Dementia charity accused of helping TV licence blitz
THE Alzheimer’s Society has been accused of “lending credibility” to the BBC’s doorstep hounding of pensioners over nonpayment of TV licence fees.
Experts at the charity have trained up TV Licensing officials in how to deal with vulnerable older viewers.
Now campaign group Silver Voices has written to the Alzheimer’s Society to express “disgust” at this, with director Dennis Reed asking: “What on earth is the Alzheimer’s Society playing at?
“The BBC is boasting that its ‘customer care’ staff, who are about to start chasing up over-75 households who have been unable to pay their licence fee, have been ‘specially trained’ by your society…
“You will be aware that the scrapping of the universal free licence benefit was extremely controversial… It should be no business of a charity to take sides in this political dispute.” Raising concerns about the mental health impact the visits could have, Mr Reed emphasised that no one living with dementia should be subject to such visits and that they should be exempt from paying the licence fee altogether.
Around 260,000 over-75s have failed to pay the annual £159 charge so far.
An estimated 4.2 million pensioners were hit by the rule change last summer and only those who claim pension credit are exempt.
The Alzheimer’s Society said it wants to ensure the TV Licensing officials offer “clear and accessible” support so “everyone who wants to can stay tuned in”.
Kate Lee, the society’s chief executive officer, said: “Having anyone knock on your door who you don’t know can be difficult for people, but with some guidance and advice, we can improve that and give people a better experience.”