BBC plans to collect over-75s licence fee already in chaos

Pensioners forced to begin paying for TV licences could be unable to meet the August 1 deadline because the payment system is already in chaos, it has emerged.

Around 4.5 million households currently receive free licences and will receive letters in the coming weeks telling them that they are required to pay the £157.50 or prove that they are eligible for Pension Credit.

The letters will direct people to the TV Licensing call centre. But a message on TV Licensing’s website said: “Due to reduced staff levels, we are prioritising customers in most urgent need. We’re sorry but this means we may not be able to answer all your calls, and it’s taking us much longer to respond to emails and letters.”

The delays will fuel the anxieties of many elderly people who fear that they will face a visit from TV Licensing enforcers or the prospect of being taken to court if they are unable to make payment.

Julian Knight, the Tory chairman of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport select committee, told The Daily Telegraph: “This is very concerning indeed and I am not convinced that they are ready for this.

“If the new director-general inherits a situation where millions of people are unable to pay for something because of Covid and are left in the lurch and fearing the knock at the door, I cannot think of a worse start for a new director-general.

He added: “It will be an own goal of epic proportions to start hauling people over 75 in front of the courts. There needs to be common sense here.”

To add to the confusion, the BBC announced that the current scheme will begin on August 1, but said “no one needs to take any immediate action” until they receive a letter from TV Licensing - some of which will not be posted until after August 1.

Mr Knight said he thought the decision had been brought forward to “clear the decks” ahead of the arrival of the new director-general, Tim Davie.

A spokesman for TV Licensing said it had "increased the size of its customer call centre and has launched a free telephone information line where older customers and their relatives can access recorded information on the new policy" after the decision.

It said that "TV Licensing will soon be writing directly to over-75s customers with clear guidance, highlighting that no one will need to take immediate action, or leave their home, to claim a free TV Licence or to pay for one".

The BBC said it was protecting the poorest pensioners by continuing to pay the licences of those eligible for Pension Credit. But of the 1.5 million households that are eligible, only 450,000 have applied so far.

Esther Rantzen, the campaigner and founder of The Silver Line charity for older people, criticised the Government for pushing the over-75s concession on to the BBC. But she added: “I’m not sure I’m defending the BBC. I didn’t like the constant references to ‘the poorest’.

"Older people have a lot of pride, a lot of dignity. They don’t like taking charity. And one of the problems about Pension Credit is that so much of the money goes unclaimed because older people don’t like being described as the poorest.

“Let’s say ‘the people who find it most difficult’ should therefore go and claim this Pension Credit, which they have earned with a lifetime of survival and getting through the tough times’, and the BBC should make programmes with the money to make sure that older people still enjoy [its] output and still feel valued.”

Lord Hall of Birkenhead, the outgoing director-general, previously said that free licences for over-75s was unfair to the young.

The BBC’s decision to scrap them relied on a report published by Frontier Economics, an organisation chaired by Lord O’Donnell, the former Cabinet Secretary. The report stated that older people as a group are richer now than they were in 2000, when the concession was introduced by Gordon Brown.

Writing in today’s Daily Telegraph, Lord O’Donnell suggested that the damage caused to young people in the job market by the fallout from the Covid crisis was an argument in favour of charging older people for their licences.

“The economic rationale for providing free licences for over-75s has weakened,” he said. “And while it’s too early to say how the coronavirus crisis might affect the issue of fairness between generations, the Chancellor’s summer statement has highlighted the fact that it’s young people who are likely to suffer most from the economic fallout.”

A BBC spokesperson said: “It’s wrong to suggest the system is in chaos. TV Licensing are writing to over 75’s households with a separate dedicated contact centre telephone number. We recognise that some people may need extra support, so TV Licensing has considerably increased the size of its customer support call centre so that we’re on hand to answer any queries.  Additionally, we have provided a free telephone information line where customers can access recorded information on the new policy by calling 0800 232 1382, and information can also be found on the TV Licensing website tvl.co.uk/age.’