Frequently asked questions

Wescot Credit Services Ltd (Wescot) took over processing the Simple Payment Plan on Monday, 10 March 2025.

Your Direct Debit payments should show as TV Licensing SPP when they are collected from your bank account. If you set up a plan before 10 March 2025, your Direct Debit should now appear as TV Licensing SPP instead of Elderbridge.

However, some banks may display the legal entity name. This means you may see "Wescot Credit SVS T/A TVL-SPP" instead of TV Licensing SPP on your banking app. We apologise for any confusion this may cause.

It is important that you continue making your payments and do not cancel your Direct Debit.

Call us at 0300 555 0510: 

• Monday to Friday: 8:30 AM - 6:30 PM 

• Saturday: 8:30 AM - 1:00 PM

• Automated Debit / Credit Card: Monthly or fortnightly payments taken from your debit or credit card
• Direct Debit: Monthly payments collected from your bank account.
• PayPoint store: Pay monthly or fortnightly by cash or debit card at any PayPoint outletstore. 
• In the Isle of Man, you can pay at your local Post Office.

Many not-for-profit organisations offer free, confidential, and independent financial advice. These organisations can refer you to join the Simple Payment Plan. Here are some contact details: 

• Citizens Advice – visit your local Citizens Advice Bureau (you can find the address in the phone book) or go to adviceguide.org.uk (England and Wales) or cas.org.uk (Scotland).

 • National Debtline – if you live in England, Wales or Scotland, call 0808 808 4000 or go to their website for advice and information. 

• Advice NI – if you live in Northern Ireland, call 0800 028 1881 or go to their website for debt advice. 

• Money Advice Scotland – if you live in Scotland, call 0141 572 0237 or go to their website to find details of debt advice in your area. 

• StepChange Debt Charity (formerly the Consumer Credit Counselling Service) – call 0800 138 1111 or go to their website for debt advice throughout the UK. 

• Credit Services Association – search for ‘credit services association’ in search engines for general help and advice on debt related matters. 

• MoneyHelper – access to sources of free advice online or by telephone. If you live in England you can access Money Helper - Money Adviser Network and if you live in Scotland, Wales or Northern Ireland you can access Money Helper Debt Advice Locator. 

• Civil Legal Advice (CLA) – You may be able to get free and confidential advice from CLA as part of legal aid if you’re in England or Wales. Legal aid rules are different in Scotland and Northern Ireland. 

• The Insolvency Service – provides advice to the public on insolvency and redundancy. 

• Christians Against Poverty – provides free debt counselling, call 0800 328 0006.

You need an invitation to join the Simple Payment Plan. You can apply online if you have: 

• Received a letter inviting you to join. 

• Found a calling card from a TV Licensing Enquiry Officer while you were out. 

• Been referred by a debt advice charity.

If you haven't been invited, you can't apply right now. For other payment options, visit the main TV Licensing website.

On 10 March 2025, we made a change to improve how we deliver the Simple Payment Plan (SPP). We moved the service provider from Target Group to Wescot Credit Services. 

Our goal is to make the service better and more efficient over time. 

Unfortunately something unexpected happened during this switch to Wescot. The Direct Debit file we sent to the banks showed “TV Licensing SPP”. But, some banks have recently changed their process. They now show the legal name of the company that manages the receiving bank account. Wescot manages payments for the SPP. So these banks displayed “Wescot Credit Services” in the payment notifications. Instead of “TV Licensing SPP”.  

We understand why some banks have changed their process to improve security. But we were not told about this by our Direct Debit provider. Some customers did not recognise "Wescot Credit Services". So they cancelled their Direct Debit. We’re sorry for any confusion this may have  caused.

TV Licensing has recently changed its provider for the Simple Payment Plan. The new provider is Wescot Credit Services. Wescot now handle the collection of the SPP payments for your TV Licence. They specialise in managing payments securely and efficiently for organisations like ours.

