Mobile bars, horsebox bars, prosecco vans and wedding drinks services are booming — and almost all of them run on one legal instrument: the Temporary Event Notice. Here’s how to run a mobile bar business lawfully, when a TEN isn’t enough, and the limits that catch operators who scale up.
The default tool: Temporary Event Notices
A TEN lets you sell alcohol at a specific place for a specific event without a premises licence. You give notice to the council (and police/environmental health) at least 10 working days before, pay £21, and unless police or EH object within 3 working days, you’re authorised. Full mechanics in our TEN guide.
The limits that matter for a mobile bar business
- 499 people maximum present at any time (including staff and performers).
- 168 hours (7 days) maximum duration per TEN.
- Per person: 50 TENs per calendar year if you hold a personal licence — only 5 if you don’t. This alone makes the APLH essential for a serious operator.
- Per premises: 15 TENs and 21 aggregate days per calendar year. A popular wedding barn burns through this fast — check what’s already been used at the venue before you promise a date.
- Late TENs (5–9 working days’ notice): max 10/year for licence holders, 2 for non-holders, and any objection kills them with no hearing.
Working at licensed venues instead
If the wedding venue already holds a premises licence covering the space and hours, you may not need a TEN at all — you operate under their licence with the DPS’s authorisation. Get that authorisation in writing: who is responsible, the hours, and that your staff are authorised to sell. Many mobile bar contracts fail this basic hygiene.
Structuring the business
- Get the personal licence first — the 50-TEN allowance and professional credibility both come from it (how to get one).
- Spread TENs across named individuals: the per-person allowance belongs to whoever gives the notice, so a two-person company with two personal licences has 100 TENs/year to work with.
- Dry hire vs wet hire: providing the bar and staff while the client supplies alcohol free to guests is generally not a sale — no TEN needed. The moment anyone pays per drink, or drinks are ‘included’ in a package you sell, it’s licensable.
- Insurance and food registration: public liability and, if you serve garnished cocktails/food, food business registration.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a licence for a free bar at a wedding?
If drinks are genuinely free to guests and not part of a per-head package sold to the couple… it’s still usually a sale (the couple paid you). The safe default for paid packages: TEN or licensed venue. A true gift of alcohol with no payment chain needs nothing.
Can my van itself hold a premises licence?
Premises licences attach to a place, but a vehicle can be licensed while parked at a specified location. Some high-volume operators licence a regular pitch; for roaming trade, TENs remain the tool.
What about a market stall every weekend?
15 TENs per premises per year won’t cover a weekly pitch. That’s when a premises licence for the pitch becomes the right answer — we can arrange it.
Building a mobile bar business? Start with the online APLH — it unlocks the 50-TEN allowance and takes days, not weeks.
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