who's responsiblity?

quids_in_2

I have a house that I rent out.
My tenant has just bought himself a digi box and he cant get a picture.
I have phoned freeview to discuss and they said that it would need to have an ariel. Either a better indoor one or one on the roof. As a sky customer both at home and at the property concerned (when I lived there in the past). I don't understand freeview BUT my question is who is responsible for the tenant getting tv under this new freeview/freesat or sky system?
Thanx

OneADay

Freeview only needs an ariel cable which I think if I rented a property would expect to have.

Freesat or Sky - thats the tenants own cost to install (but with your permission to demolish any walls to hang the dish).

Moneymaker

It's aerial.
Landlords should read the EEC document "COMMISSION COMMUNICATION ON THE APPLICATION OF THE GENERAL PRINCIPLES OF FREE MOVEMENT OF GOODS AND SERVICES - ARTICLES 28 AND 49 EC – CONCERNING THE USE OF SATELLITE DISHES".
http://www.ictdevlibrary.org/downloads/ec_use_satellite_dishes.pdf

Frankly, I don't understand it myself but I think it suggests that you are obliged to provide a way for the tenant to watch TV in his own language - or at least NOT to prevent him from doing so. In any case, it seems to me that you have at least a moral obligation in helping tenants to obtain a decent TV signal, whether that be via a dish or an aerial. If for no other reason, I'd have thought you'd want to keep them happy and content.

Also, provision of good TV signals helps you better to justify the rent amount. A property with excellent TV provision must be worth more than a similar property without. If it were my property, I would install a decent outdoor aerial system AND a dish system. It's a one-off cost and shouldn't need much maintenance once it's installed. Cable outdoors lasts around ten years (or longer) if properly installed and protected.

iceicebaby

When I rented my house out for a year, I already had sky. What I did was cancelled the subscription that I was paying for and just left the sky box there so the tenant could watch the free to air channels.

mikey72

You should install a digital tv aerial. I've done one at my property, it'll cost a lot less than a months rental each time a tenant leaves. (if you're lucky). If you agree to let the tenant fit one, he can rip it out again, and you'll have some decorating to do, bearing in mind you gave permission in the first place.

will-in-estoril

mikey72 wrote: »

You should install a digital tv aerial.

There isn't really any such thing as a digital aerial; most aerials which can receive an analogue signal should be capable of receiving digital signals.

The reason I mention it is not to be argumentative, simply that there are cowboy fitters out there who will tell you till they're blue in the face that you need to fork out large sums of money for a new aerial, when your existing one is fine.

mikey72

will-in-estoril wrote: »

There isn't really any such thing as a digital aerial; most aerials which can receive an analogue signal should be capable of receiving digital signals.

The reason I mention it is not to be argumentative, simply that there are cowboy fitters out there who will tell you till they're blue in the face that you need to fork out large sums of money for a new aerial, when your existing one is fine.

You need to fit, or ensure the aerial you have is a wideband as opposed to group specific, and that the downlead doesn't attenuate the mux's at the top end. A lot of the old analogue ones only pick up some of the channels.
Depends on where you are to the transmitter as well. Here I need an aerial about 2.5m long, and the old analogue aerial would only pick up half the digital channels. I've just been to a house where you can put a piece of wire in the back of the tv and get them all.

Inactive

mikey72 wrote: »

Depends on where you are to the transmitter as well. Here I need an aerial about 2.5m long, .

Interesting, I have never seen a TV Aerial that is 2.5 metres long, any links?

mikey72

http://www.antiference.tv/extra-gain-xg-0

XG16EW

won't see mine either.

It's in the loft.

Pssst

will-in-estoril wrote: »

There isn't really any such thing as a digital aerial; most aerials which can receive an analogue signal should be capable of receiving digital signals.

The reason I mention it is not to be argumentative, simply that there are cowboy fitters out there who will tell you till they're blue in the face that you need to fork out large sums of money for a new aerial, when your existing one is fine.

I agree there are con merchants out there though i would point out that i live in a main service area and as such,i just have a very basic low element count yagi antenna. It isnt wideband and i do suffer blocking on some channels. I will need to upgrade it. I say i suffer blocking but i would be quite happy to suffer permanent blocking as its !!!!! anyway.

M4RKM

Why your tenant has bought a digi box, and you've left a perfectly working sky box with free channels is firstly beyond me.

You've made sure the tenant can watch some form of tv, with the freesatfromsky channels that are available.

From my POV, you have done all you need to do.