To think TV licensing are complete bullies?

[dabbydeedoo]

I went online and said I didn't need a TV licence because I don't watch live TV (I don't). I then received a letter telling me someone would be round to check, and they could apply for a search warrant from the court if I didn't let them in.

Is it just me or is this absolutely ludicrous? We're in a pandemic and I have absolutely no intention of letting someone into my flat. And even if I did, what exactly are they going to do? I have a TV connected to my laptop that I use for watching streaming services and YouTube. Completely legal, but how on earth can they prove I don't watch TV on it?

It feels so bullying and scammy!

Why are people bashing the BBC?

They don't do anything about chasing TV licenses- all done by capita, a private company

@IsAnybodyListening

Just tell them you have also have cheese and milk in your fridge, which doesn't mean you have bloody cow in the garden. Don't let them in.

I don't have to write to DVLA to tell them I don't need a driving licence. And even if you had a car parked in your front garden, they're not entitled to demand that you get a license!

@araiwa you're kidding right? They do what they do at the behest of the BBC. If the BBC wanted them to behave differently they could change it, but it gets them TV licence subs so they don't give a shit

@yourestandingonmyneck

I don't know, I can see it both ways.

And despite some grumbles about the BBC not providing the unbiased service we pay for (which I do agree with to an extent) it kind of is the best we've got and we would be worse off without it. Also they do, undeniably, make some good programmes, and this is how they fund it.

The above is, of course, a moot point if you don't actually watch any of it.

And I do agree that their method of communication is a bit shambolic. I have a license (it just renews every year and I've never cancelled it because although I don't want live tv I do occasionally use the BBC iplayer). For years now I get a paper license sent to me with a whole spiel about "switch to paperless! It's so easy! And no more paper licenses!" Well, I have, many times. Or attempted to, and they just ignore it and keep sending out the paper licenses plus further reminders to switch to paperless

Additionally, I pay for one license via DD, but I get two. Every year they send one addressed to me at my parents house (I moved out in 1999) and I have no idea why as i I don't recall ever registering for a tv license there as my parents would have paid it. So I have no idea why they are sending a license that nobody is paying for.

In your opinion ,many ,many people don't watch BBC and have absolutely no desire to watch , you may well miss it if we didn't have it ,I wouldn't

@Platax

imagine if the content creators produced what they are contracted to do, like non biased programming?

People on all sides of politics accuse the BBC of being biased. That would seem to indicate that it's getting it about right.

This Both the right and left seem to hate BBC for being biased! As you've said, sounds like they are getting it about right.

I listen to and watch BBC regularly. Had to delve into some commercial stations and normal TV the other day and the constant adverts were so annoying. They are more advert than programme!

[quote DaisyNGO]Are people getting these letters after filling in the declaration?

We heard a lot of horror stories but filled this in, admittedly at the height of the pandemic, and had no issues...so far....

www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one/topics/telling-us-you-dont-need-a-tv-licence[/quote]
I did this. Haven't had a single letter since. Did that early last year too after I got sick of the letters.

Admittedly I haven’t filled it in but I assumed they came to check if you do fill it in? Now whilst I don’t watch live tv I still don’t want someone coming into my private space to check on me

@TurnUpTurnip

Admittedly I haven’t filled it in but I assumed they came to check if you do fill it in? Now whilst I don’t watch live tv I still don’t want someone coming into my private space to check on me

Nobody can come in unless you invite them to. Anybody can apply for a search warrant. Doesn't mean they'll get one.

If you don’t watch any of the streaming services then don’t pay it. ( so iplayer, itv player, itv&c4 catchup, listen to the radio etc)

I pay my TV license by direct debit. Always had one. Twice moved into a brand new home to find a threatening 'you don't have a TV license letter waiting for me on the mat and the consequences of me being taken to court!' . The house did not even have a TV Ariel yet or a TV installed.

Ridiculously OTT way to behave.

Those TV detector vans they used to have were a load of nonsense too
And sinister - a sort of East German tactic.

Imagine the outcry if there were advertisements showing similar vans saying ‘we know who hasn’t paid their council tax”. There would be uproar.

They move the date, too. So if you pay your DD on 10th of the month, for example, that'll be fine for a while, then they move the 'payment due' date to 7th. So suddenly your payments are late, and they send scary letters. It's diabolical. I work with vulnerable elderly people, and this happens all the time.

Finding this Interesting reading.

I haven't had a tv licence for over 10 years. Every few years I have to tell them I still don't need one and there is an online message basically saying "if we find out you've lied..." which I don't mind too much. I think it's for the first few years and then they know not to send more letters.

When I was at university I also didn't have a tv and it was before streaming services or even internet in halls. We would all receive a very harshly worded letter saying they knew we were watching tv and there was a seat in hell waiting. None of us watched tv.

Then when I did get sky etc they made me pay a years in 6 months (i didn't have the whole fee so paid monthly by DD) they said this was so it was always in advance. I asked if I would get this back at any point or what would happen if I died as they would owe it to me and they were real dicks. Then I realised sky isn't all that and cancelled the whole thing. I pay a lot on subscription services, Netflix, prime and Disney plus.

