BBC license hassle

johnweir123

Hi Everybody. 

We decided around 4 or 5 years ago that we didn't want to pay the BBC to have their nonsense broadcast in our house so went down the Netflix, Amazon, YouTube route and it's all been fine for quite a long time. 

Today I got a letter saying they've detected that I have been watching iPlayer and that they're coming round to kick the door in. 

I've not accessed iPlayer myself but there's 4 people in this house so maybe someone else did. 

What I'd like to know is if anyone else has got the same letter and if it's simply a bluff and in fact nobody has used iPlayer?  They would need to have got information about my internet usage from my ISP and I'm not sure if that is allowed or not? 

I'll check with my family later to see if anyone knows anything about iPlayer use. 

la531983

Without a court order they have as much power to enter your house as the milkman does.  

Brie

Very possible to be on a site like this or many others and click on a link that actually takes one to iPlayer.  If done just exit.  

Should any bully boys come round to hassle you or anyone else the line that needs to be taken is "no you can't come in and no we don't watch live tv or use iPlayer."  That's if you bother to open the door to them at all.  

The_Unready

......although if somebody has deliberately been watching iPlayer then just pay up like the rest of us do!

oldernonethewiser

Worth reminding the other people in the property that if they do want to use iPlayer then they will need to get a licence.

Rodders53

Post a copy of the letter text in full (name address redacted / blocked out of course) just to see the exact wording (out of interest) that Capita have used on behalf of BBC.

Seems unlikely they can detect use of iPlayer... they won't know your ISP/IP address(es) nor your mobile phone numbers and IP address(es) to prove such use... and IP addresses are changed re-used frequently enough.

Now an e-mail login account with BBC and/or iPlayer may be slightly different, if that has been used to watch iPlayer.  Especially if same e-mail was used for buying a TV licence in the past.

400ixl

johnweir123 said:

I've not accessed iPlayer myself but there's 4 people in this house so maybe someone else did. 

What I'd like to know is if anyone else has got the same letter and if it's simply a bluff and in fact nobody has used iPlayer?  They would need to have got information about my internet usage from my ISP and I'm not sure if that is allowed or not? 

I'll check with my family later to see if anyone knows anything about iPlayer use. 

Unlikely they got any information from your ISP (but yes it is allowed).

More likely someone has used iPlayer and logged in with old account details which is associated with your address. Whtether that is enough to trigger the letter, or whether that person has to actually stream something live within the app I don't know but would be easy to log such activity.

prowla

You could possibly block iPlayer at your router.

OTOH, they could just be on a fishing expedition saying you're using iPlayer.

400ixl

Blocking it at the router doesn't help if the person is mobile on their phone / tablet.

Cornucopia

The letter (which won't say anything about doors being kicked in) is triggered by matching email addresses between an active iPlayer account and the email address that was previously submitted to them in connection with a Licence or a Licence cancellation.   They can't tell anything meaningful about IP addresses, and not even about street addresses (the iPlayer account could be being accessed from anywhere).

Simply delete the iPlayer account and all will be well.   If you need an account for BBC Sounds then use a different email address.

It's otherwise something of a fishing and scaring exercise on their part.   As above, they have no immediate power of entry, and in the unlikely event that they turn up after one letter, you do not have to speak with them.

johnweir123

Here is a scan of the letter.  It seems to me a lot like they are being dishonest in a number of the ways they are phrasing things.  For instance the suggestion that buying a TV License will make all this go away.  

I have spoken to my wife and she has not watched iPlayer.  We use ROKU devices (two of them) and they are pre-installed with the iPlayer app which cannot be removed (last time I checked was a couple of years ago). 

So my ideal outcome would be to get them to leave us in peace, not have to fork out for a license and if they genuinely have some evidence that we've mistakenly or unknowingly watched iPlayer then for us to apologise and we'll continue as we are without having to pay any fine or whatever.