TV licence

[cornflakesandtea]

I let my TV licence lapse in June because we only wanted it for one thing last year. We don't watch live TV or BBC iplayer. We would probably watch BBC iplayer if we had a licence, but we don't, and so don't watch it.
Today I've had a letter with big red letters saying that this is my official notice that I am under investigation. I feel almost bullied into paying for something I'm not going to use, and £160 is no small sum. What are my options here? I don't want people knocking at the door asking us what TV we watch. I'm really worried about it. I know we're within the law but now I'm panicking.

I think you have to declare you don’t need one. That’s probably why you’ve been having letters, if you’ve not declared yet

Ignore it if you don't need one. Remember it covers live itv, channel 4 and channel 5 plus iplayer as well though! (

They like sending those letters but never seem to do anything about it.

Just send the letter back & write on it "Licence no longer required".
You could also add:
I remove the assumed right of access to this address.
This removes your permission for any licence investigator to enter your property.
Check out the black belt barrister on YouTube. He has done several videos on TV Licencing & is very informative.

These letters look deliberately threatening to convince you to pay for a licence, even if you don't need one.

If you do not watch any live streamed tv and or iplayer then you do not need to buy a licence.
You need to officially cancel your licence online its quite simple, it says that you will not receive letters from them but may get a visit , if you just stop paying without doing it online they will continue to send letters that increase in 'seriousness' !!!
I cancelled mine online 18 months ago and have not had either letter or visit so far.

Your options are to ignore it, that is a standard letter they send out.

You can do the 'No License declaration' online if you want or you can just bin the letters.

I get several of those type letters every year.
Some of them are very cleverly designed to make you panic.

Things like having the front covered in:
"Will you be home in September"

But then you open it and it actually says..
"Or some other month..."

I had about 15 letter collection telling me investigators are coming soon that spanned a three year period, they never came.

It's bully tactics to make you frightened that they'll visit.

If they visit, simply say no thank you and close the door.

Remember, they have no more right to enter your home than a double glazing salesman unless they have a warrant of entry. They can only get a warrant of entry from a judge.

Seriously ignore it its just what they do.,they assume everyone needs a tv licence ,its all bluster from them you Will.get a,series if increasingly threatening letters saying you must act now etc etc they are in a,loop.from mild to. threatening just ignore then
If they do.send someone round just don't open the door they have no power at all.

Here you go:

No.you don't need to.do.anything you can cancel it on line or just ignore them.

And

https://www.tvlicenceresistance.info

To do the no license declaration, head here:

https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/cs/no-licence-needed/about.app?

The BBC is now so bad we hardly ever watch it. Still pay as husband we go mad if bailiffs came around. They are losing licence fee payers and viewers by the million. We generally only watch Gardeners World. We watch GB News and I listen to Talk Radio. I listened to Radio 4 most of my life, until it was taken over by wokery, such a shame!

Thanks all! I've just done the no licence required declaration so hopefully that will be the end of it.
I don't want to feel bullied into paying for something I don't need. I do think it's insane that it's illegal to watch tv without one, but I do abide by the law so if I was to watch it then I'd get one.
Thanks for the reassurance, I really appreciate it!

Just declare that you don't need one.

I received one for the previous owner that didn't have a TV licence 2 years after they moved out.
It said they had to reply as to whether their circumstances had changed by 6th June or someone would be knocking at the door and I'd be fined.

As I've got a TV licence for this address registered in my name I just ignored it and would happily have showed them it if they'd have knocked.
Clearly they don't do any research.

@TodayInahurry
Get it cancelled. They don't send bailifs, they send sales agents

They're not even BBC employees, they send sales people that are employed by Capita.

Would he be scared of sales man visiting if they were from Daz or Persil trying to flog him some washing tablet? He'd be a bit silly if he was.

I get a passive aggressive letter from them every 2 years, go on and fill in the I don't need your bloody licence form online and that does seem to be the end of it. It does hack me off that you have to tick a box to say you acknowledge they may come and check, they'll have a wasted journey.

Declare you don’t need licence and ignore them. They paid us visit once, I let them in, they checked my telly and never returned.

Ignore it.

I paid tv licence in about 6 years now.

We don’t watch live TV though I have watched catch up on things like iplayer. Never had anyone demanding access though

You know you don't have to.let them.in?
.just ignore or say no.thank you they have no rights whatsoever.

I fill in a declaration every two years on their website and they don’t bother me. Have you made a declaration?
https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one/topics/telling-us-you-dont-need-a-tv-licence

Declaring that you don't need a Licence isn't guaranteed to stop them calling - it says exactly that on their website.

The letters are sent out in their millions - so even if it sounds like it's personal to you (and they include postcodes and street names to pretend otherwise)... it's not.

There is no "investigation" as such. They just mean that your address is on the list for visiting, just like nearly 3 million others. With 165 salespeople the odds of getting a visit are pretty small.

If they do call, you don't have to speak with them and you should definitely not let them in.

Do they still have TV detector vans? I may have imagined that as a thing

No.

They used to say they had, and they were even feature in a famous TV ad, but they don't mention them any more and I think they have become unviable because of so much radio noise and so many ways of receiving TV.

For most of my life I've lived in homes that (entirely legally) don't have a licence, and most of the time no one has filled out any paperwork about it (I had a brief period where I did, but now don't bother, I know my parents never bothered). The last time an inspector came round to a house in which I was living was in the 1980s. I wouldn't worry if I were you.

They never did it was all smoke and mirrors .

We don’t have a licence. We just do the declaration on the website saying that and then they leave you alone. They’re only pursuing you because you haven’t told them that you don’t need a licence.