End of Post Office Rod Licence Sales

Attention Anglers: The sale of rod licences at Post Offices ended on the 15th of January 2023. You can still purchase a rod licence very easily online, or over the telephone.

The following FAQ’s are from a press release issued by Natural Resources Wales (NRW)

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Why are you no longer selling fishing licences at the Post Office?

Over the last decade the decline in sales of fishing licences at the Post Office has accelerated so they now account for a very small percentage of fishing licence sales (approximately 14% of total sales or 5,500 individual licences in Wales in 2021).

As customers’ methods of buying a licence have changed, in part due to the way the Environment Agency (EA) has made it easier to buy licences online, the EA and Natural Resources Wales (NRW) have decided to end the sale of licences at Post Offices. Moving sales to online and telesales services will allow savings to be made which will be reinvested into the fisheries service. We are now actively encouraging people to buy digital licences which will save on paper and help work towards their carbon net zero targets. This will also allow the money saved to be reinvested into the fisheries service.

Don’t you think it is unfair to stop selling licences at the Post Office? Won’t you risk losing customers?

To assess how Post Office customers would buy a licence once the Post Office ceased to sell them over the counter, the EA carried out market research with a section of Post Office customers in Wales and England to see how this might affect them. The research showed that the vast majority (94%) of existing Post Office customers would be able to and would be inclined to buy a licence either online, over the phone or by asking someone to buy on their behalf.

I used to buy my licence from the Post Office with cash. How can I buy a licence now with cash?

Unfortunately, you cannot use cash to buy a licence via the Environment Agency’s (EA) telesales or online services. However, you can use pre-paid cards. A pre-paid card is essentially a pay-as-you-go debit card. You add money to the card. The EA does not promote any specific card but there are a lot to choose from. This would enable you to use the EA’s online or telesales services.

Alternatively, ask a trusted relative or friend to buy on your behalf. The online system has been upgraded to make this process easier. A friend or relative can now easily buy a licence on behalf of someone else.

Now the Post Office no longer sells fishing licences, what other ways are there that I can buy my licence?

There are two main ways that you can buy your fishing licence:

– You can buy it 24/7 via the EA’s online rod licensing service at https://www.gov.uk/fishing-licences/buy-a-fishing-licence.

[Please note that this service will be available in Welsh later in 2023].

– or via the EA’s telesales service on Telephone: 0344 800 5386, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm (except public holidays).

See Call charges on the Gov.uk site for more details.

 How can I buy my licence when I do not have access to a computer, tablet or mobile phone?

You can use a landline to buy your fishing licence via the EA’s telesales service on Telephone: 0344 800 5386, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm (except public holidays).

See  Call charges on the Gov.uk site for more details.

Is there anyone who can help me buy a fishing licence online?

You can buy a fishing licence online via the EA’s digitally assisted journey, where a trained customer contact centre employee will take you through purchasing a rod fishing licence using your own laptop, notepad or phone. Please telephone: 03708 506 506 to access this support. See  Call charges on the Gov.uk site for more details.

Will I still get a physical licence to carry with me?

If you buy an Annual licence, either through the online fishing licensing or telesales services, you still have the option to choose a paper licence which will then be posted to you. If you buy a short-term licence you will be given a licence number which you note down or can receive by text or e-mail.

You can, however, choose to buy a ‘digital licence’. This will save an average of £1.00 per paper licence. This will help the environment by reducing paper use and help save money, which can be invested in fishing improvements. The EA will send the fishing licence by email or text message. The email or text message is proof of your rod fishing licence.

I bought my licence at the Post Office recently – is it still valid?

Yes. Your licence will still be valid if you bought it from the Post Office until its expiry date.