PRS for Music Reviews 112

Shockingly unprofessional! Received a report from one of their ‘field agents’, including photos taken in our shop (without our knowledge) and a brief sound recording, claiming that we were playing music without a license through a speaker system that hasn’t worked for 2 years. Emailed them to challenge it & have had no response.
Sent an enquiry via their website to see how much a licence would cost to have a small radio on in our (tiny) shop. Was almost immediately called by a pushy sales person who kept quoting around £300 a year + VAT. Numerous emails then ensued, with me pointing out the various prices & discounts stated on their virtually incomprehensible website. The sales person (sorry, ‘music license advisor’) repeatedly bypassed my actual questions and continued to quote the £318 figure, despite my sending screenshots of their website. Eventually, when my questions became so blunt they had no choice but to answer, I was told that the prices & discounts on their website were wrong and needed updating, even the ones listed as being effective from January next year.
Totally against the Consumer Protection Act, and even their own Code of Conduct which states (surely ironically!) that they aim to provide clear and accurate information at all times.
Quite how this unprofessional outfit are able to continue, with an almost complete monopoly, without being held to account by Trading Standards or any other Ombudsman service is beyond me.

Criminals!!

These bunch of rats actually sued my pub for a licence to play music from March 2020 to March 2021!!’

Apparently the fact that the whole Country was in lockdown due to Covid 19 was no excuse not to pay for a service they couldn’t provide.

The PRS and those associated with it are racketeering extortionists.

Never sign anything these rats put in front of you. !!!

I raised a query in July 2024 asking why I hadn't received a statement since 2020, when I knew there was money owed to me. I knew as a band mate on the same percentage split has been receiving money every quarter for a while and I gave details of a song that I knew had been paid out to another member. The response was "your works are not generating the threshold amount of royalties (£30) in order for you to receive a statement". I replied with further details of the specific example song, which is a 25% split across the board, where only one person had been paid out. I got nothing in return. I responded a few weeks later asking for an update. I got nothing.

I then rang them today to discover the case was closed as they had answered my “email subject” question of “Received no statements since 2020” and I would have to raise another query regarding the missing royalties. This made me very angry (not that I swore at the agent, abused them, or directed anything personal at them) but I was mad. I asked how they can close the case when I’m clearly missing royalties and not tell me I need to raise a further one to have it investigated. And more to the point, why haven’t they raised my issue themselves off the back of my initial inquiry. I was told “we’re not doing this, you’re not shouting at me, it’s too early in the morning for this.” You’re God damn right it’s too early in the morning for this nonsense, basically telling me: tough, go raise another query… that will probably just be closed. What an outrage. Then when I tried to explain my concern that they don’t seem bothered I’m owed money (not loads, maybe a couple of hundred pounds) I was talked over as the agent kept saying they’ve resolved my query and I need to raise another for missing royalties. I was furious. I said forget it and I'll just raise a complaint.

When I went on the PRS website to look at how to make a complaint I was given a number to dial. When I rang the number, I was told I had to send an e-mail with the details of my complaint. To this, I said again, it sounds like you're not interested in my concerns. To be fair to this agent they did seem a little bit more concerned and asked if I could hold whilst they checked my options. However, when they returned, I was told again I would have to send an email, even though their website says (and I quote) “[if] I have a membership complaint, please contact by post phone or e-mail”.

This system gives me no faith that I can trust their methods of collecting royalties. I can clearly see from my friend's statements that there is money there for numerous songs over numerous years, but I haven't been paid for it. And when I raise this concern with the PRS, they say there's no money there to give me. I feel my options are ignore this and let the money go, or raise a complaint for every single song I have registered with the PRS to have them all investigated; they clearly have no idea whether royalties for them are being collected correctly. I fear for the people that rely on this as an income for their livelihood.

PRS - lining their pockets with your money.

Consistently get the billing wrong and waste a huge amount of time trying to get it corrected. Very arrogant and unlistening. I would go a long way to use rights free music rather than uses these people if I were starting again. No wonder so many businesses have stopped playing music'

Fake company and stole £100 off me. I have requested a refund but there support in no existent. Do not do any business with them.

I'm an independent songwriter and performer and PRS are supposed to act on my behalf. That's what I paid them for. Its not free to join. I don't know where the millions they collect in revenue goes to, but its certainly not going to artists like myself. Opening a dispute is frankly pointless. If they do bother to respond, its with nonsense.

Today they have refused to pay me for several live performances because the venues were not licensed. This is actually not correct, but its how they avoid paying their members.

Worth noting you only need a license if you are playing copyrighted music in your business premises, don't let them tell you otherwise.

This organisation exists as a cartel. It’s a private organisation parading as a government/legal body that bullies small business owners into paying a fee for something they are not obligated in law to have. Their aggressive tactics are an absolute disgrace and I feel sorry for the small businesses who cave in to their ridiculous demands. They’re a shameless bunch of leeches no better than double glazing salesmen who bully old ladies into replacing their windows.

What a waste of time!

They have no idea what they are talking about, all they want to do is sell you a licence which you might or might not need. They can't even answer the most basic of questions and their website is embarrassing.

In over 10 years of trading, by far the most stressful aspect of running a small business has been harrassment from these utterly incompetent racketeers. I have no issue supporting the arts but don't view paying these self-supporting fraudsters as an efficient way of doing this. PRS & PPL both urgently need abolishing.

"After our business costs, music licence fees are distributed to all those involved in making music via our parent companies PPL and PRS for Music."

In the last financial year, those running costs were £26.5 million pounds and £23.5 million in 2021.

