PPL PRS Ltd Anmeldelser 501

Like wasps around your cider, these pesky nuisance callers are a royal pain. I have no idea where they got my number. Chancers, grifters, snake-oil peddlers!
Even if I did require the service they provide, I wouldn't touch them with a barge pole due to their awful telephone random cold calling.

I'm part of a small not for profit club. We have live artistes and play background music. We only open for 4 hours on 5 days a week and 4hrs on 1 afternoon. We have always paid the invoices. As we are now struggling financially, and may have to close, I contacted PPL/PRS to ask if they would look at our usage and try to reduce our costs - they then actually increased it by £499 to take total amount of £1777.
They are absolutely no help whatsoever.

Not sure where to start.

Received a debt collectors letter than few days later an invoice, debt collection letter dated before date on invoice,

Rang to ask what it was about. Was told they visited our premises on 15th April and music was playing, after getting nowhere with the advisor I ended the call and rang later in day to hopefully speak to someone else who would maybe handle the situation better,

2nd advisor says they visited our shop on 31st January, after asking which of the two given dates were correct, I was told there was photos and recordings. I then asked what dates are on recordings to be told the evidence doesn’t confirm dates. He was then Blaming the first advisor saying he works elsewhere in company and doesn’t know about it

Email comes to me with pictures of two different shops - none of which were mine, this was 20th May 2025 I was asked to prove it the pictures were not from my shop. I was able to provide cctv footage of my shop which categorically proves it’s not my shop.

Fast forward to 16th July I get an email saying I’m not cooperating so I email all of the above info.

17th July I get a call from a lady so we go over it all again and guess what ? She says the 2me advisor was from a different department so that’s why the date mix up but to my astonishment she provided a new 3rd date of 30th January and she can’t discuss anything about previous info as he no longer works there - that’s irrelevant as he would have been working on behalf of the company and not as an independent. Not sure I’m surprised but we now have photos of my shop - but yet no dates so given 3 different stories from 3 different people how can their evidence be reliable or admissible.

2nd advisor basically telling me “YOU WILL BE PAYING THE FEE IN TOTAL SINGLE PAYMENT” I now find myself in the lucky situation of having the “offer” to pay monthly direct debits

Looking forward to speaking to a 4th person to tell me the other 3 don’t know what they are talking about as they are in different departments and find out what my 4th date of visit was

I am a volunteer member of a charity committee running a village hall. I think we were conned into taking out a licence, when we probably didn't need one, as users will often have their own. The auto renewal process, total lack of clarity about charging mechanisms, unwillingness to actually talk to you to help resolve questions and vicious harassment, including debt collection, is all deeply unfair and unhelpful. It seems that this gangster outfit have the right to demand money with menaces. Their privacy policy seems to say they can grab any bit of data they can, keep it and use it. A shocking way to behave.

As ardent and brazen as only the worst telemarketing companies can be, extortionate pricing scheme and all effectively backed by the UK government! SHOCKING!!! We asked for a quote for a music licence our smalll independent refill shop and were quote over £500/yr. We declined as there is no way that is affordable for a small fledgling community business.

SINCE WE HAVE BEEN BOMBARDED WITH CALLS AND EMAILS SOME OF WHICH BORDER ON HARASSMENT AND THREATENING. This is absolutely unacceptable and they are tantamount to a government backed institution. DISGRACEFUL.

WOW. I have just read other people’s experiences of PPL and PRS. Why is it they don’t send you a notice before the renewal date of your contract. Effectively they auto renew your contract and then send you an overdue notice a month later.
My experience…. We wanted to give them notice and not renew our contract as our business is ending. They insisted we would pay a months notice and add on a huge cancellation fee. Had we had the renewal notice we could have cancelled free of charge.
We have asked to speak to their complaints department as this smacks of sharp practice. This is something energy companies used to do until the government stopped it a few years ago.
I will await them continuing me but on the basis of your experiences not holding my breath.
I will look to speak to FSB to check if what they are doing is actually unfair.

