Chelmsford pensioners miss cold weather payments

12.00.00am GMT Fri 29th Jan 2010

Nearly 2,000 pensioners in Chelmsford eligible for special Cold Weather Payments due to the recent weather, are failing to claim the money, according to analysis of government figures by the Liberal Democrats.

Commenting, Stephen Robinson, who is bidding to be the town's Lib Dem MP, said:

"It is a scandal that so many pensioners on the breadline are missing out on this extra money. Fuel prices are at an all time high, making Cold Weather payments all the more important to people already struggling on a poverty pension.

"Labour has failed pensioners by creating a complicated system that makes it difficult for them to get the help they desperately need. The government should be making every effort to identify pensioners who are missing out and get them this extra cash."