Exeter hotelier fined for failing to have correct TV licence
A hotelier in Exeter has had to pay out £415 after he was caught without having a TV licence for his business, leading to calls for hotel and bed and breakfast owners to check they are correctly licensed.
Dr Mahfouz El-Tawil, owner of Oke Lodge in Exeter, was fined £300, plus £100 costs and a £15 victim surcharge by Central Devon Magistrates yesterday after TV Licensing inspectors found he was operating without the right TV licence.
Under the Communications Act 2003 hotels, bed and breakfasts and guest houses with TVs or any equipment that receives or records television programmes must have licences, or risk being fined up to £1,000. Special terms are put in place for the sector with TV licences costing £142.50 for the first 15 rooms where a TV is installed and an extra £142.50 for every additional five rooms.
Warren Carr, TV Licensing spokesman for the South West, said: "We would always rather hotels and other businesses ensure they are correctly licensed rather than risk prosecution and a fine. Our database of more than 30 million addresses tells us exactly which properties are unlicensed, so it's just not worth the risk."
A recent survey by network integration specialist Telindus found that TVs in hotel rooms are deemed an important information resource for two-thirds of British travellers while 43 per cent like to watch their favourite TV shows when staying away from home.
For more information about TV licensing visit www.tvlicensing.co.uk/business or call 0844 800 6766.