I wouldn't even have given them 1 star, but had to choose one.
I paid this company £669.82 which covered dates stated on invoice for
12/07/25 to 11/03/25 then 12/03/25 to 11/03/26 for both ppl and prs.
I have now received an invoice for £295.65 for dates 12/07/25 to 11/07/25 and when I tried to speak to them about the fact that I have already paid until March 2026 they just fobbed me off trying to say that I have only paid until July 2025.
I am now in the process of having trading standards look into this for me.

We play no live music or licences music yet they still hound the business for payment. We are chased constantly by debt collectors and now have received a court order. This has to stop.

“My shop is small, and they keep calling to bother me. I’m not good at English, and when they asked me, they offered a price that was too high. I didn’t agree, and I didn’t listen to them anymore. Then they sent me a bill of £862 and demanded that I pay it. If I don’t, they said they would take me to court. Be careful with services like this; they are trying to scam us for money.”

Extremely disappointed with this business. The charges they’ve imposed are completely unfair and unreasonable. It feels like they’re more interested in squeezing extra money from customers than providing a decent service.y and honesty, but instead,This kind of behaviour is unacceptable and I strongly advise others to be cautious before dealing with this kind of licensing.

Extremely concerning experience with PPL PRS – serious legal and ethical concerns.

An account and invoice were created in our name without our knowledge, consent, or any signed agreement. To our knowledge, no lawful contract was ever formed. We do not play or stream live or recorded licensed music within our business premises and therefore do not require a licence.

Despite this, we were repeatedly contacted by telephone and letter, even after we had explicitly requested that all communication be in writing. One letter from PPL PRS, dated 13th May 2025, warned that surcharges would be applied if payment wasn’t received within 3 days — yet it wasn’t delivered until 20th May 2025. Shockingly, the additional charges were applied on the same day the letter finally arrived, to an invoice we never agreed to and do not believe we are liable for. This felt both unreasonable and coercive.

Even more concerning, none of the letters included any direct contact information. We had to find contact details via other Trustpilot reviews, where we were alarmed to discover numerous similar complaints from other businesses.

After submitting a formal complaint, we were notified today that it has been closed — without fair investigation or resolution. Despite multiple written requests, PPL PRS has failed to provide any verifiable, time-stamped, or meta-dated evidence to justify the charges or the creation of the account.

We also recently received another letter (only just opened today, after returning from annual leave) requesting an email address so they could send us audio clips and recordings — despite already having our email on record. Then, to add insult to injury, we were told today via email that the complaint was closed due to “no contact within 10 days.” This clearly demonstrates that PPL PRS had our contact details and simply chose not to send the requested information.

This felt like a deliberate communication failure, and the closing of our complaint appears obstructive, dismissive, and unjustified.

Our most serious concern: PPL PRS confirmed that audio recordings and filming took place inside our premises without our consent or prior knowledge. They have not provided any meta-dated evidence to demonstrate this was lawful, nor have they shared any time-stamped data to support their claims. This raises serious concerns under:
• UK GDPR / Data Protection Act 2018
• Protection of Freedoms Act 2012
• Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 (RIPA)

We were also informed that our personal and business details may be shared with third-party debt collectors, despite there being no confirmed obligation or valid agreement in place. This raises further questions around data protection compliance and the lawful basis for processing.

We have reported these matters to:
• Trading Standards
• The Telephone Preference Service (TPS)
• Our Member of Parliament

We are also preparing to escalate the matter to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), our legal team and will pursue further action if necessary.

We respectfully request that PPL PRS immediately close all accounts associated with our business and cease all further communication unless in writing.

Based on our experience — including unwanted contact, ignored communication preferences, lack of evidence, and non-consensual filming and audio recording — we cannot recommend PPL PRS. We strongly urge other businesses to proceed with extreme caution and to demand full documentation before acknowledging or responding to any claims.

EDITED * After attempting to contact the complaints department via the email supplied by the complaint department AGAIN today regarding the request for our complaint to be escalated , we have received the following:

ACTION REQUIRED: Please contact us online
Thank you for your email to PPL PRS. This email address is no longer in use.