The PRS is so important to songwriters and composers in the UK, such a fantastic bunch of people who I have happily dealt with for many years, they take care of their writers, account on time and are very easy to deal with and incredibly helpful. I highly recommend that every British songwriter and composer join PRS for Music AAAAA+++++++

Id give zero stars if I could. It has taken nearly 2 years for PRS to confirm missing royalties and although their colleagues seem lovely over the phone, it's a simple case of pass the bucket. I ended up speaking to 9+ members of staff, racked up a beautiful 3+ cases, countless hours over the phone and emails just to try and get some cooperation and some responsibility for my missing royalties. They have no contact to their 'international department', yet it exists and they refuse to put you in connection with it. I have a publishing deal in the East, and PRS didn't have a clue how to handle royalties that weren't from the UK- which when you think on the grand scale of the world, why would you pay £100 upfront and trust them to log your royalties globally?! As most musicians are independent, they probably don't have the time or money to chase the money they are already owed. Utter shambles, I've finally gotten through and will be moving to a different collection society in the East. With the new collection society I've had one email, one meeting, and every single question answered and direct staff who I can hold accountable for my work and who assist me every step of the way. Pretty sure if I was Ed Sheeran PRS wouldn't organise themselves like this. This is why the music industry is broken. In the UK at least. PRS- pay your artists, hold yourselves accountable and actually sort out your royalty system. Seriously be warned any new musos..you're better off joining a collection society in Europe or elsewhere. True, you'll have conversion fees but it will be tiny, and you'd at least have peace of mind and actually be paid what you're owed.

I've been signed up to PRS since 2009, and in all of that time, it's never improved as far as functionality and simplicity is concerned. They only just redesigned the part of the site where you register and amend works a few years ago but it still does my head in trying to navigate around it. There's no logic to it, I keep being sent around in circles.

A few months ago I tried to amend a registration just by simply adding an ISRC code which I recently acquired, as the registered track was about to be released digitally. This was anything but simple! Even trying to find my list of works was almost impossible, and then trying to get to amend one of them, only to get sent straight back to the list of works and so on and so on. Somehow I managed it in the end, but adding the ISRC code was totally impossible, or at least my registration wouldn't update. I kept getting the notification email sent to me but it was still identical to the original email without the ISRC code showing. And going back into PRS, it was still missing from the registration.

So I filed a support ticket asking why this was such a problem, and I just got the most unhelpful idiot responding without answering my question like he didn't seem to know what I was asking, and he was just winging it, hoping that I'd be satisfied with his response. I replied that he didn't answer my question but I didn't get a further response from him. And within the site, it said that my query was closed (supposedly solved). So I emailed him again and he did respond by telling me that my registration had updated, which he could've just said in the first place. I still don't know if the ISRC code is included or if he even knew that for sure. I've just gone through the same process again with another track, and nothing's changed since last time. I was under the impression that an ISRC code made the process of identifying a musical release for payment easier, but it seems as though PRS don't seem to care or know.

Also everytime I've logged into my account since 2009, my password is never accepted, so I always have to change it, or rather not change it, just go through the process of changing it but keeping it the same, which shouldn't be possible.

I really don't know why no one at PRS seems to care how bad the site is. Music royalties are confusing enough already.

Uncontactable, horrible service. Phones dead, email unresponsive. Been like this for years. Awful company

Terrible setup this. Decided not to take my sound system out of my shop as l knew I needed to save on the extortionate amount that I was being charged. I run a tiny takeaway shop - just me there, only a maximum of 3 customers a time who only stay for 2 minutes max.

Tried to cancel, BUT because I didn’t give the full months notice I was told “TOUGH S*** - you’re paying!”.

I WAS 10 DAYS OUT!!!!!!!

So now stuck with paying £458 for absolutely nothing.

Abysmal bullying tactics, terrible customer service.

There needs to be some sort of competition here, something needs to be done and fast as surely putting in the nail on some businesses.

LOOK INTO IT CAREFULLY BEFORE YOU SIGN UP!!!!!

PRS - Untrained staff who don't care about the 'members'. Won't speak on the phone and hide behind emails. Complete joke of a company. The CEO seems oblivious to everything bad about the company and just tweets about famous musicians being members. Get a grip.

I simply cannot believe the PRS website. Crap does not begin to describe how bad, how outdated it is. It is totally unfit for purpose. One reviewer suggests it belongs in 1982. I suspect it was coded back in 1956 for an IBM 650. How can PRS continue to promote themselves on the back of this appalling software. One imagines a group of computer averse dinosaurs sitting in a darkened back room, smoking Hamlet cigars while counting the valves on their trombomes and chewing on a mouldy British Rail sandwich. They should be ashamed of themselves.

Joined prs and mcps wish a dint still trying to get my money from them now years later they don't answer the phone the don't reply to emails and you won't get payed end of!!!!! BAD COMPANY STAY AWAY WISH I DID

Stopped playing music in our hairdressers as we are now only open 2 days a week and can't justify the £265.54 a year license ..... OMG ..... They Decide to automatically renew your license even if you don't pay them... they then bombard you with threatening letters, telephone calls, emails, suvey's (to try and catch you out), then put debt recovery agents on to you threating court action.......we shall see what happens ! ....reading the reviews from actual artists below.......my god ........obvious only 1 thing matters to this company and that is making money ..... and I am guessing its not to concerned about the artists who it supposedly represents.

Musician here - they've run off with my membership fee of £100. I can't log-in or register and have paid for something I've not received.

Disgusting company. Demanding money that I don't owe. Refuse to respond to my request of being taken off their books. They owe me money but I'm not going to risk giving them my bank details as they will probably start taking money out. I am now contacting the ombudsman about this dreadful company.