Households across the country have been warned not to fall victim to a new TV Licence scam circulating through email.

The scam email claims that your TV Licence is due to expire in the near future and tries to encourage you to renew through a link included in the email.

However, the link will take you to a fake website where you will be asked to share personal information or bank details which could put you at risk of being scammed in the future or even losing money.

The email reads: “Please renew your licence now, it only takes a few minutes.

Bournemouth Echo:

“Your TV Licence expires on [date].

“To renew, choose whether you want to pay monthly or all in one go, get your payment details ready and then it's done for another year.

“Renewing on time means more of the licence fee goes towards BBC TV, radio and online services”.

If you receive an email and are concerned about your TV Licence, you should not click the link. Instead, you should go to the official TV Licensing website (www.tvlicensing.co.uk) and check if you have any messages on your account.

TV Licensing has offered these tips to help spot a genuine email about your TV Licence:

  • We include the name and/or part of your postcode in our emails. Many scams simply use your email address or say ‘Dear Customer’.
  • We send our emails from donotreply@tvlicensing.co.uk (or donotreply@spp.tvlicensing.co.uk).
  • If you are a TV Licensing payment card customer and you make mobile payments via the TVL Pay app, you may receive emails from noreply@paypoint.com. The sender’s name will show as ‘TVL Pay’.
  • Check the email address. Scammers often hide the true email address they’re using. On your device, select the sender’s name (or email address) to show the actual email address.

If you think you have fallen victim to a TV Licensing scam, report it to Action Fraud or call them on 0300 123 2040. If this included card or bank account details, talk to your bank immediately.

Can you claim a £170 TV Licence refund

Every household in the UK is legally required to have a TV licence in order to watch or record live TV, regardless of what channel it is on.

However, you could be entitled to a refund on the cost of your TV Licence if you do not watch or record live TV, and don’t stream BBC iPlayer either.

You can apply for a refund if you won’t need your licence again before it expires, and you have at least one complete month left on it, due to not watching or recording live TV.

You can apply for a refund on your TV licence here.

Refunds are usually processed and issued within 21 days of application.

However, your refund may be delayed if you have to be contacted for more information.

Any refund will be paid by cheque or a BACS transfer directly into your bank account.

The amount you will be due in a refund will be worked out by TV Licensing, the organisation that issues TV licences.

They explain how they work out the amount you will be due here: “Any refund due is calculated in unused months. You must have at least one complete month left on your licence that you won’t need before it expires.

“So, you could get a refund for between one and 11 months, depending on how long you have left on your licence.

“You won’t be eligible for a refund if there is less than one month between the cancellation date and the expiry date.

“If you haven’t paid for your licence in full, its expiry date may be changed to reflect what you’ve paid.”