TV licence fee evasion hits record high as BBC reveals 1 in 8 households dodge fare for rival streamers
A record number of Britons are ditching the TV licence as 300,000 more households stopped paying in the last year, according to the latest annual report from the BBC. The total number of TV licence fee payers plunged from 24.1 million to 23.8 million last year.
The fee evasion rate – the estimated percentage of households that should be paying for a TV licence but are not — has increased to 12.52%, the BBC Annual Report 2024/25 reveals. That’s a dramatic spike from the 11.30% rate recorded in the 2022/23 report.
That means just under 1 in 8 households in the UK are dodging the TV licence fee, according to the latest BBC data.
The BBC loses almost half a billion in annual revenue because of the rise in TV license fee dodgers. According to analyse by the BBC, this is mainly driven by “an increasing number of households with lower levels of licensable content consumed”. Content that isn’t licensable includes on-demand boxsets and films streamed from the likes of Netflix, Disney+, and Prime Video. Ofcom data shows over 68% of British households subscribe to at least one streaming service, with Netflix the most popular, boasting 16.7 million homes.
The shocking new data comes as the traditional TV licence fee model comes under more and more strain. With diminishing sports rights, dwindling viewing figures, and the challenges of enforcing TV licence rules in the streaming era, the future of the BBC and its unique funding model hangs in the balance.
Over the next two years, the Labour Government must assess a range of alternative funding models, which range from subscription services to household levies, as the BBC prepares for its biggest transformation in decades.
As well as those actively dodging the TV licence fee, an ever-increasing number of Britons are turning away from terrestrial channels in favour of subscriptions like Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, and Apple TV+, to name just a few.
Watching on-demand content on these streamers does not require a TV licence, but there are circumstances where you’ll need to pay the annual levy to watch on Prime Video, Apple TV+, and Netflix.
The TV licence fee will set you back £174.50 a year, that’s a £5 increase on the £169.50 price tag last year.
Keir Starmer and the Labour Government is responsible for this hike, which they will continue to increase in line with inflation until 2027, when the Royal Charter is up for renewal. At that point, the UK Government must decide what to do with this long-standing levy to watch terrestrial broadcasts in the UK, which is responsible for almost all of the BBC’s funding.
The last Conservative administration pledged to scrap the funding model altogether when the next renewal came around. Following the General Election last summer, the new Labour Government declined to take the same stance. However, Downing Street has remained tight-lipped about exactly what it wants to do with the TV licence fee ahead of the next election, which isn’t due until 2029. The BBC doesn’t have any plans to model competitor streaming platform ad-based service or subscription models.
“The fight is on, and it is vital we now think very carefully about the kind of media environment we want for the UK,” said BBC Chair Samir Shah in a statement released alongside the latest Annual Report. It continues: “This is a critical period for the BBC’s future, with the process of renewing our Charter now well underway.
“We continue to have productive discussions with the Government as well as our stakeholders and partners.
“But one of the first responsibilities of the Board is to increase the BBC’s accountability to our audiences, so we need to make sure the Charter debate is dominated by a deep understanding of their needs and views.
“That is why the Board was pleased to see the BBC launch its biggest-ever public engagement exercise in March, asking BBC account holders across the UK what they want from the BBC now and in the future.
“It is part of a much wider programme of audience research and polling that the BBC will conduct over the course of the year ahead, and the Board looks forward to being kept updated on its findings.
“Another core responsibility of the Board is to uphold the independence of the BBC. I believe nothing is more important to the BBC’s ability to serve all audiences. We therefore need to make sure it is strengthened, not weakened, in all decisions around the BBC’s future and funding.”
In the meantime, the BBC has put its biggest ever public engagement exercise in place with an online questionnaire called “Our BBC, Our Future” to kickstart a conversation with the public about their views on its future. The BBC hopes to gather up to one million responses to its multiple-choice-style questionnaire, with findings from the British public due to be published later this year.
If you’re caught watching live TV without a TV licence, then you may be fined £1,000 or be taken to court. The maximum fine is £2,000 in Guernsey. In 2022, there were 40,220 convictions for licence fee evasion, resulting in an average fine of £202.
There are several factors in play as to why evasion numbers are increasing. For starters, more households are watching fewer BBC programmes and live TV, so they aren’t seeing the value in purchasing a license.
Several households also don’t realise what a TV license includes, which is the following:
To watch and record live TV broadcasts, including BBC, ITV, Channel 4, Dave, and international channels, as well as pay TV services like Sky, Virgin Media, and EE TV Live TV broadcasts on streaming services such as YouTube, Netflix, and Amazon Prime VideoEverything on BBC iPlayer, including watching, recording, and downloading showsThe licence covers any device, whether it’s a TV, laptop, tablet, or phoneThe licence covers anyone living with you at the licensed address
You don’t need a TV license if you want to watch on-demand content on streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, or Disney+. This includes popular shows such as Bridgerton, The Summer I Turned Pretty, The Bear, etc. Although, if you plan on watching a live broadcast like a sports game on any of these streaming services, then the need for a license will apply.
Crucially, whether you need a TV licence fee is never determined by the device you’re using to watch a programme. It applies to traditional TVs, as well as desktop computers, laptops, smartphones and tablets, games consoles, set-top boxes like Sky Stream, and or DVD/VHS recorders.
The cost-of-living crisis may also be affecting households, and so they’re avoiding paying the fee as a result.
There are changes in media consumption trends, particularly among younger viewers. Many are only streaming on-demand content, so they do not need the licence. Viewers aged 16-24 now spend only 5% of their viewing time with BBC content, compared to 34% on YouTube and TikTok.
In addition, the 2024/25, TV Licensing recorded 3.6 million declarations confirming no licence is needed, which is an increase of 0.3 million (10.5%) compared to 2023/24. This is a jump of nearly half a million in the last year.
Despite so many either not using or evading the fee, the BBC still raked in nearly £3.7 billion from the licence fee last year. This is also before the £5 price increase in April. This large number, however, still proves to be worrisome.
“My neighbours talk to me in the pub about who’s going to host Match of the Day, but it’s the ten people on the other side of the room who don’t care that I’m more worried about,” said Tim Davie, BBC Director General.
Major changes may be on the horizon as the TV licence is becoming increasingly unappetizing. Speculators have suggested that an income-based system may arrive. This means that you’ll pay more if you earn more, and pay less if you have a lower income.
If there’s one thing for sure, though, the TV licence as you know it is nearing its end.
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