Consequences of non-payment of annual fee

Q: I have been having some financial problems recently, and I haven’t paid the annual fee for my pub. In the past, the Council has sent chase up letters demanding payment and I’ve managed to pay it in installments, but this year they are threatening to suspend my Premises Licence if I don’t pay the whole amount immediately. Are they allowed to do that?

A: Licensing Authorities are now entitled to suspend a Premises Licence or Club Premises Certificate if the annual fee is not paid on time.

There are specific rules regarding the procedure for suspending a licence but, as I do not know the content of the letter from the Council, I cannot advise you in detail.

At the very least you should be given two working days’ notice of a proposed suspension to allow you to pay the fee before any suspension takes effect.

A suspension only lasts until the fee is paid, so if your licence had already been suspended it will come into effect again once you have settled the outstanding sum.