Those who are registered as legally blind will be able to claim a 50 percent concession on the BBC levy. Currently, the cost of a television licence is £159 for a colour licence and £53.50 for a black and white licence if someone were to pay full cost. This means a TV licence for a blind person would cost £79.50 for colour and £26.75 for a black and white one.
According to NHS figures, around two million people across the country are living and dealing with some form of sight loss.
From this group, 360,000 are registered as legally blind or partially sighted by the NHS.
People who are registered as only partially sighted or visually impaired will not be eligible for the 50 percent discount on their television licence fee.
To get the discount, applicants will need to provide TV Licensing proof that they are legally blind.
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Examples of what is considered qualifying documentation include a Certificate of Visual Impairment (CVI) or a BD8 Certificate.
Furthermore, letters from an Ophthalmologist (eye surgeon) or local authorities, which confirm the diagnosis, can also count.
After this information has been handed over to TV Licensing, claimants of the discount will not need to show their evidence again when renewing their licence.
Anyone looking to fill out a blind discount application can find them on the TV Licensing website.
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People who are not blind themselves, but who live with someone who is, will also be able to benefit from the concession.
On the TV Licensing website, the licence fee authority outlines how those who are not blind can claim this discount on behalf of their household.
TV Licensing stated: “If you or someone you live with is blind (severely sight impaired), regardless of their age, you can apply for a blind concession.
“If you already have a TV Licence, but it isn’t in the name of the person who is blind, you’ll need to transfer the licence into their name. You can do this by making a first time blind application.
“But at a time when families are facing a sharp increase in their living costs we simply could not justify asking hard-working households to pay even more for their TV licence.
“This is a fair settlement for the BBC and for licence fee payers. The BBC must support people at a time when their finances are strained, make savings and efficiencies, and use the billions in public funding it receives to deliver for viewers, listeners and users.”
On who will benefit most from this decision, Karl Tippins, a financial expert at Pension Times, said: “With the recent news that TV licences will be frozen for two years (being kept at the current cost of £159) and will then increase in line with inflation for a further two years, is great news especially for the most vulnerable people in our society.
“Pensioners across the country will be thrilled with the news especially as their pensions will only rise by 3.1 percent in April.
“Keeping the licence fee frozen for two years will hopefully mean our most vulnerable pensioners will be able to keep watching TV which many have been relying on since the pandemic as their only form of socialisation.”
