Leading supplier CPL Fuels says a price hike on a bag of coal is likely from today.
A 4 euro 50 cent rise is in response to an increase in the cost of material and the war in Ukraine.
A further hike of 2 euro 50 cent per bag is expected on the first of April too.
An organisation that supports older people at home is calling on the government to broaden the eligibility criteria for the Fuel Allowance.
ALONE says not every household in fuel poverty is eligible for the scheme.
The group wants the issue of rising costs to be dealt with as a part of the pandemic recovery.
Seán Moynihan, CEO of ALONE says, “We have heard this week from many older people that the rising prices are affecting them across the board.
For many, tough choices are being made between keeping warm or eating well.
No one should have to make this choice.
The reliefs will provide some comfort for older people in the next few months, but we need to have a long-term strategy to address the cost of living crisis in relation to benchmarking the pension and other measures.
He continued, “During the pandemic, there was a collaborative effort by government and communities to support older people, this collaborative effort has dispersed too quickly leaving many older people facing isolation and without the support they need.
For many older people, the pandemic has meant a crisis of loneliness and isolation and a cost of living crisis that deprive many people of day-to-day necessities.”
He continued, “for many to emerge gradually after two years and be faced with rising costs that deprive people of day to day necessities when they should be tackling the backlog of issues that need addressing is hard.”
ALONE states that the inflationary pressure that is currently being felt by older people through their fuel, food and transport is as a direct result of the pandemic.
They argue that a pandemic like response would have been more appropriate even if this inflationary spike is temporary.
This package has left the redistribution of equality as a matter between citizens and the many organisations operating to help our citizens in need
ALONE hope that those who feel they do not need all of the allowance might see fit to allocate it to those that still do.
