TV Licensing harassment letters

lilaclainey

hibees1875_2 said:

i used to repackage the crap they sent in their own envelope and posted it back to them. They got all their junk back and after 4 months they stopped sending them to me. Think of all that postage they wasted and how many license fee's that costs a year.

I've been doing the same for years ,with some strong words and sentences,but they still carry on harassing me.
I think it's their computers that just reissues them?
However the humans who work there should also take notice.
I thought with this Covid-19 Pandemic these companies are meant to back off?
I pay £6 a week on their payment scheme and today I got a frightening letter telling me to act now or risk breaking the law,that I am now unlicensed etc????
One department doesn't seem to know what the others doing!
I wish I could meet this Jackie Garswood Customer services manager in person, if she really exists.

Cornucopia

lilaclainey said:

hibees1875_2 said:

i used to repackage the crap they sent in their own envelope and posted it back to them. They got all their junk back and after 4 months they stopped sending them to me. Think of all that postage they wasted and how many license fee's that costs a year.

I've been doing the same for years ,with some strong words and sentences,but they still carry on harassing me.
I think it's their computers that just reissues them?
However the humans who work there should also take notice.
I thought with this Covid-19 Pandemic these companies are meant to back off?
I pay £6 a week on their payment scheme and today I got a frightening letter telling me to act now or risk breaking the law,that I am now unlicensed etc????
One department doesn't seem to know what the others doing!
I wish I could meet this Jackie Garswood Customer services manager in person, if she really exists.

These letters are sent in their millions by TV Licensing - deemed acceptable by the BBC who are ultimately responsible.

If you are paying, though, there shouldn't be any letters and the fact that there are suggests either a problem with the payments or with the address database (both of which are possible within the TV Licensing system).

I understand that Jackie Garswood is a real person who works for Capita, the main contractor to TV Licensing.   It's possible to exercise some control over their worst excesses with a firm letter.

oldagetraveller1

I'm bracing for these letter now, having recently completed the section on their website advising I legitimately no longer need a T.V. Licence to suffer the incessant BBC attempts at brainwashing, bias and dire output!

Cornucopia

You don't need to suffer the letters if you don't want to.

Either a formal complaint about them (in your own words but focusing on distress and harassment) or a more legalistic "Cease and Desist" letter should see the letters stop.   TVL will say that they may still investigate in other ways.  

silverwhistle

Cornucopia said:

You don't need to suffer the letters if you don't want to.

Indeed! After a couple of months with no letters they resumed last week, this version saying on the envelope something like 'your action needed now', so I complied.. like all junk mail I put it went straight to the bin, and I didn't suffer at all.

At the moment I find not having a TV a blessing: not because I ignore the news, but seeing the PM, his boss or Matt Hancock live would probably be even more harmful to my blood pressure than reading about them. Obviously I need a long car trip somewhere..

Petriix

I have had several periods where I didn't need a licence and have recently declined to renew. I have previously sent them a clearly worded letter explaining that I do not wish to buy their service, I find their continued communication both distressing and misleading, and any further correspondence would be seen as harassment.

I also included that I was formally withdrawing the implied right of access for anyone operating on their behalf to set foot on my property without a court order signed by a judge. They wrote back to acknowledge the letter, mentioning something about getting back in touch after 3 years. I never heard from them again until I voluntarily applied for a licence some years later.

DoaM

Whilst you can add the line about implied right of access, it is actually untrue - they have no right of access (without a court order).

Cornucopia

"Implied Right of Access" relates to the default situation (in England & Wales) whereby a person (usually a salesperson or an official of some sort) has the right to approach your front door with the intention of stating their business to you. 

Withdrawal of that right (WOIRA) bars TV Licensing from a entering upon your land or approaching your door unless you give them specific permission or they have a (very rare) warrant.   If they do enter upon your land they are automatically trespassing (there is no need for further warning).

Obviously, the value of it depends slightly on the type of property you live in, although TVL probably don't have that info and therefore treat WOIRA as a ban.   They also tend to stop letters when in receipt of a WOIRA instruction.  

TVL tend to accept such instructions as lasting for a maximum of 2 years.  There doesn't appear to be any legal basis for that.

edit:  As DoaM has said, more generally, TVL do not have any right of access inside someone's home without their permission or a Warrant.   You do not need to do anything in advance to exercise that right "on the day".   

Personally, I'd say that if a person is going to speak to them and send them away, it's legally better not to use these common law rights, but instead to use something with more clout (like HRA or PACE) or go the other way with something non-legal like "I'm sorry, it's not convenient right now, but feel free to call back at some other time".  

oldernonethewiser

silverwhistle said:

Cornucopia said:

You don't need to suffer the letters if you don't want to.

Indeed! After a couple of months with no letters they resumed last week, this version saying on the envelope something like 'your action needed now', so I complied.. like all junk mail I put it went straight to the bin, and I didn't suffer at all.

At the moment I find not having a TV a blessing: not because I ignore the news, but seeing the PM, his boss or Matt Hancock live would probably be even more harmful to my blood pressure than reading about them. Obviously I need a long car trip somewhere..

The letters had stopped for me but restarted last month and I have just had another one.  The window on mine had written, in red "Are You Watching?"

Just over a year without a TV and still happily and legally licence free.

Grandmama

Just bin them. I have no tv at all, been 5 years now without one. Do not miss it. Had tv goon around about 3 years ago, told him I had no tv and he still out foot in door and wanted to see it!!! I am a pensioner in sheltered independent bungalow, we all have a panic button. I threatened to use it to call police, he disappeared like Billy the whiz! Still get letters, don't even open them. All addressed to occuper, just ripped and in bin.