Annual Licensing fees - check before paying!

As part of the service we provide for many clients we administer the payment of the annual fees which are required to be paid each year for every premises licence.

Each Licensing Authority deals with these annual fees in a slightly different way, and can include the issue of invoices or letters requesting payment as examples. In some cases where there has been non-payment we have had cases where a representative of a Licensing Authority has attended at a premises to seek payment of the annual fee

As a reminder If an annual fee for a premises licence is not paid then this can lead to the suspension of the premises licence which in turn  prevents any licensable activities taking place at a premises until the required annual fee has been paid.

In recent months we have seen an increase in the issue of advice from licensing authority’s around the country warning of fraudulent attempts by fake licensing officials demanding payment  for licensing fees.

This has also been reported by the Institute of Licensing (LINK). https://instituteoflicensing.org/network-news/institute-urges-licensees-to-check-before-you-pay/

The IOL states the following;

“Licensees are urged to take the following precautions:

• Verify the identity of anyone claiming to be a licensing officer by requesting official identification.
• Avoid making payments through unverified methods or to unfamiliar accounts.
• Contact your local council directly to confirm the legitimacy of any payment requests”

If you are ever in doubt on payment of annual fees we are happy to assist in this matter, and please do contact one of our team