TV Licence article Discussion

Kiran

If you've told them once by phone and you're still getting letters send them a letter back stating that you are "revoking their implied right of entry" which means any TVL inspector is trespasing as soon as they set foot on your property. Also tell them that any further letters will be treated as harrasment and you will betaking legal action for the distress caused!

This is what I did when my Mum kept getting letters saying my recently decesed Dad would be prosecuted for not having a TVL dispite there being one at the property

TobiasFunke

Along with phone and Broadband, I have a free Television package from my provider - however, we don't actually use the TV to watch broadcasts, all of our programmes are viewed online.

My understanding is that as a result of this, I wouldn't require a licence.

However, having just spent money on a new TV I'm thinking of hooking up the Subscription TV Equipment, and if not the new TV has Freeview built in.

My question is, if I get in touch with TVL in early April, would I be subject to having to pay off the full year in the first 6 months, then going to normal monthly payments?

If so, when exactly is the window you can sign up just to pay the normal monthly fees straight away? Or is the system rigged so you can't actually do this?

I'm tempted to follow an earlier poster's advice and if I do have to make double payments for 6 months, then do this and cancel my DD until 6 months later. (To be honest, the hassle of getting a cashback credit card as the main article suggests makes the amount I'd save neglible for me, compared to just using DD in this way.)

Tiggers

I purchased my daughters TV license and paid by monthly direct debit, They took my payment details and insisted the license be sent straight to my daughter 200 miles away. I called at the end of Sept and stated that she would not be at uni until something like around the 4th Oct. They sent license to her, did not know that they had backdated this to the beggning of Sept and not begging of Oct until I tried to get a refund. They insisted nothing can or would be done in respect of their mistake and we did not tell them straight away. Did not occur to me that they would do this! Now out of pocket for the last 3 months she did not need it. Not only that when I asked for the retuen of the license, they would not send to our home address but to the uni where my daughter had left!

winston_1

emmablight wrote: »

I Pay For My Licence By Direct Debit, My First 6 Months Were Double And Then Went Down. I Am Therefore 6 Months Ahead. I Have Moved House 3 Times Since Setting This Up And Each Time My Licence Has Just Been Transfered. I Asked Tv Licence When I Get Back The 6 Months They Are ''looking After'' For Me And They Said Either When I Cancel My Licence( Imposible As Is Illegal) Or When I Qualify For A Free One (when I'm 65) 38 Years Away. Can Anyone Work Out How Much Interest Bbc Are Earning On My 6 Month License For 38 Years And How Much I Am Losing Out On. Will I Even Remember In 38 Years That I Have Already Overpaid, Who Knows. But The Bbc Certainly Seem To Know What They Are Doing!!

This one is easy. Cancel your direct debit NOW. You will still be licenced until you current licence expires and probably have some money in their kitty which you can ask for back. When your licence expires set up a new DD and once again cancel after 6 months when you have paid for a years licence. Repeat this process every year.

Flight

I am in the Forces and have a TV licence for the room I have on base where I spend the majority of time and watch tv. However, I have just bought a house and want to purchase a tv for that property too, and will spend about 1 weekend 3 there and the rest of the time on base. No-one else lives in the house and I physically cannot watch both tvs at the same time. Do I need to purchase a second licence? If so what if I keep changing my details each weekend I am staying at my house. Surely it cannot be fair that I must pay nearly £300 a year for a licence when a family of 4+ with a whole houseful of tvs will pay for 1 licence.

Fizzii

Hi Flight,

This is what the TV licensing website says about your situation. It looks like you're going to be stuck paying for two licenses. However, my advice would be to NOT buy one for your house and just stick to watching DVDs/BBC Iplayer/4OD etc on those weekends when you are home. As long as you are not watching anything LIVE then it is not illegal to do so.

