Trading Standards are aware of an increase in TV licence scams since it is no longer free to all over 75’s From 1st August 2020, anyone aged 75 or over who is not in receipt of Pension Credit (a benefit available to pensioners on low incomes) needs to pay for their TV Licence. TV Licensing is writing directly to anyone affected by the changes over the next couple of months. We would therefore like to raise awareness about the potential rise in TV Licence scams.
Cybercriminals have taken advantage of the change by sending scam emails and texts. Anyone who receives the phishing email should avoid clicking any links and forward it to report@phishing.gov.uk.
Fake TV licence email can be spotted by checking for spelling and grammar. A genuine email will come from donotreply@tvlicensing.co.uk.
TV Licensing will always address customers by name, while scammers will often use a generic term like ‘customer’.
The genuine website address is www.tvlicensing.co.uk. While scammers try to replicate the link, there will always be one missing detail or an additional hyphen.
For the avoidance of doubt, contact TV Licensing directly and do not click on any suspicious links.
More information can be found here https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/faqs/FAQ288
