At the end of 2024 PRS for Music had matched about £69M to works without paying it. Its transparency report says why, reason by reason.
PRS for Music publishes an annual transparency report. At the end of 2024 it showed £68,968,266 attributed to works but not yet distributed, split by reason. The chart uses the shares PRS prints.
That is a small part of what PRS handles. In 2024 its distributable income was £1,021,547,111, and it distributed £1,020,087,705.
Shares as printed in the report, of £68,968,266. The table also has an “Other (incl. member advances)” line of −£3,038,614, left out of the chart.
The dot marks the two reasons a songwriter or publisher can fix by updating their details. That grouping is ours.
PRS for Music, Annual Transparency Report 2024, pp. 8–9 (archived copy) ↗
Disputes (38%): two or more parties claim the same share, and PRS holds the money until the claim is settled.
Payment or financial details (26%): PRS knows whom to pay, but the payment could not be made, for example a bank credit that failed.
Successor members (13%): the member has died and no successor has been confirmed. Suspensions and holds account for 12%.
Ownership information (10%): usage came in, but no registration matches it. Money for people who are not PRS members is 1%.
Another £9,940,086 was delayed at the end of 2024, 82% of it because the usage data was incorrect or incomplete. PRS holds that money for three years.
Writers with a conflicting claim on a share, writers whose bank details are out of date, and the families of writers who have died. Two of the reasons, payment details and ownership information, are fixed when the writer or publisher updates their details.
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