What was claimed
UK residents over the age of 60 can claim a free lifetime exemption from paying the TV licence.
Our verdict
False. There is no such blanket lifetime exemption for the over 60s, although some over the age of 75 can claim a free TV licence.
In recent days, we have seen videos shared on TikTok and Facebook claiming that UK residents over the age of 60 can claim a free lifetime exemption from paying for a TV licence.
This is false—blanket lifetime TV licence exemptions are not available to the over 60s in the UK.
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Anyone who watches or records live TV on any channel or service on any device (or uses BBC iPlayer) is normally required to obtain a TV licence. A licence is not required for those who only watch on-demand services such as Netflix.
Currently, the yearly cost of a standard TV licence is £174.50, and £58.50 for those who only watch live TV on a black and white set.
The videos, which are labelled as AI-generated, falsely report that UK residents over 60 can “save hundreds with free TV license [sic]”, with one stating that once this exemption is approved it “lasts for life, no renewals or extra payments”.
None of the actual concessions offered for a TV licence give a lifetime exemption for the over 60s. While some aged 75 and above can get a free TV licence, this only applies if the person gets Pension Credit or lives with a partner who does. Pension Credit is a benefit for those of state pension age and on low income.
Discounted TV licences are available for qualifying care homes and sheltered accommodation facilities where all residents are over the age of 60 or are disabled. Managers of eligible facilities can apply for a discounted annual TV licence of £7.50 per room, flat or bungalow.
Those who are blind can also apply for a 50% discount on their TV licence, which also covers those they live with.
TV licences were free for pensioners over the age of 75 between November 2000 and the end of July 2020.
This changed after responsibility for paying for free TV licences was transferred from the then government to the BBC from 2020.
The BBC then decided to pay for free TV licences for the households of anyone over the age of 75 receiving Pension Credit.
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This article is part of our work fact checking potentially false pictures, videos and stories on Facebook. You can read more about this—and find out how to report Facebook content—here. For the purposes of that scheme, we’ve rated this claim as false because there is no such blanket lifetime exemption from the TV licence available for the over 60s.
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