We’d like to turn your old Direct Debit back on. But banking rules won’t let us. When you cancel a Direct Debit, you are telling your bank not to authorise those payments any more. This is the same whether you do this through your bank app or by calling them. For security reasons, banks need fresh permission from you before collecting payments again. This rule exists to protect you from unwanted or fraudulent transactions. We recognise that this is inconvenient, but we need you to set up a new payment plan to get things back on track. It's a safeguard that puts you in control of your money. We apologise for any inconvenience that this may have caused.

Setting up a new payment plan is straightforward and takes just a few minutes. Here’s how it works:

• Step 1: Click the secure link we’ve sent you by email or SMS. It’ll take you to a login page for your account.
• Step 2: Enter your postcode and last name. This will help us identify you . You’ll also be able to see your TV Licence details.
• Step 3: Choose your payment method. You can stick with Direct Debit, switch to card payments, or pick another option that suits you.
• Step 4: Follow the prompts to enter your payment details and confirm everything.

Once it’s done, we’ll send you a confirmation email or letter so you know it has been set up. If you need any help, call us at 0300 555 0510.

If you don’t set up a new plan, your TV Licence payments will stop. Without an active plan, your account will fall behind,. If payments stop, your TV Licence could be cancelled. 

Watching TV without a valid licence is against the law. 

Yes! When you set up your new plan, you’re not locked into Direct Debit if you don’t want it. We offer several other options:

• Automatic Card payments: Use a debit or credit card. Payments repeat automatically and there’s no bank fees if a payment is missed.
• Manual payments:  Pay by phone, text, or online using a debit or credit card. Or via the TVL Pay app. You can also pay at any PayPoint store.

Or you can stick with Direct Debit: Payments come out automatically - easy and reliable.

If you’ve paid something towards your TV Licence since this change, don’t worry. That money is safe and still counts. For example, after you cancelled your Direct Debit, you may have sent a one-off payment. If so, this payment has been applied to your account. But to keep future payments going without gaps, you still need to set up a new plan.

You can keep the same payment dates as before. But, if you’ve missed a payment, you can catch up or spread the amount over the remaining licence term. Also, it takes 10 working days to set up a new Direct Debit. So you might prefer to pay using automatic card payments instead. During the setup process, you’ll have the chance to make these changes – it’s up to you. 

Yes, this is 100% from TV Licensing. We get that scams are a big worry these days, so here’s how to be sure:

• Check the sender: Our emails come from  the official [email protected] address.
• Look for the link: We’ll direct you to https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/faqs, our real FAQ page on the official site.
• What we won’t do: We’ll never ask for your bank details or passwords in an email or SMS. If someone does, it’s not us – report it.

 If you’re still unsure, call us at 0300 555 0510 or visit our website directly to double-check.

No internet? No problem. Just pick up the phone and call us at 0300 555 0510. We’re open Monday to Friday 08:30am to 6.30pm and Saturday 8:30am to 1:00pm. Our friendly team will walk you through everything. 

Once you finish setting up your plan, online or by phone, we’ll send you an email confirmation. This will include your payment amount and dates, and method. If you don’t use email, we’ll mail it to you within a few days. You can also log into your Simple Payment Plan account online anytime to check the details. If something doesn’t look right, just call us - we’ll sort it out.

No, you don’t have to call your bank unless you want to. Setting up the new plan through our link or over the phone handles everything. We’ll send the payment request to your bank (for Direct Debit) or process your card payment directly. Your bank will only get involved if you need to cancel or claim a refund later. 

• Phone: Call 0300 555 0510. We’re open Monday to Friday  8:30am to 6.30pm and Saturday 8:30am to 1:00pm. 
• Online: Log in to your online account for live chat during our opening hours.
• Email: Email [email protected] and we’ll aim to get back to you within 48 working hours.

Whatever works for you, we’ll make sure you get the answers or support you need.