The Licenses Fees Are Not Going Up - - - - - - BUT

[Geoff]

Announcement by BW

 

http://www.britishwaterways.co.uk/media/do...nnouncement.pdf

[MrCJ]

My PDF doesnt work and it wont download new software so cant read it

[Geoff]

My PDF doesnt work and it wont download new software so cant read it

 

BOAT LICENCES FEES 2010

Through licence and mooring fees, boaters contribute nearly £1 for every £5 spent by BW on

maintaining and repairing the waterways. They form a very important element within BW’s annual

budget.

In a consultation in late 2007 we explained the need for significant increases in licence fees to meet

funding requirements, and in 2008 and 2009, increases of just over 8% were applied. The funding

position is no less easy at present, but in the light of the difficult economic climate we have decided

not to increase the net of VAT fee levels for the financial year beginning April 2010. However we do

have some proposals (see below) for changes that will affect the prompt payment discount. We are

seeking views from boaters and boating organisations on these before the end of February 2010.

There will also be a new nominal charge for payments made by credit card. This is also explained

below.

VAT change

BW’s boat licence fees are subject to VAT, so the return of the 17.5% rate from January will mean an

effective 2.5% increase in the billed amount.

Payments by credit card

Fees levied by credit card companies are significantly higher than for debit cards. To encourage

customers to switch to debit card or direct debit payment methods, a fixed charge of £7.50 is to be

applied to all bills settled by credit card from 1st April 2010. (The average total charge to BW is

approximately £11).

Gold Licences

There will be no change to the net of VAT price of the shared BW-EA Gold licence.

Short term licences

The fees for short term licences will also remain unchanged (apart from VAT). Because these

licences are now available on line, we plan to withdraw the 30 day Waterway Explorer licence. This

was introduced in 2003 in response to demand from boaters based on other navigations seeking to be

able to make more ‘spontaneous’ visits to BW waters. The ready availability of one day licences by

internet and the relatively low volume of annual sales (c. 300) leads us to believe that withdrawing this

licence will not cause great inconvenience to customers. It means that we will be able to further

improve our enforcement process – currently the user-dating feature of Explorer day tickets means

that we are unable to validate easily the licence status of boats observed with Explorer licences.

Payment discounts

When we last consulted on licence fees in 2007, respondents emphasised the need for us to improve

our revenue collection performance. We have made substantial progress on this, reducing evasion

from 10.4 % in November 2007 to 4.3% in August 091 . The introduction of the new late payment

charge in April 2009 has resulted in major improvements in payment timings and with stronger

processes in place, we believe it’s no longer necessary to offer such a large incentive to encourage

prompt payment.

Further efficiency savings are on the way with the extension of licence sales and renewals by internet.

Online renewal has been possible for long term licences since 2005, but limited depending on the

status of the boat safety certificate and the type of payment used for the previous licence. From

January 2010 the constraints on online renewal will be removed so that any private long term licence

will be renewable online. And from August 2010 new applications will be possible online. These

changes have the potential to reduce BW’s costs by some £200k per year, providing that there is

strong uptake by customers.

Taking prompt payment and online purchase together, we want to gradually reduce the total discount

available from 10% and divide it into two separate incentives. We are suggesting the following:

Date of change Prompt payment discount Online purchase discount

August 2010 5% and 3%

April 2011 3% and 3%

April 2012 3% or 5%

The online purchase discount would only be available for applications up to four weeks after the

expiry date of the previous licence.

Other licence discounts are not affected.

Boat licence fees for Scotland.

There will be no change to the standard boat licence in Scotland (other than VAT as outlined above).

Small changes are being considered to short term and transit fees. These will be the subject of a

separate announcement before the end of November.

Feedback

If you would like to comment on the proposals changing the prompt payment discount, please send

these to licencediscounts@britishwaterways.co.uk or by post to British Waterways Prompt Payment

Consultation, 64 Clarendon Road, Watford, WD17 1DF before 28 February 2010.

