TV Licensing Costs of Collection
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
£m
£m
£m
£m
£m
Collection costs incl call centres, field force,
detection and over the counter services (net
of recharges re o75s)
98.9
74.6%
115.6
75.4%
113.9
74.9%
117.7
77.9%
120.9 82.6%
Depreciation of new systems
0.8
0.6%
1.0
0.7%
1.3
0.9%
2.0
1.3%
0.4
0.3%
Communications including reminders and
information campaigns
19.0
14.3%
22.4
14.6%
19.9
13.1%
18.3
12.1%
11.5
7.9%
Postage
10.7
8.1%
10.6
6.9%
12.2
8.0%
9.4
6.2%
10.4
7.1%
Administration and contract management
3.2
2.4%
3.8
2.5%
4.7
3.1%
3.6
2.4%
3.2
2.2%
132.6
100%
153.4
100%
152.0
100%
151.0
100%
146.4
100%
Licence fee revenue
3,242,9
3,100.5
2,940.3
2,798.1
2,658.6
Costs as % of revenue
4.1%
4.9%
5.2%
5.4%
5.5%
Licences in force (excl ARC)
24,545,516
24,418,757
24,161,532
23,898,749
23,485,613
Cost per licence
£5.40
£6.28
£6.29
£6.32
£6.23
Cost per licence as % of licence fee
4.1%
5.0%
5.2%
5.4%
5.6%
Collection costs incl call centres, field force,
detection and over the counter services (net
of recharges re o75s)
£4.03
£4.73
£4.71
£4.92
£5.15
Depreciation of new systems
£0.03
£0.04
£0.05
£0.08
£0.02
Communications including reminders and
information campaigns
£0.77
£0.92
£0.82
£0.77
£0.49
Postage
£0.44
£0.43
£0.50
£0.39
£0.44
Administration and contract management
£0.13
£0.16
£0.19
£0.15
£0.14
£5.40
£6.28
£6.29
£6.32
£6.23
Further breakdown of the specific aspects of the collection contracts is not readily available as the fee structure for our main contractor Capita is based on
licence sales and encompasses all aspects of the service provision across the call centres and the field operations.
The cost per licence reflects the average cost, most cost less, some cost more depending on the level of chasing required.
Fines collected are not given to the BBC or TV Licensing - they are a matter for the courts.
