TV Licence article Discussion

Watchkeeper

The BBC has said it only ever uses "detector van evidence" to obtain a search warrant. The BBC lies. It can never take anyone to court on the strength of it because a) it does not exist, and b) that evidence, if it did exist, would have to be examined in open court and be shown up for the myth that it is.

Homer_home

FreeBear said:

wendineill said:  I’m thinking about the detector vans sitting outside the building picking up activity on the other’s tv’s on the communal arial?

Back in the days of valve TVs, it was possible to detect electrical radiation (or noise) that those things kicked out. Modern TVs, especially the flat screen models, emit so little radiation, that they are nigh on impossible to detect. As much of the noise is digital, it is next to impossible to analyse in realtime what the signal is. In short, detector vans in today's age do not work, and I doubt they even exist outside TVL fiction.

Just pull the TV aerial cable out from the wall socket and from the back of the TV. Detune the TV, and ignore any letters coming from TVL - They will send one a month, always with a Darlington return address - I don't even bother to open the ones they send to me.

TV detector vans have never existed , will never exist and are a myth made up by the BBC to scare people into getting a TV licence

In order to locate a radio signal you would need to triangulate the position by using at least 3 fixed points , one fixed point "a van" is not enough , also this only works on the X axis bring the y axis into play "a block of flats" and locating the signal is much much harder 

Does anybody remember the BBC advert with the guy wearing headphones and a Walkman ? Inferring that's all they needed? 

The way the BBC works is much simpler , they simply have a list of all registered addresses in the UK and those addresses that don't have a TV licence they fire out a letter to them 

Nick_C

The vans existed (and possibly still do?) but they never detected anything.

staffsuk

Has anyone, ever, been found guilty in court of illegally viewing TV without a licence, purely from 'evidence' gathered by a TV 'detector' van?
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/08/bbc-tv-licence-vans-wi-fi-snooping-analysis/

Homer_home

staffsuk said:

Has anyone, ever, been found guilty in court of illegally viewing TV without a licence, purely from 'evidence' gathered by a TV 'detector' van?
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/08/bbc-tv-licence-vans-wi-fi-snooping-analysis/

Given that TV detector vans don't exist - none 

Don't believe everything you read 

Ego_Shredder

staffsuk said:

Has anyone, ever, been found guilty in court of illegally viewing TV without a licence, purely from 'evidence' gathered by a TV 'detector' van?
https://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2016/08/bbc-tv-licence-vans-wi-fi-snooping-analysis/

Never heard of a van turning up, but I do have a friend who back in the mid-1990s who told me he was caught watching colour TV on a B/W licence and was fined or something.  This was on a tiny backstreet in a village, and the TV was upstairs out of view.  Bit silly that because it was close to that time he started computer programming work, and by the following year had bought a brand new Honda Prelude coupe sports car for approx £26,000.  He was driving a humble Ford Escort 1.3L when he was fined for the TV thing.  He now earns probably £100,000+ a year because he was already on half that in the 1990s / 2000s.

Descrabled

I used to work adjacent to a TV detector van depot. I had a great view of these vehicles 15 to 20 years ago and they were completely empty.

We have not watched TV for at least 20 years and have had only 2 visits from Capita salesmen; our identity given as "not today, thank you".

Ms Descrabled sent them a form two decades ago and upon returning from holiday we found a note in our postbox saying they had been to check and that they "would be back."

I notice that the threatening letters have restarted again. Slightly different style but nonetheless unacceptable.

JIL

We are living between two properties at the moment. We have one tv licence. We only watch tv in house number one, we dont ever watch tv in house number 2, although it's set up with virgin tv which happened two weeks ago when broadband was installed
.As soon as house number 2 is finished, this will be our permanent home and I will change address  and move the big tv to the property. I have written to explain the situation. However it hasnt stopped the dear occupier threatening letters to house number 2. 
Numerous emails and all I have back is please tell us when you move. However it does not stop the letters which sends the husband into a panic. Do I need to do anything else?

FreeBear

JIL said: However it hasnt stopped the dear occupier threatening letters to house number 2. 
 it does not stop the letters which sends the husband into a panic. Do I need to do anything else?

Learn to recognise the return address. When one turns up in the letterbox, bin it unopened - That is pretty much all I do. Saves on the stress of reading their diatribes.

Cornucopia

JIL said:

We are living between two properties at the moment. We have one tv licence. We only watch tv in house number one, we dont ever watch tv in house number 2, although it's set up with virgin tv which happened two weeks ago when broadband was installed
.As soon as house number 2 is finished, this will be our permanent home and I will change address  and move the big tv to the property. I have written to explain the situation. However it hasnt stopped the dear occupier threatening letters to house number 2. 
Numerous emails and all I have back is please tell us when you move. However it does not stop the letters which sends the husband into a panic. Do I need to do anything else?

Presumably somewhere in their procedures is a note not to stop letters when the householder notifies of a temporary situation.

I think the underlying issue is not telling them what they want to hear.   I would phone them back and tell them that you do not watch or record TV, or watch iPlayer at House 2, and will buy a Licence if that changes.  Don't go into the reasons.  That should stop the letters.   If it doesn't, then make a complaint.