With energy costs skyrocketing, the energy allowance of 1,300 euros is a very welcome help for many people to be able to continue to pay their bills. But whether you get it depends much on where you live. This is evident during a tour of a number of Brabant municipalities.
To claim the energy allowance of a total of 1,300 euros, your income must not exceed 120 per cent of the social assistance standard. That is the rule of thumb that the central government uses as a condition for paying that allowance. But a number of municipalities in Brabant deviate from that directive.
Local differences
“The difference in the application of the energy allowance rules is comparable to the difference in local levies,” says a council representative from the west of the province. “For example, you pay more property tax in one municipality than in the other municipality. And one municipality is a bit richer and has more money to do something extra for its inhabitants than another municipality. So you have to put the differences in a broader perspective”.
The municipality of Eindhoven will apply the 120 per cent standard but also gives extra allowances via the so-called ‘Participation contribution’. For example, an ‘energy voucher’ of 70 euros can be claimed.
Source: OmroepBrabant
Translated by: Seetha
