Households eligible for their council’s £150 rebate to offset soaring energy prices will receive the funds faster if they have set up a direct debit, the Local Government Association (LGA) has said.

In early February, Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a package of measures to help households cope with an almost 50% rise in energy bills forecast for April due to soaring wholesale gas prices. All households in England, Scotland and Wales will get £200 off their October energy bills, money to be repaid in annual installments over five years from 2023.

In addition, English residents in municipal tax bands A to D – around 80% of households – will receive £150 energy refunds from their council from April.

These municipalities encourage residents to set up direct debits for their housing tax. This will allow the rebate to be paid directly into their bank account on April 1st.

Getting payments to municipal ratepayers without direct debit agreements will take longer as councils will have to contact them about the reimbursement scheme, ask them to submit a claim and then carry out prepayment checks before issuing the money, a said the LGA.

In some municipalities, thousands of households have not set up direct debits. Hull City Council estimates it lacks bank details for 60,000 households, while Dartford Council says 15,000 of its residents do not pay by direct debit.

Shaun Davies, Chairman of the LGA Resources Council, said: “This year will be more difficult than most, particularly for those on low incomes, so it is good that the government is stepping in to provide financial support to help alleviate these pressures.

“You can still get the money if you don’t have direct debit set up, but it could take longer as your council will have to contact you and then you will have to make a claim,” he added.

Meanwhile, charities have criticized the way support is distributed through the councils. When the policy was announced, Citizens Advice argued that “tying financial aid to council tax will result in a complicated lottery which means aid is not targeted at people who really need it. need”.

The consumer champion said the government should use benefit systems to distribute aid instead and target households most in need of help.

The Treasury support measures have also made £565m available to devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland to provide similar support. Scotland and Wales will mirror the English system, with rebates of £150 given through councils to those in council tax brackets A to D,

Meanwhile, the government has also drawn criticism for branding the £200 rebate on October energy bills a ‘rebate’ when it has to be repaid.

“A rebate generally refers to money returned to a consumer or taxpayer after paying for a product or paying a tax,” said a spokesperson for fact-checking charity Full Fact.

“In this sense, the energy bill system is not a reimbursement, because people will still have to pay their entire energy bill, a little over a longer period. It’s more like a payment plan than a discount.