Between the 31st of October and 19th November, the UK Government will make Cost of Living Payments of up to £300 for people in receipt of benefits like Universal Credit, Job Seekers Allowance, Employment Support Allowance and Pension Credit.

An estimated 834,276 are claiming these relevant benefits however CAS is concerned some people will miss out, with people seeking support from Citizens Advice Bureaux (CABs) having missed previous payments.

People will only be eligible for the payments if the claimed a qualifying benefit between 18th August and 17th September.

Analysis from Citizens Advice Scotland suggests around 12,000 people start on Universal Credit in Scotland alone each month. Those who started in October or after the 17 September cut off would miss out on the Cost of Living payment.

CABs have seen pensioners, disabled people, and people in work miss out on the payments. In one case a disabled woman was refused her cost-of-living payment and told she was not eligible despite being in receipt of Employment Support Allowance.

In another case, a man in work had his Universal Credit entitlement wiped out due to his employer overpaying him, which disqualified him from the payment.

CAS is encouraging people who were in receipt of Universal Credit, Tax Credits, Job Seekers Allowance, Employment Support Allowance, Income Support and Pension Credit between 18 August to 17 September to expect the payment, and report missing payments to the Department of Work and Pensions from 20 November.

CAS social justice spokesperson Erica Young said: “These payments represent an absolute lifeline for people struggling with the cost-of-living crisis, and they will be welcome support to those who receive them.

“However, across the Citizens Advice network we have seen cases in the past where people have missed on these payments because of errors and oversights.

“Others will miss out because of the arbitrary dates that cut off people’s entitlement. It doesn’t seem fair that someone who has needed extra support from our social security system this month won’t qualify for these payments as we head into the winter. For Universal Credit alone that could be as many as 12,000 people.

“From next week people should be expecting to review their payment, if they haven’t received it by the 19th of November we would encourage them to report the missing payment to the DWP.

“There is a wider issue here about the value of social security itself, these payments are welcome, but ultimately a sticking plaster when Universal Credit isn’t enough for people to live on in the first place.

“The Citizens Advice network is here for people during the cost-of-living crisis. People can check www.moneymap.scot to see where they could be entitled to increase their income or cut their costs.”