£600 government energy payment rollout to households in NI begins 

The £600 government energy payment promised to households in Northern Ireland has begun its rollout.

Households will receive their payments in different ways depending on how they pay for domestic electricity.

Electricity customers who pay their bills on a quarterly basis will receive vouchers in the post as opposed to the £600 credited to their bank accounts.

Households who pay for electricity via a keypad or pre-payment meter will also receive their £600 via posted vouchers.

The vouchers can either be deposited in a bank or credit union or redeemed for cash at the Post Office and must be cashed in by March 31 2023.

An estimated 500,000 households in Northern Ireland will be eligible to receive vouchers.

Proof of address and photo identification will be required to exchange the vouchers for money.

However, for direct debit customers, the energy firm they are signed up to on January 2 will be tasked with distributing £600 directly into their bank accounts.

The payments are expected to arrive between mid-January and late March.

The money is intended to help households with their home energy costs, however the recipients can spend it in any way they choose.

The one-off payments are part of the Northern Ireland Energy Bills Support Scheme and will be distributed automatically to customers who pay for a domestic electricity supply.

Details of the payments were announced last year as part of the UK-wide energy support scheme, a government response to help people with record wholesale energy costs.

Households in Great Britain are currently receiving a total of £400 in instalments.

In Northern Ireland, households are set to receive a total of £600 by March.

The extra £200 is being regarded as an "oil payment" to reflect the fact that a large proportion of customers in Northern Ireland use home heating oil.

All households in Northern Ireland will qualify for the £200 oil payment, regardless of whether or not they use home heating oil.