Yes. You do pay £76 a year for the licence.
I do it for the following reasons:
1. I handed out SAEs and a proportion didn't get used (e.g. people popping the cheque through my door by hand, people who subsequently paid online, etc) so the cash was wasted. £76 is about a stamp a day, so I reckon the cash is not wasted.
2. The image you portray with a pre-printed reply paid envelope is out of all proportion to the cost of the whole thing. The image I project to customers and prospects is of total professionalism. This is part of that image and is worth the cash to me.
3. If you ask someone to send a cheque there are a handful of reasons they delay/forget.
a. Can't find an envelope
b. Can't find your address
c. Can't find a stamp
d. Can't find their chequebook
e. Can't be bothered to go to the post box.
My envelopes cancel out the first three reasons. The easier I make it, the quicker I suspect they will pay.
The envelopes also have all the ways they can settle printed on the back along with space for a reference (so I know who sent the cheque), an amount (so they know how much to make it out for) and the payee details for their cheque (so they don't have to look up my company name). Easy, easy, easy.
My customers seem to love them.
All my own opinion, of course. For some, all this is an utter waste of time and money.
Vin
PS Edited: removed picture as someone pointed out having my bank account details on the web might not be a brilliant idea. They are on the back of the envelope in the panel showing alternative ways to pay.