A farmer says hosting 4G masts on his land has become a “nightmare” after the rent he receives was halved, and it costs him £5,000 in fees.
Alan Watson, 68, from Llanbadarn Fynydd in Powys, has had a mast on his land for more than 20 years, but claims farmers are being “bullied” into accepting worse terms due to legal changes between telecoms operators and landowners.
The Farmers’ Union of Wales (FUW) said it was concerned a cut in rent would put people off putting up masts, affecting connectivity in rural Wales.
The UK government’s Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (DEFRA) said its reforms ensured landowners were “treated fairly when negotiating with mobile operators”.
Nearly a quarter of Wales lacks 4G coverage from every mobile network operator, according to Ofcom, external – leaving some communities reliant on masts hosted by farmers and landowners.
Watson said he had been left with “no negotiation” about how much rent was paid to him for his land, and warned landowners tempted to host masts not to “touch it with a barge pole”.
“It feels like landowners trying to do their bit are being bullied into accepting worse terms, putting people off hosting the infrastructure the country needs,” he said.
“When I tried to get my agreement finalised, the process ended up costing me more than £5,000.”
At the centre of the dispute are changes made to the Electronic Communications Code in 2017, external, which governs agreements between telecoms operators and landowners hosting their infrastructure.
The reforms changed how rents are calculated in an effort to reduce the cost of deploying mobile infrastructure.
But landowners argue the changes have driven down payments by as much as 90% in some cases and made negotiations more adversarial, according to former Tory MP for South Derbyshire, Heather Wheeler, external.
“It was very much like David and Goliath, I was the little one fighting the big company,” said Watson, adding that under the code, he felt there was “nothing he can do”.
“I’ve always been happy to do my bit to support better mobile connectivity in the local area.
“But changes to the system have seen my rent cut in half, from £5,000 to £2,500, while dealing with the telecoms companies has become a nightmare.”
Watson estimates he has received about £55,000 in revenue before tax over the 20 years he has hosted masts, with tax then taking 40% off.
He claims he has now paid £10,00 in fees and legal costs “dealing with telecoms companies”.