TV Licensing Harrassment

Dualcyclone

Hi,

I bought my home a year and a half ago, and, unfortunately, I still haven't moved in due to major renovations.

The council are aware I am not living there, as I have registered this with them - and as a result I am not applicable to any council tax discounts until I move in.

The house is completely empty, with absolutely no means of watching TV; but this doesn't seem to stop the TV License people sending very threatening letters, and constantly sending people around (even though I am rarely there to answer).

I am getting very fed up with this now; since they do not provide any means to contact them to inform them that I am not living at the address, and that the house remains empty.

Does anyone know a contact email address to which I can send them some of my own remarks?

Cheers

runicfire

Hi,

I was in the same stuation earlier this year - didn't move into new house for several months, however they kept sending threatening letters, which evevntually said something like 'An enforcment officer WILL be visiting you, and you may face prosecution'

This annoyed me as I had told them about 5 times that no-one was in the property and there are no TV's or equipment installed - didn't stop the letters though.

Eventually I just resigned myself to saying 'let them come, there's nothing for them to find anyway, and they'll just have wasted their time'. I sent them a complaint via their website http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/aboutus/howtocontactus.jsp, for which I got the usual 'We are sorry but we don't really care' kind of response.

Send them a complaint and just let them do whatever they want. It seems to be the only way!

jamespir

i have a similar problem i live in a one bedroom flat with my gf and she has a tv licence now i brought a freview box from argos and now the tv licesing people keep sending me nasty letters and have taken me to court three time saying i dont have a tvlicence ive also had to pay 300 pounds in court fines irang them several times explaining and this morning yet again another letter with scheduled court date for non payment of tvlicecne what cna i do
:mad:

b33r

Just ignore them and treat them as SPAM mail. TV Licensing have a database of every address in UK and a database of every address in UK with TV license, take one away from the other (which as jamespir highlights, they manage to mess up) and they spam mail whats left over assuming they MUST be breaking the law irrespective of whether you contact them or not.

Dualcyclone

Decided I shall write them a letter asking them to contact the council, who will corroborate that I have registered the property as empty.

I've also asked them to send me any evidence to prove the address contains equipment to receive or record television broadcasts under the freedom of information act.

Because I work for a large national newspaper also, I have kindly informed them that I shall begin collating the correspondance and passing it onto my editorial team for review.

We'll see what they do after that - I normally throw all their letters in the bin, but I actually find it offensive that they believe I should be breaking the law, and that my only method of contact to them would be to purchase a TV license.

Apparently they must provide a response to you by law if you write a letter, so I'll be interested to see what they have to say.

The last time this happened was while I was at university - I simply wrote "return to sender" on all of the letters and sent them all after I graduated.

b33r

Feel free to start a crusade, I suppose the only way they will ever change/get changed is if enough people do it but in my experience and the things I've read you'll just be completely wasting your own time, they get paid to respond to letters (if they bother), you won't. And if you do manage to stop the letters they just start again a year later, or if you make the horrific mistake of buying something like a TV and putting the address down on the tv licensing thing they make you fill in they start again.

Also even if the address did contain equipment used to receive or record television broadcasts, that isn't an offence, only actually using them to do so is the offence. Using a TV for games consoles/watching DVD's etc is fine without a license.

Blacksheep1979

jamespir wrote: »

i have a similar problem i live in a one bedroom flat with my gf and she has a tv licence now i brought a freview box from argos and now the tv licesing people keep sending me nasty letters and have taken me to court three time saying i dont have a tvlicence ive also had to pay 300 pounds in court fines irang them several times explaining and this morning yet again another letter with scheduled court date for non payment of tvlicecne what cna i do
:mad:

erm you could turn up to court with a valid TV licence? How on earth have you been fined if you've got one - I'm sorry but you're either not telling the whole truth or a bit of a muppet.

mymatebob

Dualcyclone wrote: »

Hi,

I bought my home a year and a half ago, and, unfortunately, I still haven't moved in due to major renovations.

The council are aware I am not living there, as I have registered this with them - and as a result I am not applicable to any council tax discounts until I move in.

The house is completely empty, with absolutely no means of watching TV; but this doesn't seem to stop the TV License people sending very threatening letters, and constantly sending people around (even though I am rarely there to answer).

I am getting very fed up with this now; since they do not provide any means to contact them to inform them that I am not living at the address, and that the house remains empty.

Does anyone know a contact email address to which I can send them some of my own remarks?

Cheers

Throw the letters from them in the bin and tell anyone from TVL to go away. They have no rights of access and no right to harass you.

There are many and varied threads on this subject on this and other forums and you will see that you need do nothing at all.

There have been many crusades on this front already and if you do a search on the internet you will find some most amusing pieces about it.

mymatebob

jamespir wrote: »

i have a similar problem i live in a one bedroom flat with my gf and she has a tv licence now i brought a freview box from argos and now the tv licesing people keep sending me nasty letters and have taken me to court three time saying i dont have a tvlicence ive also had to pay 300 pounds in court fines irang them several times explaining and this morning yet again another letter with scheduled court date for non payment of tvlicecne what cna i do
:mad:

As Blacksheep says this sounds very odd.
Why have you been taken to court for something that is not an offence?

Your g/f has a licence for the TV - Yes?
This also covers the Freeview box, provided it is being used at the same address.

How have you ended up paying "fines"?

Contains_Mild_Peril

b33r wrote: »

Also even if the address did contain equipment used to receive or record television broadcasts, that isn't an offence, only actually using them to do so is the offence. Using a TV for games consoles/watching DVD's etc is fine without a license.

If your equipment is capable of receiving/ recording TV programmes it is an offence, so if your TV were connected to an aerial you could be up the proverbial creek, but if you have no aerial so your TV can only be used for viewing pre-recorded material, playing video games etc then you don't need a licence (but try telling them that).

Kavanne

What I didn't like is when I changed my address using their automated telephone system they do not send you any confirmation in writing. So I do not have any proof I told them I moved which always makes me antsy!