BBC to make big change to TV Licence to help those struggling to pay £159 bill
Those struggling to pay their TV Licence bill are to be given more support by the BBC under new plans.
Everyone who watches live TV in the UK must pay a £159 TV Licence fee - without one you are breaking the law and can be prosecuted.
Under the action plan published yesterday, the BBC want to offer a two-month breathing space if they are facing enforcement action.
Alongside that, the BBC plans to extend its current "Simple Payment Plan" to all to all unlicensed households.
The Simple Payment Plan, which helps spread the cost of a new licence in small instalments over 12 months, is already offered to certain groups at the moment.
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Those struggling will also be offered free support and advice from the debt charity StepChange.
The BBC says the breathing space will only be available to those who agree to a free, independent debt advice referral from TV Licensing.
The support plan comes in response to a Gender Disparity Review by the BBC which looked at why 75% of those prosecuted for not paying for their TV Licence were women.
The report found that this figure accounted for 18% of all prosecutions made against women in England and Wales.
The BBC report said that "societal factors" were largely responsible for the gender disparity in TV Licence prosecutions.
It found that 60% of single adult households were headed by women, and only 40% by men and that women were more likely to be at home than men and more likely to be the point of contact for bills.
It also reported that more women experienced financial hardship than men, which could in turn impact their ability to pay for a TV Licence.
Clare Sumner, director of policy at the BBC said: "While we know societal factors drive the gender disparity, we’re committed to making improvements to our own processes wherever possible.
"Our action plan will improve support for people in real financial difficulty to help them stay licensed and reduce risk of prosecution. We look forward to the new partnership with StepChange and we will closely monitor its impact."
Other proposals put forward in the BBC's action plan include better training for TV Licence visiting officers to help them have a "deeper understanding" of debt and financial hardship.
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The BBC will also give customers more opportunities to buy a licence before prosecution and will try withdraw prosections against those in the process who are making payments towards a licence.
The BBC will also work to improve its communications with customers to "ensure greater clarity" so people are aware of the prosecution process.
However, some do not believe the pledges go far enough.
Emma Torr, legal director at the law charity APPEAL says that the action plan focuses on "getting more people to pay their licence fee rather than on ensuring that those in genuine hardship".
She said: "This review came about because women, and those in genuine financial difficulty, have been disproportionately bearing the burden of the BBC's enforcement scheme for years.
"A situation that’s particularly abhorrent during the cost-of-living crisis.
"Previous efforts by the BBC to address the disparity have failed so it’s clear that tinkering around the edges does not work - there needs to be a fundamental shift in the way that they enforce license fee payment.
"We had hoped that this review would kick start that sea change. Sadly, today’s report does not convince me.
"The focus of the Action Plan is on getting more people to pay their licence fee rather than on ensuring that those in genuine hardship are not prosecuted at all."
The BBC has not confirmed when these support measures will come into place and we will update this article once we know more.
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