Licence refund (students)

GingerBob_3

Last year when I claimed a three-month refund the goons at TV Licensing ran me ragged. Because I didn't cancel the licence there was no obvious facility to just claim a refund via the website. The whole process is opaque, and designed to confuse.


This time I've set up a 12 month single payment DD. So what's the process:


Cancel Licence, Claim Refund, Cancel DD? I suspect the whole thing will again be as clear as mud on the website, and if everything isn't done in the right order it will be problematic.

foxtrotoscar_2

http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one/refunds-and-cancellations/apply-for-a-refund

GingerBob_3

According to the site, you don't cancel the DD, but there's nothing about cancelling the licence, which is what caused the confusion last time.


I notice in passing, that the bounders are making up the rules as they go along. If you can't provide "evidence" then you only get a three month refund. Is this scam legally enforceable (doesn't affect me, but I'm wondering anyway).

Cornucopia

The process depends on whether you are paying by instalments or not.

If you ARE paying by instalments, or annual DD, then the process is:

- Phone TVL (don't use email, online or post) and ask them to cancel your Licence.

- For instalment plans, YOU have an option to choose whether to use your advance payments to let your Licence run on to expiry, or take them back as a refund. The exact amount of refund for a monthly DD account is either £72, £48 or £36, depending on the interaction between your payments and the underlying Licence.

- They will ask for evidence that your Licence needs cancelling, for those reasons where evidence could be provided (moving home, end of term, etc.) There is no legal obligation to provide this, but it is pointless arguing with them. Instead, tell them that you are cancelling because you will no longer be watching TV broadcasts at this address. Be aware that if you are vacating the address, they may send a refund cheque there, so you will need mail forwarding, or someone to pass the refund on to you. (There may be an option to set-up a separate billing address and then cancel, but I don't know anyone who has tried this).

- If they tell you someone will call to check, don't bother arguing with them. Say something non-committal, like: "As long as it is done within the law, I will consider it if it happens". Do not say "No", and do not say "Yes", either.

- A few days later, cancel the DD with your bank.


If you are NOT paying by instalments or annual DD then the process is this:-

- If you want to cancel part way through the year, you can obtain refunds of unused quarters (i.e. 3 months, 6 months or 9 months) by calling them as above.

- If you are cancelling at the end of the year, you do not need to contact them.

- As above, if you do contact them, they may ask for evidence that a Licence is no longer required. Do not give them that option - tell them that you are no longer going to be watching TV broadcasts.


BBC/TVL like to make life complicated and difficult for people, they have a knack for it. With a little information, though, you can get what you need from them with the minimum of hassle.

GingerBob_3

Cornucopia wrote: »

The process depends on whether you are paying by instalments or not.

If you ARE paying by instalments, or annual DD, then the process is:

- Phone TVL (don't use email, online or post) and ask them to cancel your Licence.

- For instalment plans, YOU have an option to choose whether to use your advance payments to let your Licence run on to expiry, or take them back as a refund. The exact amount of refund for a monthly DD account is either £72, £48 or £36, depending on the interaction between your payments and the underlying Licence.

- They will ask for evidence that your Licence needs cancelling, for those reasons where evidence could be provided (moving home, end of term, etc.) There is no legal obligation to provide this, but it is pointless arguing with them. Instead, tell them that you are cancelling because you will no longer be watching TV broadcasts at this address. Be aware that if you are vacating the address, they may send a refund cheque there, so you will need mail forwarding, or someone to pass the refund on to you. (There may be an option to set-up a separate billing address and then cancel, but I don't know anyone who has tried this).

- If they tell you someone will call to check, don't bother arguing with them. Say something non-committal, like: "As long as it is done within the law, I will consider it if it happens". Do not say "No", and do not say "Yes", either.

- A few days later, cancel the DD with your bank.


If you are NOT paying by instalments or annual DD then the process is this:-

- If you want to cancel part way through the year, you can obtain refunds of unused quarters (i.e. 3 months, 6 months or 9 months) by calling them as above.

- If you are cancelling at the end of the year, you do not need to contact them.

- As above, if you do contact them, they may ask for evidence that a Licence is no longer required. Do not give them that option - tell them that you are no longer going to be watching TV broadcasts.