Simon Salem

Marketing Director

17th November 2009

Notes

1 This is an indicative rate based on the normal monthly check. The rate found in the November 2008 national

boat check was 6.8%

An incentive to renew the boat licence promptly was introduced in 1990, 19 years ago as an

efficiency measure: prompt renewal helps BW’s cash flow and reduces the demand on

enforcement resource. It has proved to be effective, and historically, three quarters of boaters

have been taking advantage of the discount. In April 2009 we introduced a charge of £150 for

late renewal of a licence (more than 1 month overdue) and this has had the effect of accelerating

renewals considerably. Internet renewal has been possible for long term licences since 2005, but

limited depending on the status of the boat safety certificate and the type of payment used for the

previous licence. Nevertheless, some £2m in licence sales were made online in the year to April

2009, amounting to 13% of eligible renewals. This percentage doubled during the six months from

April 09, prompted primarily we believe by greater promotion of the facility to our generally highly

internet-oriented customers (85% have internet access).

From January 2010 the constraints on online renewal will be removed so that any long term

licence will be renewable online. This has the potential to reduce BW’s costs by some £200k per

year.

[Naughty Cal]

Give with one hand and take with the other

[MrCJ]

thank you

[Allan(nb Albert)]

Here's my article on it. Unfortunately NbW did not like my title which included the word "stealth".

 

Typical BW!

[Leonie]

Feedback

If you would like to comment on the proposals changing the prompt payment discount, please send

these to licencediscounts@britishwaterways.co.uk or by post to British Waterways Prompt Payment

Consultation, 64 Clarendon Road, Watford, WD17 1DF before 28 February 2010.

Simon Salem

Marketing Director

17th November 2009

 

 

That is all.

[tomsk]

Here's my article on it. Unfortunately NbW did not like my title which included the word "stealth".

 

Typical BW!

 

 

Thanks for this Allan, a good article setting out the real on-costs of boating on waters under BW's stewardship, which will effectively rise.

[capnthommo]

The introduction of the new late payment

charge in April 2009 has resulted in major improvements in payment timings and with stronger

processes in place, we believe it’s no longer necessary to offer such a large incentive to encourage

prompt payment.

 

or in simple terms, 'we've got a bigger stick so here's a smaller carrot'.

cheers

nigel

[casper ghost]

They should be reducing the fee, after all i'm blocked in at the mooring for quite a few months with the winter stoppages and now the new breach has further reduced cruising here.

[tomsk]

One of the biggest problems will be that in order for BW to clear the maintenance backlog of their making, the number of stoppages must rise dramatically to make any impact, reducing the appeal of boating to boaters. I think the whole system is spiraling down the plughole and very little will save it.

[journeyperson]

I think the whole system is spiraling down the plughole and very little will save it.

 

"and the usual doom-mongers predicting armageddon"

 

The Big Sell-off thread had some similarly negative posts saying that the canals have had their day and weren't important to enough people any more but I don't see it that way.

 

The canals were dying before they were recognised as a valuable leisure resource. I don't know what the statistics say but I expect the popularity of canals and rivers as a holiday destination to continue growing and for that reason they will be maintained and improved, maybe not to the liking of all canal users.

[tomsk]

"and the usual doom-mongers predicting armageddon"

 

The Big Sell-off thread had some similarly negative posts saying that the canals have had their day and weren't important to enough people any more but I don't see it that way.

 

The canals were dying before they were recognised as a valuable leisure resource. I don't know what the statistics say but I expect the popularity of canals and rivers as a holiday destination to continue growing and for that reason they will be maintained and improved, maybe not to the liking of all canal users.

 

 

The quote you have used is taken out of context, it was used in referance to the weather, however I do believe that the System under BW stewardship as is pretty much screwed. If the tipping point has not yet been reached, then it can only be just past the next lock. The System is indeed a valuable leisure resource, but the value of it is greatly diminished if you can't get anywhere on it due to interminable stoppages. Perhaps it's future is in being a floating housing estate for live-aboards and the similarly disadvantaged with locks done away and just a series of pounds remaining?

[journeyperson]

Perhaps it's future is in being a floating housing estate for live-aboards and the similarly disadvantaged with locks done away and just a series of pounds remaining?

 

I disagree; I think that is what it won't be allowed to become.

[tomsk]

I disagree; I think that is what it won't be allowed to become.

 

 

What do you see the options as then? It certainly cannot carry on as it is with such a maintenance and budgetary shortfall.