We have received automated emails from PPL/PRS stating the above as a response from both the Complaints Team email we have on file and the email consistently posted as a contact here on all Trustpilot replies! Utterly ridiculous!

Quite honestly, the level of mis communication from PPL/PRS is not only unprofessional, it’s DISGRACEFUL!

Had a telephone call with Isobel of Customer Services this morning renewing our licence. Found her pleasant helpful and very patient with me. Sorted out my queries to my satisfaction. Well done.

My company has been bombarded with letters,at least 2 per week

All very strange that they cant provide a time that they visited our shop. not only that but it was suggested by email that we didnt need the license as long as music wasnt being played then all of a sudden bill arrives for £650

Not only that but using a voiceclip as evidence of an artist that never would have been playing.

i rang today to say its now in hands of our legal team. Companies trying to get on with there day to day business having to deal with this harassment is crazy

I was forwarded a letter in my name for an address that I have not lived at for many years threatening legal action for non payment of account for years 2024/25 and 2025/24. Rang this company to explain I did not own the business and have my name removed from the account but every time I explained I was just put back on hold and then explained to the next person and so on and so on. How are you supposed to sort their mistake when they are only interested in speaking with people that they can con out of money. Guess they will have to keep sending their aggressive letters which I may or may not receive as I do not own the business in question. In the meantime I will report them the Trading Standards.

Very aggressive company. Imposed additional surcharges one day after notifying us of our bill for this year. Horrible company to deal with. Gave one star as zero, or minus stars, were not an option

Seems many have had the same issues. Ive been emailed and phoned constantly, with each time i tell them my business ceased trading on christmas day last year, haven't even been back in the building since, so we didnt require a licence this year, but they dont listen! Just keep saying we owe fees for this year, the business is closed! How clearer can that be made?

never requsted any qoute as i was playing religious royalty free music. they sent me qoute for over £1000 with legal action. They r ripping off small businesses and threatning of legal actions total harrasmet.They don't listen to you when they rang its looks like its AI generated wants u to agree their statement. pls avoid speaking to them over the phone.

A lady called me is name Mandi and asked if I played music on my phone. Of course I said yes. I bought a phone and couldn’t use it myself. Then she asked how many tables and chairs I had in my shop. They didn’t care if I had signed up for their service. They signed me up even though I said I wouldn’t sign up and wouldn’t play music for customers, I didn’t need it because my company was going to close. But they signed me up and billed me for almost £500. I’m shocked at how these bastards work. I have emailed them many times but they ignore all. Just call and send bill attachment. Really a shitty company. I wonder when the government will investigate them.

Awful people. Awful business. Bunch of crooks.

We are a bathroom retailer with a showroom and were accused of playing music without a license!
REASON: Because we have a bluetooth mirrored cabinet that we demonstrate for sale!!!
It was unbelievable the arrogance of this "company"!
We had a big arguement with them (after an unsolicited call), stating that NO license was needed (see Section 72 of the Copyright, Designs & Patent Act 1988. paragraph iii)
It clearly stated we were exempt and a license is not needed!
However, they did not listen!
They raised an account for us (without our permission)
calculated an invoice! (god knows how!!!)
Then started to demand money!!
You cannot email these people, no emails on the "invoices", no email on the website, even on the demands for payment... no email
and when you phone, they just tow the company line and demand you pay!
We escalated the dispute and it eventually was cancelled, but not before 3 invoices, 3 demands for payment, 2 letters indicated surcharges were being applied and then 2 final demands!
Talk about harrassment!!!
There was also no apology either when the invoice was cancelled!!!
They are all a bunch of arrogant con artists who think they can get away with bully boy tactics and threatening letters!
If I had the time and inclination, I would sue them for the stress and harrassment caused!
If you believe you don't need a license then STAND YOUR GROUND!. Escalate the dispute through their escalation team and try and ignore all the threatening behaviour!