BBC/TVL like to make life complicated and difficult for people, they have a knack for it. With a little information, though, you can get what you need from them with the minimum of hassle.

Thanks. Just cancelled by phone. It was straightforward. Money to be paid into bank account used for the DD. However:


Their phone number is not easy to find on their website. In fact, I couldn't find it and had to look elsewhere.


When calling them they take you through, I think it was five, layers of menu options, and none of the options are for a refund or cancellation. They really do not want you to cancel!


What's your view on the fact that they will, apparently, only (begrudgingly) offer you a refund for three months if you don't provide "evidence"?

Cornucopia

GingerBob wrote: »

Thanks. Just cancelled by phone. It was straightforward. Money to be paid into bank account used for the DD.

That's useful to know (that it's a BACS refund) because it avoids shenanigans over the change of address.

Their phone number is not easy to find on their website. In fact, I couldn't find it and had to look elsewhere.

Like a lot of big organisations, they prefer you to do their work for them rather than take up capacity from the Call Centre. Their phone contact details are here: http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/faqs/FAQ11

When calling them they take you through, I think it was five, layers of menu options, and none of the options are for a refund or cancellation. They really do not want you to cancel!

Yes, I'd heard that was the case.

What's your view on the fact that they will, apparently, only (begrudgingly) offer you a refund for three months if you don't provide "evidence"?

They've been getting shirty over "evidence" for cancelling licences for several years now. There really is no basis in law for it (much like a lot of things they do). Personally, I regard them as a pariah organisation and want to have as little to do with them as possible, but I understand that (a) most people don't know what they do, and (b) are attached to their TV broadcasts.

Certainly at the moment, they don't (can't) request evidence if you give the reason for cancelling as ceasing to watch TV broadcasts, so that is what I advise people to do. It's not an offence to lie to them (it isn't really a lie, anyway).

StellaDude

This was my experience from last year.

My wife and I are selling our house so will no longer need a TV licence, I phoned up to cancel in July and told the lady that we are moving abroad and would she cancel for us – she said the licence is in your wife’s name and she would have to phone to cancel. I put my wife on the phone to tell her I had authority to deal with them.

She then said no problem I will get that sorted for you, I asked how much of a refund will we get and she said 6 months, I asked her to pay it into the account it came out of (D/D). She then said we would have to print out the form from the website, fill it in and then send it back to TVL and then we would get the refund (they take the money off you no problem, but try and get a refund).

We filled in the form and sent it off.

We then got a letter back from TVL saying:-

Thank you for your recent application for a refund on your TV licence.
Your application can’t be considered until you stop needing your licence as this would leave you without a licence whilst you continue to watch television. In the meantime we will hold your request.
We will automatically process your application and issue any refund shortly before you no longer require the licence.
Yours sincerely
TV Licensing
Customer Service

They sent this after the date when we no longer needed the licence and it really annoys me when I read it

I was rather annoyed so I rang them up and spoke to Paul.
Paul said it looks like they have made a mistake with the form so write to them and explain and they will sort it out.
I said I have phoned up so you can sort it out for me now and refund us the money – he said he couldn’t do anything and I would have to write, I said put me through to someone who could help and he said he can’t and that if there was a button to press that he could put me through to someone he would. lying ****
Anyway I told him what I thought of him and put the phone down and rang again and spoke to someone else - who was more helpful.

I explained again that we filled the form in, moving abroad and don’t need a licence and could they refund us the money owed and she said no problem.
We then get another letter asking for evidence (final gas/electric/water bill) and without this evidence they could only refund the last unused quarter of the licence.

I phoned again and wrote a snotty letter demanding our money back and final got our refund (they sent a cheque to our then old address).

There has to be an easier way to get your money back.

Cornucopia

Personally, I would not give the a reason of moving abroad. I would always say: no longer watching or recording TV broadcasts. If you want to put them on the back foot, say you want to cancel your Licence because of BBC waste, historic sexual misconduct or another "high level" reason.

It's too easy for them to give people the runaround on the pretext of a mis-stated requirement for proof.

The other option is to go back to annual payment well in advance of cancellation, so that you have control over it when the time comes.