[journeyperson]

What do you see the options as then? It certainly cannot carry on as it is with such a maintenance and budgetary shortfall.

 

I would expect the priority to be to protect the system as a leisure resource and tourist destination. There will always be breaches, there always have been, they are not an indication of decline and decay.

[casper ghost]

I expect the increase in popularity for liveaboards to continue but for the weekend and odd holiday boater it is getting too expensive, especially as BW close alot of the canal for almost a third of the year to do maintainence.

[tomsk]

I would expect the priority to be to protect the system as a leisure resource and tourist destination. There will always be breaches, there always have been, they are not an indication of decline and decay.

 

 

I hope so, but fear the worst.

[Lady Muck]

Charging for credit card payments (and it looks like it soon will be visitor moorings, too) . Hmm, lets see, where did that business model come from?

 

 

Will there be coin operated locks, I wonder? Will you have to pay a £35 surcharge if your hippy hutch won't fit through that really low bridge in Hertford?

[journeyperson]

Will there be coin operated locks, I wonder? Will you have to pay a £35 surcharge if your hippy hutch won't fit through that really low bridge in Hertford?

 

 

Maybe congestion charging? but yes, the user will have to pay.

 

I hope so, but fear the worst.

 

I think pedalo hire might fit the business model and you've got a whole fleet .

[Allan(nb Albert)]

I would expect the priority to be to protect the system as a leisure resource and tourist destination.

 

BW's no.1 priority set by government is to maintain the system in satisfactory condition (i.e. steady state). BW's own priority has been and continues to be as a property speculator. It the past it has shown that it would rather invest in property than the waterways. This year its the same, and the next two years it plans to reduce its spend. It is sitting on half a billion pounds of property much of which brings no revenue being brownfield sites it intended to develop in conjunction with partners. It will continue to sell off rental property that does bring in income.

 

What BW should have been doing is selling off brownfield sites and investing the money in the waterways. This makes good sense as it would demonstrate to government that it is maintaining the system properly and using the portfolio for its intended purpose.

 

 

There will always be breaches, there always have been, they are not an indication of decline and decay.

 

It stands to reason that if BW underspend on maintenance then the incidence of asset failures (good BW term!) will increase. Whilst leaks and breaches do occur, the increase this year suggests either a statistical cluster or an underlying root cause. However, a confidential report to the board in September seems to blame everything except lack of maintenance. A couple of the excuses are real "leaves on the line" or "wrong sort of snow" ones.

[journeyperson]

BW's own priority has been and continues to be as a property speculator. It the past it has shown that it would rather invest in property than the waterways. This year its the same, and the next two years it plans to reduce its spend. It is sitting on half a billion pounds of property much of which brings no revenue being brownfield sites it intended to develop in conjunction with partners. It will continue to sell off rental property that does bring in income.

 

What BW should have been doing is selling off brownfield sites and investing the money in the waterways. This makes good sense as it would demonstrate to government that it is maintaining the system properly and using the portfolio for its intended purpose.

 

I might be naive and over-optimistic but isn't the important point that BW are investing and have half a billion of assets? I believe our waterways are valued by them as well as us and they won't be allowed to fall into decline again.

 

especially as BW close alot of the canal for almost a third of the year to do maintainence.

 

The third of the year when closures occur is outside the holiday season and there's a reason for that; the holiday trade.

[johnjo]

Snipped from the document:-

 

"reducing evasion from 10.4 % in November 2007 to 4.3% in August 09"

How do they arrive at these figures?

If they know that these figures are correct, then presumeably they know who is evading! so why not reduce it to zero!

or am I missing something?

 

Edited to reduce screaming text [too large]

Edited November 19, 2009 by johnjo

[journeyperson]

Snipped from the document:-

 

"reducing evasion from 10.4 % in November 2007 to 4.3% in August 09"

How do they arrive at these figures?

If they know that these figures are correct, then presumeably they know who is evading! so why not reduce it to zero!

or am I missing something?

 

They know how much they should be getting and they know how much they've got. Getting their hands on the difference is the hard part I imagine.

[johnjo]

They know how much they should be getting and they know how much they've got. Getting their hands on the difference is the hard part I imagine.

 

How do they know how much they should be getting?

 

Not being argumentative, just curious.

Edited November 19, 2009 by johnjo