Fizz

Armed forces personnel

You need to be covered by a valid TV Licence if you watch or record television programmes as they're being shown on TV in Ministry of Defence (MOD) accommodation, on or off base. This includes the use of devices such as a TV, computer, mobile phone or any other device.
Your home TV Licence doesn’t cover you while you're living on base. Please check which areas are covered below to ensure you’re correctly licensed.
The MOD fully supports our efforts to administer TV Licensing legislation and our Enforcement Officers pay regular visits to MOD bases.
It costs £145.50 for colour and £49.00 for a black and white TV Licence.

Your base’s TV Licence won’t cover Your base’s TV Licence won’t cover

Service family or single living accommodation You need to be licensed separately. Multi-occupancy room You only need one TV Licence to cover all TV sets in each room. If you’re posted to another location in the UK You need to let us know so that we can transfer your TV Licence to your new address. You don’t need a TV Licence if:

You’re posted overseas You can claim a refund for every three consecutive months that you don't use your TV Licence. This is provided that you don’t need to watch or record TV again in the UK before it expires.
You have up to two years from the expiry date of your TV Licence to claim your refund.

You watch TV in communal areas In an MOD unit or accommodation area that is covered by its own TV Licence. This does not include communal areas within messes, clubs or third party organisations. You're covered by another TV Licence You have a valid TV Licence for another home, and you only watch TV when on service using a device that’s powered solely by its own internal batteries, and is not installed (i.e. it is not connected to an aerial or plugged it into the mains).
You're not stationed in the UK You’re stationed abroad and only watch pre-recorded TV from home.

Fizzii

I have a question - wondered if anyone knew the answer as I have looked everywhere! :question:

My husband and I decided not to renew our TV license when it expired at the end of October last year. We wrote to TV licensing to explain that we were not going to be watching any LIVE broadcasts on any device. We use the TV to watch DVDs and I occasionally will watch something on BBC Iplayer or 4OD but only after it has been broadcast. Our TV is not currently connected to the external aerial.

So... my husband is desperate to watch the world cup live. So we are going to buy a TV license.

If I were to buy it today (25th May) - would I be paying for a whole month (May) that I have not used? I seem to remember that the TVLA like to make the license expire at the end of the month regardless of when you have bought it? So would it expire at the end of May 2011?

We can hang on until the 1st June, but I was just interested to know!

Thanks
Fizz :rotfl:

Andy_L

or just go down the pub & watch it :-)

leo~saphira

ooooh, had a nice red letter today (3rd June) - letter is dated 22nd May 2010 goes like this:

"If we don't hear from you in seven days, a priority visit will be scheduled"

Why? going to give me some money - hahaha.. scheduled with whom? Me? not a chance - my diary is pretty much full and if these idoits turn up on my doorstep it won't be a nice exchange of words. Idoits..

Anyway, I wish the BBC (TVL - cap what ever) get their information right, as in that letter there is a paragraph which is giving out false/confusing information

Remember, even if you do not have a TV, under the Communications Act 2003, you still need to be covered by a licence if you use any other decive. This includes computers, mobile phones, games consoles, digital boxes and DVD/VHS recorded

No you don't! - as it says on their own website:
http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one/?WT.mc_id=r038#link1

You need to be covered by a valid TV Licence if you watch or record TV as it's being broadcasted.

What they are saying, if I have a mobile or laptop I must have a license - give over (rolls eyes)

Why do they do it? again, another letter for the recycling bin, another waste of their time and my time, as I said to them when I cancelled my license - I do not watch TV as its broadcasted - I watch DVD's play games, use pc... cook, clean, gardening, allotment - I don't have time to watch the dumb stuff that is broadcasted at times.

Urrghhh!

moonrakerz

leo~saphira wrote: »

Remember, even if you do not have a TV, under the Communications Act 2003, you still need to be covered by a licence if you use any other decive. This includes computers, mobile phones, games consoles, digital boxes and DVD/VHS recorded

If this statement was not qualified with: "to watch or record TV as it is being broadcast" or "may" or "might" or similar "weasel words" - send it to your MP !