HOW TO HIRE · EVENTS & ENTERTAINMENT

How to hire a live band in the UK
The checks, the questions and the paperwork.

Live bands need no licence in the UK. Here is what the venue needs, what to ask the band and what the quote must say.

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THE 60-SECOND VERSION

Hiring a live band in five steps

  1. Check the venue firstStage space, power, sound limiter, curfew and its music licence. A five-piece band with a horn section needs room.
  2. Watch them liveUnedited footage of this line-up at a real event, not a studio demo.
  3. Get the line-up namedWho plays, and how deps (stand-ins) are used. The contract should say.
  4. Ask for PAT and insuranceMost venues want both from bands. Get copies before the day.
  5. Agree sets, meals and overtimeTwo or three sets, the timings, a hot meal for the band, and the price of an extra set.

BEFORE YOU BOOK

Check before you book

No register applies

Working as a live band needs no licence, registration or qualification in any part of the UK. Line-ups change; the band you watch online may not be the players who arrive, so the contract should name who plays.

Check two recent reviews or references for the live band, then ask for the contract.

Music licence and event licensing where the live band plays

Live or recorded music played in public needs TheMusicLicence from PPL PRS, which replaced the separate PRS and PPL licences; playing without one infringes copyright and can lead to a claim for damages. At a hotel, pub or licensed function room the venue normally holds it, so the live band does not need their own. In England and Wales, music or dancing at a place with no premises licence is a licensable activity and needs a Temporary Event Notice: under 500 people, given to the council at least 10 clear working days before. In Northern Ireland, live entertainment indoors, and open-air music on private land, needs a district council entertainment licence whoever performs; staging indoor entertainment without one risks a fine of up to £20,000. In Scotland, ask the venue or council what the event needs before the live band is booked.

Ask the venue whether it holds TheMusicLicence before anyone charges you for one for the live band. Ask the venue whether it is licensed for live entertainment, or who will give the notice or hold the licence for the live band's performance. gov.uk →

Safe electrics and insurance for the live band

The Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 require electrical equipment that could cause injury — the live band's the amplifiers, PA, lighting and stage power included — to be kept safe, though HSE says they do not make yearly PAT testing a legal duty. Venues often ask for a recent PAT record on the amplifiers, PA, lighting and stage power and for public liability insurance anyway, at a level they set.

Send the venue the live band's PAT record and insurance certificate a week before. hse.gov.uk →

Trader status and cancellation terms

A live band who charges for the work counts as a trader in law, so the Consumer Rights Act 2015 makes reasonable care and skill part of the deal. Do not count on a 14-day cooling-off period: regulation 28 of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013 excludes catering and leisure services booked for a set date from the cancellation right, so the live band's own written terms usually decide what happens to your deposit.

Ask the live band for the booking terms in writing and check the refund rules for cancelling and postponing. legislation.gov.uk →

VAT

Live music by a band is standard-rated at 20% when the band invoices as a registered business. Live bands whose taxable turnover passes £90,000 must register, charge VAT and show it as its own line on the quote and invoice.

Ask the band or its agent for the VAT number and see the 20% added under the fee, not inside it. gov.uk →

“Is the band in this video the line-up I am booking?”

A good answer: A yes, or an honest answer about which deps the band uses and how often.

“How much stage space and power does the band need?”

A good answer: Floor dimensions and the number of sockets, and an offer to talk to the venue directly.

“Can you play within the venue's sound limiter?”

A good answer: A band that has played limited rooms, can turn the drums down and knows where it cuts out.

“What sets will you play, and what fills the breaks?”

A good answer: Set lengths and times, and a playlist or DJ service from the band between sets.

“Do you bring your own sound engineer?”

A good answer: Yes for larger bands, or a plan for how the band mixes itself — included or priced.

“Will you learn a first-dance song?”

A good answer: Yes, by a stated date, with any charge for a song outside the band's set list.

“What is your plan if a member is ill?”

A good answer: Regular deps who know the set, named in the contract, or a refund.

“What do you need on the day — meal, changing room, parking?”

A good answer: A short rider: a hot meal, somewhere to change, unloading access.

Getting the quote right

  • The line-up, the number of musicians and the set times the live band will play
  • PA, lighting, sound engineer and playlist between sets — included or extra
  • Travel, accommodation and any congestion charge as separate lines
  • Learning charges for any song outside the live band's set list
  • The band's VAT number, with VAT shown under the fee, travel and any extra set
  • Deposit, balance date, cancellation terms and the price of an extra set
  • Who actually attends: the line-up you heard, or deputies — and whether the players are employed or subcontracted

Walk away if

  • Only studio recordings, or video of a different line-up
  • The band has not asked about power, stage space or the sound limiter
  • No contract, or one with nothing on illness or cancellation
  • No PAT record or insurance when the venue requires them
  • The whole fee demanded months before the date
LOW
£500
TYPICAL
£1,000
HIGH
£4,500

What a live band costs: £500–£4,500 per booking

Live bands quote per booking for an agreed number of sets, priced by the size of the line-up. Travel, accommodation and extra sets are added separately. Live Band price guide →

Guide prices compiled by the Locufy team from published Irish and UK provider price lists and 2026/27 cost guides. Updated 2026.

