be applying for. You will still have $300 available to apply for during the remaining 2 year period.

Other hardship options for utility bills

If you don’t qualify for URGs or still have a balance outstanding, you can seek hardship assistance from your utility provider. They may be able to offer:

• An affordable payment plan that covers your usage over a year (bill smoothing)
• Reduced repayments for a period of time
• Waive part of the balance to help you get back on track
• Match the URGs payment provided by the government
• Matched payments – if you pay a certain number of agreed instalments, your energy provider will pay one additional instalment to your account
• Request an energy audit – this is useful if your bills are high and you are not sure of what appliance is costing you money.

If you are unable to find an affordable solution with your provider, you can:

• Lodge a complaint with the Ombudsman, the Energy and Water Ombudsman (EWOV)
• Speak to a financial counsellor.