The £400 payment, known as the Energy Bills Support Scheme, is non-refundable and will be paid in installments over the next six months.

But new research shows households are not confident the money will provide enough help over winter.

Of those asked, 83% said the money will help them financially, but at the same time 36% said it won’t allow them to turn the heating on for longer, according to the survey from Opinium.

The money won’t help 18% of those surveyed to use more hot water and 17% said they won’t be able to use household appliances more.

More than half (55%) of the 2,000 people asked said they felt the government should be doing more to help households financially with the rising cost of living. One in 10 said the money won’t provide any help at all.

The £400 rebate is just one measure announced by the government to help with rising bills. The other major benefit, the Energy Support Guarantee which capped average bills at £2,500 for two years was dramatically scaled back yesterday.

The new chancellor, Jeremy Hunt, announced a major change to the scheme from April 2023. The details have not been confirmed but it’s expected from April it will only be available to low-income households.

The scheme was one of the first announcements made by Liz Truss when she became Prime Minister. It was designed to help households facing price rises of 80%, to £3,549 on average.

Changing the scheme has not been welcomed at a time when inflation is soaring, mortgage bills have risen by an average of £300 a month, and the cost of living is becoming unaffordable to millions.

More government help is required

More than half of those asked said more support was needed for rising energy bills and 56% supported a windfall tax on energy companies, while 50% wanted to lower the Ofgem price cap.

Cutting VAT on bills was an option chosen by 48% followed by increasing benefits (41%) while 40% said there should be a bigger discount than £400 given to all households.

Alexa Nightingale, head of financial services research at Opinium commented: “Given the soaring energy prices, along with a £2,500 energy cap, the £400 rebate on its own is not going to be enough for people to financially cope this winter.

“There is clearly consumer demand for further initiatives to support households during this tough period – and given the Chancellor’s recent announcement that energy support will be reviewed by the government next April, many will be waiting to see what this will mean for them and their families in the future.”

Separate research this week from the Warm This Winter campaign warned that seven million households could fall into dire fuel poverty if they don’t receive more support from the government.