KNOW WHAT TO LOOK FOR? NOW FIND ONE

Live bands near you, with the badges that matter shown

ID checked, trader status and one score from every review — on the card, before you message anyone. Nearest first. No account needed to look.

Or post the job free and let them come to you.

  1. Load in and set upThe live band arrives at the agreed time, unloads at the access point and sets up without blocking the room.
  2. Sound checkA short check, often before guests come in, at a level within the venue's limiter.
  3. First setUsually after the meal; the band starts on time and reads the room.
  4. Second and third setsBreaks filled with the band's playlist; first dance and requests on the agreed cues.
  5. Curfew and pack downMusic stops at the venue's curfew, kit is cleared and the balance settled as agreed.

Dep
A deputy musician standing in for a regular member.
Rider
The band's list of what it needs on the day — meal, drinks, changing space.
Sound limiter
A venue device that cuts power when sound passes a set level.
Curfew
The time the venue requires live music to stop.
Front of house (FOH)
The sound engineer's mixing position facing the band.
Playlist service
Recorded music the band plays between sets.

AFTER

When the job is done

Keep the contractIt names the live band's line-up, the sets and the fee — your record if the night fell short.
Note the timingsWhen each set started and finished; a band that ran short owes an explanation.
Check for damageAny marks to the venue from kit should be raised with the band and the venue the next day.
Leave the reviewA few lines on the live band help others choose, and only booked customers can leave them. If something went wrong, the make-it-right step comes first: the live band is asked to put it right before the review goes live.

STEP 1Put it to the live band in writingSend the live band a short written account — a late start, a short set, a line-up different from the one booked — with the remedy you want. Reasonable care and skill is an implied term of the booking under section 49 of the Consumer Rights Act 2015; a service that cannot be done again can be compensated by a price reduction.
STEP 2Use the make-it-right step on LocufyRate the live band below four stars and you are asked whether to send the problem to them first; we follow it through, then your review is published.
STEP 3Getting Trading Standards involvedLive bands answer to no trade regulator. If the trader will not engage, Citizens Advice (0808 223 1133) covers England and Wales, Advice Direct Scotland (0808 800 9060) covers Scotland, and Consumerline (0300 123 6262) covers Northern Ireland; each can pass a complaint about live bands to Trading Standards.
STEP 4Money the live band will not returnIf the live band still will not pay, you can claim yourself: up to £10,000 on the small claims track in England and Wales, up to £5,000 under simple procedure in the sheriff court in Scotland, and up to £5,000 in the small claims court in Northern Ireland.

Hiring a live band: questions people ask

Not personally. TheMusicLicence from PPL PRS and any entertainment licence attach to the venue or the event; the live band just plays.

The law wants the live band's kit kept safe; HSE is clear it does not demand a yearly PAT test, and insurance is not compulsory. Venues, though, often ask for both.

£500 to £4,500 per booking, typically around £1,000. The live band price guide breaks the range down, and the search above lists live bands in your area.

More than people expect — a five-piece needs a stage area several metres across plus room for speakers. Measure it and ask the band.

No. Two or three sets of around 45 minutes is the usual pattern, with recorded music between them.

Ask beforehand whether the band can play under the limiter. If the venue cuts the power, the contract decides who bears that.

MORE GUIDES

More hiring guides in events & entertainment

How to hire: Wedding SingerHow to hire: Acoustic DuoHow to hire: Solo MusicianHow to hire: SaxophonistHow to hire: Wedding DJHow to hire: Mobile DiscoHow to hire: PA & Sound System HireHow to hire: Stage HireAll 701 hiring guides →

Live bands near you

Live bands in LondonLive bands in ManchesterLive bands in BirminghamLive bands in GlasgowLive bands in BelfastAll live bands on Locufy →

Sources — checked October 2026

  1. gov.uk — licence to play live or recorded music
  2. gov.uk — Temporary Events Notice
  3. gov.uk — entertainment licence (Northern Ireland)
  4. HSE — portable appliance testing FAQs
  5. Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013, regulation 28 — contracts the cancellation right does not cover
  6. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 49 — reasonable care and skill
  7. gov.uk — make a court claim for money: court fees
  8. mygov.scot — make a court claim for money
  9. nidirect — small claims process
  10. Citizens Advice — more help with a consumer issue (England)
  11. VAT rates — VAT rates for goods and services: standard rate 20% on most goods and services
  12. GOV.UK — Register for VAT: when to register