I do watch sky news on the app and on YouTube. I don't receive any notifications like you do on iplayer (which I also don't watch) so assumed it's fine.

Surely there aren’t people paying £12 a month just so that someone doesn’t come round to their house and check their tv..?? We cancelled our tv licence and filled in the ‘don’t need one’ bit online. A guy came round one day as I was taking my kids out the car, said he was coming to check re tv licence, I said we have a tv but it’s not plugged into the aerial as we only use it for steaming Netflix / Disney and asked if he needed to come in and check. He said no it’s fine, I can see you’re busy, and that was that.

Oh ok i thought it flagged you up on the system for a visit as whilst I still get letters I don’t get visits anymore. another thing I remember but we are going back years but did you use to have to prove you had a license before buying a tv? I remember when I first left home and Argos wouldn’t sell me a tv unless I gave them my address to prove I had a license, I gave them my mums address but I had just moved out and didn’t have one as I only bought the tv to play PlayStation on.

Finding it hard to believe none of you watch live sport... No football, tennis or Olympics? Or news?

Anyway the reason you have to pay it of you are watching anything live is because it's the law. It doesn't matter if you hate the BBC, if you watch (e.g.) live tennis on Eurosport, you need the licence.

I think they should get rid of the licence and take the cost from tax. The BBC is too important to lose. I would drop a lot of the entertainment stuff though and just keep radio 3 and 4 and the news, documentaries etc. I wouldn't be paying huge wages to celebrity presenters

🤦🏻 no I don’t watch sports 😂 And I don’t watch the news as find it depressing I actively avoid it. I actually don’t watch tv at all, I have a tv for the children.

Just ignore the letters and don't answer the door if you ae not expecting visitors. Or if you live in a house stick out head out of an upstairs window and ask what visitors want. If it's them tell them to go away and get a warrant.

I'd rather pay a TV licence than watch endless adverts (yes I know the BBC does adverts but not during programmes) but this heavy handed nonsense has to stop. My son said he'd got threatening letters at his university and so had all his housemates but they already knew to ignore them.

When I was a student I constantly got letters from them because I had a black and white TV and they couldn't believe I didn't have a colour one. It wasn't at all unusual for students to have B&W TVs at the time!

@SnackSizeRaisin

Finding it hard to believe none of you watch live sport... No football, tennis or Olympics? Or news?

Anyway the reason you have to pay it of you are watching anything live is because it's the law. It doesn't matter if you hate the BBC, if you watch (e.g.) live tennis on Eurosport, you need the licence.

I think they should get rid of the licence and take the cost from tax. The BBC is too important to lose. I would drop a lot of the entertainment stuff though and just keep radio 3 and 4 and the news, documentaries etc. I wouldn't be paying huge wages to celebrity presenters

I've no interest in sport. I keep abreast of the Olympics on social media, if there's something of particular interest I find rerun of the particular part of the match/ event on YouTube. I don't watch news, I occasionally read newspapers but generally prefer to get my news elsewhere.

We do have a TV licence, because DH wants one. But it's not for TV (we don't use iPlayer or watch any live TV at all), it's because he likes radio 4 and wants to support them. I'd happily not have one.

@TheCourse

They move the date, too. So if you pay your DD on 10th of the month, for example, that'll be fine for a while, then they move the 'payment due' date to 7th. So suddenly your payments are late, and they send scary letters. It's diabolical. I work with vulnerable elderly people, and this happens all the time.

This sounds extremely unlikely, as they have control over the DD and would change the date they take it. Do you mean a standing order?

Finding it hard to believe none of you watch live sport... No football, tennis or Olympics? Or news?

I hate all sport without exception, and read online papers for the news.

I dont watch any sport. I tend to catch up on festivals through YouTube. BBC haven't made anything of interest to me in years. It's £14 a month.

Disney+ is £6
Prime is £7
Netflix is £7

All create far far more interesting content and much better value for money.

I didn’t even watch the euros or whatever it was recently, I hate football, I’ve never watched tennis or the Olympics and I can read news online if I wanted to, I find it hard to believe that someone can’t understand that not everyone likes the same things as them? I hate sports

Finding it hard to believe none of you watch live sport... No football, tennis or Olympics? Or news?
Nope. We only watch the late evening news. And luckily my husband hates sport as much as I do.

Mind you they are not the only ones. If you are a solicitor you have to have a practising certificate (which used to be extremely expensive - eg £1000 a year and although it has come down in price it's still a few hundred £).

I was working for a company which employed a lot of qualified lawyers but not to do client work and none of us had practising certifictaes - mayeb 150 of us? So not unusual for the Law Society/Solicitors Regulatory Authority (not sure which it was now as it was some years ago) to come across.

I had such a nasty letter from them saying I didn't have a practising certificate and I was committing a criminal offence etc. I sent them a pretty stroppy letter in response saying they must have heard of who I worked for and none of us had PCs, and then was told it was an automated letter, so I sent them another stroppy letter saying that wasn't an excuse. They did write to me again but I binned the letter.

Some organisations are just run in a nasty way!