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# Music Licensing for Your Workshop or Premises
If you've got a workshop, garage, unit or yard where you or your staff can hear music playing, you technically need a licence. Most lads have Spotify on the speaker all day and have no idea. This guide explains what you actually need, what it costs, and where the real risk sits.
Rule of thumb: if anyone other than just you, alone, in a private space can hear commercial music at your business premises, you probably need TheMusicLicence. Whether the risk of getting caught is worth the cost depends on your setup.
What TheMusicLicence Actually Is
Since 2018, PPL and PRS for Music joined forces into a single licence called TheMusicLicence. It covers both:
- PRS - pays the songwriters and publishers
- PPL - pays the performers and record labels
One licence, one payment, covers both. Before 2018 you needed two separate licences, which was a nightmare.
If you play any commercial music in business premises where staff, customers or visitors can hear it, you need this licence. That includes:
- Radio (yes, even radio)
- Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, YouTube
- CDs, vinyl, MP3s
- TV with music channels
The broadcaster's licence (BBC, commercial radio stations) covers them for broadcasting. It doesn't cover you for playing their broadcast in your workplace. That's a separate use.
What It Costs
TheMusicLicence is priced based on the type of premises, the size, and how music is used. For a small workshop or trade unit:
- Small premises (typical workshop, one or two staff): from around £238 per year + VAT (2025-26 rates)
- Concessions may apply for very small businesses
The exact quote depends on your specific setup. You can get a quote at pplprs.co.uk.
The cost is tax-deductible as a business expense. Claim it on your Self-Assessment under allowable expenses.
Spotify and Streaming Services
Read the terms and conditions of any streaming service and you'll find the same thing. Spotify Premium, Apple Music, Amazon Music, all of them explicitly state that personal subscriptions are for private, non-commercial use only.
Playing your personal Spotify account through a speaker in your workshop where employees or visitors can hear it is technically a breach of their terms and requires TheMusicLicence on top.
Spotify does offer a business product called Soundtrack Your Brand. Apple has Apple Music for Business. These are commercial licences designed for business premises. They cost more than personal subscriptions but cover the commercial use.
Tip for new starters: if you're a one-man band working alone in your own garage with no employees, no customers visiting, and no public access, you're in a grey area that nobody is realistically going to chase. But the moment you take on staff or have customers on the premises, sort it out.
The Van Question
Playing music in your van is a grey area. It's your vehicle, and if you're driving alone, it's essentially private use. PPL PRS haven't actively targeted van radios and it would be impractical to do so.
Playing music on a customer's site or on a construction site is different. On a managed construction site, the principal contractor is usually responsible for any music licensing. If you're playing your own speaker on a domestic job, that falls into the same grey area as the van.
The practical risk is extremely low for vans and domestic sites. The legal answer is technically yes, you need a licence. The enforcement reality is that PPL PRS focus on fixed business premises.
Who Checks?
PPL PRS use field investigators who visit business premises, particularly retail, hospitality and offices. They also use data from business directories, social media, and tip-offs.
For a workshop or garage on an industrial estate, the risk of a visit is lower than for a high street shop, but it's not zero. If an investigator visits and finds you playing music without a licence, you'll get a letter asking you to get one. Repeat offenders can face legal action.
The maximum penalty for copyright infringement is £50,000 per offence in the Magistrates' Court, or unlimited in the Crown Court. In practice, PPL PRS would rather sell you a licence than take you to court.
Workshop vs Site vs Home Office
- Workshop, unit or garage where staff or visitors can hear music: you need it.
- Construction site managed by a principal contractor: usually their responsibility, but check.
- Your home office with no employees or visitors: you don't need it for personal listening.
- Customer's property where you're doing a job: grey area, extremely low risk.
What Happens If You Just Ignore It
Honestly, for a one-man band in a small workshop, the risk is low and the chance of getting caught is minimal. PPL PRS focus their enforcement on larger businesses, retail and hospitality.
But if you employ people or have a public-facing premises, the risk goes up. If an investigator turns up and catches you, the licence fee is the cheapest outcome. A legal dispute over copyright infringement costs a lot more than £238 a year.
Tip for new starters: if you're setting up a new workshop and taking on your first employee, add TheMusicLicence to your setup list alongside your employer's liability insurance and your PAYE registration. It's a small cost and it's one less thing to worry about.
Sources
- PPL PRS, "TheMusicLicence for businesses," 2025
- Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988
- Spotify, "Terms of Service - personal and commercial use," 2025
- Apple, "Apple Music for Business terms," 2025
- gov.uk, "Allowable business expenses for Self-Assessment," 2025-26
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