Cold weather payments as sub-zero temperatures forecast for NI
- Published
There's a risk of icy conditions in some parts of Northern Ireland
Cold weather payments have been triggered for 11 postcode areas as chilly conditions persist.
The £25 payment is made to people living in areas where the temperature is recorded or forecast to be 0°C or below for seven consecutive days.
A night of sub-zero temperatures is forecast for Northern Ireland on Thursday with a risk of icy conditions.
A Met Office weather warning has been issued for counties Antrim, Down, and Londonderry from 17:00 GMT.
The organisation is warning of an increased chance of accidents or injuries, where roads and pavements are untreated.
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The warning will remain in place until 10:00 on Friday.
The main risk of ice will occur where we have some scattered showers this evening.
It is after temperatures fell to -3.1° on Wednesday night in Castlederg in County Tyrone.
A few of those showers, which could be wintry, will continue overnight, but not for everyone.
Temperatures are expected to fall to around -5° inland, while coastal areas will hover around 0°.
Cold weather payments
Payments are made automatically to those who get a qualifying benefit, and people living in these areas do not need to do anything to claim the money.
They will be paid to people living in the following postcodes in counties Down and Tyrone, although these could be extended:
BT24, 26
BT30, 31, 32, 33, 34
BT78, 79
BT81, 82
These include Ballynahinch, Hillsborough, Downpatrick, Castlewellan, Banbridge, Newcastle, Newry, Omagh, Castlederg, and Strabane.
According to NI Direct, payments can be expected to be made with 14 working days, external to the bank or building society account where benefits are paid.
Cold weather payments are typically issued to those in of certain benefits including Pension Credit, Income Support, Jobseekers Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Universal Credit, and Support for Mortgage Interest.
The cold weather payment scheme runs from 1 November 2023 until 31 March 2024.
Some households are entitled to £25 for each seven day period of very cold weather between 1 November and 31 March
Additionally, a weather warning for low temperatures and ice has been issued across much of the Republic of Ireland from Thursday night into Friday morning.
Irish weather service Met Éireann is warning of hazardous driving conditions between 18:00 on Thursday and 12:00 on Friday.
The current cold snap will see temperatures struggling to get above two or 3°C by day, with chilly, and frosty nights forecast until the middle of next week at least.
However, these conditions are not uncommon for this time of year with Friday, 1 December, marking the first day of meteorological winter.
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