Where's my Licence you Footpads ?

[mikench]

This reminds me of a time I was fishing Ulley reservoir with a friend some years ago.
The reservoir ranger came round to check day tickets, he also checked licences. I had shown my licence then he went to who I was fishing with. After showing his day ticket he was asked for his licence to which he said I've not got it on me.
The ranger filled out a form and when he had finished he asked how he had arrived on site. The chap I was with said he had come with me in my car.
The ranger then returned to my peg and asked me for the registration of my car. I asked why he needed it and he said so he had information to contact either my friend or if the information he gave was false the police could contact me.
At that time in my early twenties I was a little anti establishment, I refused to give him my registration and told him he had seen I was licenced, that he would not see it again and then insisted he went somewhere else perhaps in a more abrupt manner.
The story lasted a few hours longer and totally ruined my days fishing so much so I never took my friend again and it convinced me to fish alone is far easier.

Would you say you had mellowed with age Rayner

 

[binka]

I'm curious why people have renewed their licenses so early, surely everyone's old ones all run on on the 31st of this month, so why not wait until it's run out before renewing? As far as i'm aware you have to renew your new one from the date you buy it so that means your not getting your moneys worth for your old one!

I'm fishing this Saturday, which is the 1st

 

[mikench]

according to the website if you renew your licence in march it runs from 1st April so you do receive a full 12 months worth

 

[S-Kippy]

I'm fishing this Saturday, which is the 1st

I'm not but I applied in good time because I didn't want to find myself bankside sans licence come April.Sods Law dictates that my first trip in April will be the very day that the EA Bailiff decides to visit the water I'm on for the first time in 500 years ! Its happened to the BF before....I had no idea he could move that fast !

I would have thought it made more sense for the EA to issue these as applications are received rather than paint themselves into the corner of doing one huge exercise on or around 1 April....which is what this looks like.

 

[tigger]

according to the website if you renew your licence in march it runs from 1st April so you do receive a full 12 months worth

If I don't go out fishing tomorrow or before Saturday I might not go for several or more weeks so i'll just renew mine online seconds before going so I get my moneys worth .

 

[mikench]

Are you a Yorkshire lad after all Ian

 

[seth49]

I renewed mine yesterday, in the post office, whilst issuing the lass behind asked for my mobile no, or email address,gave my mobile no, and permission fo ea to text me.

This morning I received a text, which told me my new license no, and that it started at 00 01 on the first of April, and to keep the text to show till I receive my new license.

If like me your retired they want your driving license, or similar to prove your age, to get the concessionary license.
She must of thought I didn't look sixty seven, made my day.?

 

[tigger]

Are you a Yorkshire lad after all Ian

Narrh, Lancastrian me Mike

I just have a dislike of the EA stealth tax .

 

[Pete Shears]

Still waiting for mine - I note the debit on my bank account though,over a week ago which I thought was bad business practice before sending out the order/goods.

 

[S-Kippy]

Still no sign of mine either. Damned poor show IMO.

 

[rayner]

Does anyone actually know any angler who has received a licence yet.

 

[peterjg]

This morning, online, I renewed my annual rod licence. So far I have received 9 identical confirmation of payment emails - no wonder the cost of the rod licence had to go up!!!!

PS do I need a licence to:
Ride a bike
Play golf
Go rambling
Go bird watching
Go canoeing or boating
Etc, etc, etc

A new tax is coming your way soon!!!!!!

 

[john step]

Does anyone actually know any angler who has received a licence yet.

Well I certainly haven't had mine yet and I paid online weeks ago. I know I can produce the printout but that's not the point is it?

 

[GT56]

Managed to renew my license today after dropping in the nearest Post Office just before closing and paid over my £30.

However I was asked for ID and proof of my date of birth, slightly difficult as I wasn't expecting this level of security for a rod license and had to give assurances that not all fishermen are liars!

 

[binka]

This morning, online, I renewed my annual rod licence. So far I have received 9 identical confirmation of payment emails - no wonder the cost of the rod licence had to go up!!!!

I wanted a confirmation email but when I checked on the gov.uk website and read the contact T's & C's it stated that they 'may' pass on information so that you can be contacted by other people so I declined to give my email or phone details.

I was quite surprised given that it was a gov.uk website, I thought there should at least be an option to opt out and still receive an email confirmation of the transaction.

Unless I've missed something but I went through it quite carefully.

 

[thecrow]

I hate these bloody "we will do what we want with your details" unless you opt out clauses, I doubt that they will be passing details on to others for nothing

 

[associatedmatt]

i shall be going to a post office tomorrow and get mine done

 

[Jeff Woodhouse]

I thought there should at least be an option to opt out and still receive an email confirmation of the transaction.

I think there was an 'opt-out' because I always look for them and tick them.

Anyway - news on the grapevine is ... You may be waiting a while yet for your licence. This is typical EA administration efficiency.
I had to write, this year, to the top manager, in our region and ask her for an invoice for three years' back payment for our fishery licence money (a river we take off the EA) because the guy who should have organised it didn't and couldn't seem to be bothered however many time I wrote to him. Eventually I got an invoice and paid it, but I am now waiting for an invoice for next season's fishery licence. It just seems to go on and on and on.

HOWEVER, I had a thought about rod licences and how much it will cost to send them out. The post will cost them around 50p (whether 2nd class or by private postal company), the envelope a modest 3p perhaps, and the greater cost is for the licence and the printed letter it will be attached to telling you to "..carry it at all times" and the usual bumph, which is maybe around £1.50 when you take into account the folding machinery and printers involved. There's also labour costs.

In total, that's maybe somewhere between £2 and £2.50 across over 1 million anglers nationwide and yet all the information a bailiff needs is on that piece of paper they send/give you as a receipt. OK, they could print a bar code or one of those squiggley squares to scan that couldn't easily be copied, but good enough and no worse than what we used to have. The saving, up to £2.5million could then be shared out amongst all the regions and used for fishery improvements (not posh cars and mobiles for desk jockeys).

Now how good would that be? Why do we need a piece of foldable plastic coated paper with a picture of a fish on it?

 

[binka]

I think there was an 'opt-out' because I always look for them and tick them.

Do you know where the opt-out is Jeff?

I've just done another run through and there's definitely no opt-out via the route I took on the gov.uk website, I didn't take screenshots as the site is Crown Copyright and I don't want to end up locked in the tower for three months on a staple diet of bread and water

The following link will take you to the relevant page though, if you click on 'View our data protection notice' it lists the details about information sharing.

By clicking 'continue' on that page it simply refers you back to the contact details page and I can't see how I can get a transaction receipt without having to accept this possible additional and unwanted contact?

https://get-fishing-licence.service.gov.uk/buy/contact

Where I've purchased online elsewhere there's often an option on the final confirmation page in order to email the confirmation but I've checked my screenshot of that and there isn't.

 

[S-Kippy]

Why do we need a piece of foldable plastic coated paper with a picture of a fish on it?

Because not all of us kept the e-mail that confirmed renewal foolishly believing that for 30 sovs 3 weeks in advance the licence would actually turn up by 1 April.

As for this opt out malarkey I wish they'd just be honest about it.

" Please check here to be bombarded with texts and emails from us for evermore and loads of other companies we've flogged your details to ".

Even the High Street shops are at it.

"Can I take your email address please ?"

"No you cannot...what do you want it for ?"

"So I can send you a receipt "

You can just print me one off thank you so much.

Grrrrrrr !