TV licence cheat numbers rise

The number of people evading the TV licence fee across West Mercia has soared by almost a fifth in five years, latest figures show.

Prosecutions have risen from 1,918 in 2001 to 2,269 in 2005 - an increase of 18 per cent. The percentage of offenders detected and hauled before magistrates and found guilty has gone up too. Of those charged and prosecuted in 2001, some 1,667 - 87 per cent - were fined.

Successful convictions totalled 2,066 in 2005 - an increase of four per cent on 2001 to 91 per cent.

Across England and Wales, the number of TV licence fee evaders went up by 12 per cent during the same period from 96,278 to 107,747, with the number of guilty findings rising from 83,583 (87 per cent) to 95,616 (89 per cent).

An average of five per cent of viewers evade the licence fee. Around 1,000 are caught each day.

A TV Licensing spokesman said: "It is simply not fair on the honest majority who pay the licence fee, that a small minority run the risk of getting caught.

"TV Licensing always prefers people to buy a licence rather than risk prosecution, however we always provide as much information and evidence as possible to support any prosecution. It is a matter for the courts to decide whether or not to convict a TV licence evader and to set the level of the fine."

Using a set or any other device to receive or record television programmes without a valid TV licence is against the law and could lead to prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000.

A colour set licence costs £135.50 and one for a black and white TV costs £45.50.

This is set to rise gradually to a maximum of £151.50 by 2012.

The data, by police force area and from the court proceedings database held by the Office for Criminal Justice Reform, was released to MPs in a written parliamentary answer by the Home Office.

By Sunita Patel