The TV licence is set to rise by £5 next year, increasing the annual expense to a sizeable £174.50 – but some people can get it half price.
If a person is blind (severely sight impaired) or lives with someone who is blind, they could be entitled to a blind concession TV licence.
At its current price, the discount would bring the annual fee down from £169.50 to £84.75 for a colour TV licence and £28.50 for a black and white TV licence.
According to the NHS website, there are more than two million people living with sight loss in the UK. Of these, around 340,000 are registered as blind or partially sighted.
This means hundreds of thousands of people would qualify for the savings, making it an important check to make.
How to claim 50% TV licence discount
To be eligible for the concession licence, TV Licencing says people must provide at least one of the following documents to confirm they are certified as blind:
- A CVI (Certificate of Visual Impairment)
- A BD8 Certificate
- A certificate or document issued by a Local Authority that shows they are registered as blind (severely sight impaired)
- A copy of a certificate from an Ophthalmologist (eye surgeon), stating that they are blind (severely sight impaired)
- Tax coding notice from HMRC showing they receive Blind person’s allowance
- DHSS documentation or certificate stating that they are severely sight impaired (for Isle of Man residents only)
- Health and Social Services documentation or letter from Optometrist for residents of Northern Ireland only.
Once provided, they won’t need to provide this information again when they renew their TV Licence.
For those who live with someone who is blind and already have a TV licence, they’ll have to transfer the licence into the name of the person who is blind, in order to claim.
According to the website, people can do this by making a first time blind application, but entering the existing TV Licence number for the address into the form.
However, it must be noted that people who are partially sight impaired will not qualify for the 50% blind concession.
When do I need a TV licence?
All households in the UK need a TV licence if they watch or record TV programmes live as they’re broadcast.
Additionally, a licence is required if they download or watch programmes broadcast on BBC iPlayer – live, catch up, or demand.
The licence also covers online TV services such as ITV Hub, All 4, Amazon Prime Video, Now TV or Sky Go. However, unlike with BBC iPlayer, a licence is not needed if a person only ever watches catch-up programmes on these TV services.
Households also don’t typically need a TV licence to watch certain streaming services, like Netflix, YouTube or Disney+. However, it should be noted that if a programme streamed through one of these services is live, for example, a boxing match, then a TV licence would be needed to watch it.
TV licence price increase
Following an agreement made in 2022, the TV licence fee will increase in line with inflation each year until 2027.
The funds generated are said to help with the creation of BBC programmes and services.
The price rise, which will bring the annual fee up to £174.50, will come into effect in April 2025.
