Nearly 1,000 Powys residents have had their cost-of-living support payment sent to their bank account twice, as they received double the payment they were supposed to.

A total of 842 people, who were supposed to receive £200 through the Welsh government’s Fuel Support Scheme 2022-23, have received £400, as the payment had unintentionally sent twice to their account.

Staff at Powys County Council are sending emails to payment recipients, asking them to return the duplicate payment.

The county council is also advising people that the emails they are sending regarding the payment is not a scam.

Cllr Matthew Dorrance, Powys County Council’s Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for a Fairer Powys, said: “We are really sorry this error has occurred with these cost-of-living payments that we are distributing on behalf of the Welsh Government.

“But we would like to reassure anyone who has received an email from us asking for the extra £200 to be returned that it is genuine.

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“We remain committed to doing all we can to support our residents who are suffering because of the cost-of-living crisis, and if you think you might be eligible for financial help, please apply for it.

“It is also important that anyone who has received an overpayment returns it, as the funds available are limited and we need to make sure others who need this help can get it.”

“If you are ever in doubt about whether correspondence from us about grant support is genuine, please contact our Income and Awards team on 01597 826345.”

Council staff have successfully paid out more than £100 million in grants since the start of the Covid 19 pandemic, and have expressed their disappointment that this batch was duplicated.

To date, around half of the 842 double payments have already been returned.

The Fuel Support Scheme is open until 5pm on the afternoon of Tuesday 28 February 2023, with households in receipt of a range of benefits eligible. More can be read about it at https://en.powys.gov.uk/article/11971/Fuel-Support-Scheme-202223