David_Dickson

I have just received the renewal for my tv licence.

"just pay it you tight-***!" I hear you all say.....

The problem is, I genuinely dont watch tv. I have a decent tv but only use it to watch DVD`s etc. The flat has an aerial, but the signal is rubbish, the picture unwatchable so the tv is located in a corner where the aerial lead doesnt reach to. Currently I have a wee battery powered aerial booster thing that sits on top of the tv to get a signal.

TV programs annoy and irritate me, there is never anything on that catches my attention, so i just dont watch it. The only things I have watched recently are the odd episode of Top Gear, but I could happily live without that. I would willingly get rid of the aerial thing I have.

The problem is, if I dont renew the licence, they are going to be constantly bothering me to renew it and will probaly get quite threatening about it all.
Should i pay the licence just because I own a television?

I have heard of people similar to me who de-tune all the channels on tv and vcr and they say this is good enough for the licence inspectors. I have also heard of people buying a black-and-white tv licence, which is seemingly dirt cheap, just to get the licencing people off their backs.

Anyone got any views?

penfold118

I dont think you have to let them into your house ( T.V. licence inspectors ), un-less they have a warrent....? I maybe be wrong tho !!!!

Spring Heeled Jack

I think that being in posession of *any* device capable of receiving a signal requires that it be licensed. Be it TV, VCR, etc. Whether or not it is tuned correctly or plugged in is irrelevant.

mart360

you cant win mate,,

when sky people came out, people were using this argument, the good ol beeb, faced with loosiing revenue had the law changed,

the law as it stands covers any equipment capable of recieving broadcast media.

if you use a standard dvd player guilty it has a tuner circuit built in
if you use a standard video recorder guilty it has a tuner built in

i used the same argument when i watched vids only on a monitor back in the 80,s.. i still got reported...

they use the following tack...

tv licensing
good evening sir, i,m from the tv licencing authority, our records show you have not renewed your current tv licence...

me.

no i have tried to renew it but the post office wouldnt do it i have had to send it to you guys for renewal.. ( despite a letter from tv licencing stating i must do it at a post office)

tvl
can you produce your current tv licence

me

no ... as i explained


tvl.
Sir, under statute xxx yyy i must caution you for failure to produce a valid tv licence when requested by an authorised person, thefore anything you say ....etc WTF

they then ask seriously loaded questions to make you appear to be a crim!!!

such as

would it be fair to say you have recieved programmes without a valid licence..

(back to point 1 as you have a vid recorder ) yes .

what was the quality of the pictures recieved...

i got the bag on this one... crap i replied... i dont have an exterior ariel, so its full of snow and crap.. that threw her...

they left it at it would be pased on to her superiors who would review the case and decide whether to procede with a prosecution..

two points to be aware of.

you dont have to have the equipment on.. she grabbed me as i walked up the drive...

they dont listed to valid evidence provided, re the licence being sent off with oficial recipts to prove it...



and the real ******.... the next day the renewd licence landed on the mat..



Mart

penfold118

I also listen to James Whale on Talksport, think its 1053 am on the radio but I have a DAB radio so not 100% sure, he is always going on about the T.V licence and the ways to get around it if you dont use your T.V. for BBC ;-)

douglasb

Although the B&W licence is cheaper, it isn't exactly dirt cheap at £40.50. I suspect that if you've had a colour licence and suddenly go for B&W, you'll be just as much a target for the inspectors as if you had no licence.

As Spring Heeled Jack has said, if you are in posession of a TV/VCR/DVD recorder/PC TV card capable of receiving TV signals, you need a licence.

john_s

iTrader: (1)

I don't think you need a license for a device used soley as a monitor - eg for displaying computer images or dvd playback.

A quick googling turns up their website, which has the following:

http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/information/#link1

As you say, de-tune the TV and video, lose the signal amplifier and perhaps even cut back the aerial lead, so if called on, you could demonstrate to an inspector that you have no ability to receive or record TV signals.

John.

mart360

dosent work,

the equipment is !!! capable of recieving broadcast transmissions,
the fact that you disabled it is proof to them, that you are evading the licence ... there argument is you must prove that you or a n other cannot put it back to a working state. as they will say if you did it you can undo it..

been there, tried it, dont work!!!

its the provo arm of N L what do you expect!!


Mart

Jap2Scrap

Get rid of everything capable of receiving a broadcast signal and use a large plasma monitor hooked to a pc to watch the odd dvd.

Be aware though, if you don't have a tv licence you'll need a licence for your car radio.

MattN

just buy a plasma display screen, job done.

mart360

and what do you use to feed the signals...

pc?? tuner card guilty

video recorder guilty

standalone dvd player guilty

if i recall, you can get done for streaming web radio, if you dont have a tv licence

Mart

you wont beat em!!!

LOL

scoobyster

A mate in uni halls (2 years ago) phoned to ask about having a TV solely for DVDs, they said he didn't need a licence if it didn't have an aerial. I'd ask for that in writing if I were you though.

djuk

How about a plasma panel with a satellite box integrated into a hollow wall and the dish located in a secluded spot at the end of the garden?

scoobyster

You don't need a licence for radios anymore btw, I'm pretty certain of that.

Jap2Scrap

You sure? Until recently you definitely had to licence the most advanced piece of receiving equipment you owned and then the less advanced were covered, up to a certain number. Could have changed I suppose but I'd check that out.

MattN

Mart360, I have a plasma screen and use the dvd on my PC (no tuner on the card). They were round last week and didn't fine me.

David Lock

My daughter was in similar situation in uni hall of residence with no TV socket and indoor aerial that didn't pick up signal (uses TV for DVDs etc). I spoke to Licence people who said she didn't need licence. They then wrote to me suggesting she disable TV and that inspector would be calling to see me! I wrote back saying that suggesting a teenage girl starts messing about with an electrical item seems dangerous advice aand asked why they were sending an inspector to see me. Never had a reply. Stuff 'em. DL

Ian_S

as said, large plasma/some form of pc display equipment, use a dvd player in pc, and download the top gear episodes off the net the next day if thats the only tv you watch, top gear is ripped and on the net within 24hrs for the americans who watch it a lot

Apparition

But you admit you DO watch Top Gear.... so You watch TV !

David_Dickson

i admit i DID watch top gear, but if I dont renew the licence (it doesnt run out till end of the month) I would happily stop watching it.

john_s

iTrader: (1)

Also found on the TVtax website's FAQ section....

John

mart360

and they get you for recieving transmissions that you are not licenced to recieve.... guilty



Mart

scoobyster

Yep I'm sure it said in the blurb they bombarded us with in uni halls that radios don't need a licence any more.

On days in halls when there were rumours of tv licence inspectors visiting, the one guy on our corridor who actually had a licence suddenly aquired several spare TVs for his room

Jerome

Although I successfully avoided paying for a TV licence for over 10 years, if I moved back to the UK, I would happily pay the licence fee for the quality of programming and lack of adverts.

If you have a TV licence and then don't renew it, TVL will make a big nuisance of themselves. They have lots of sneaky tactics to try and catch you out. I've known of inspectors climbing up ladders to look through bedrooms windows to try and catch people. They do not accept that people with a telly suddenly stop watching it and get rid of it.

Note that they have no rights of entry. AFAIK, they cannot get a warrant to enter premises. They also use the tactic of bringing police officers with them to scare people into confessing or letting them in. In an effort to gain entry, they often give residents the impression that they have (or will get) a warrant. The inspectors normally bullsh1t the police saying they expect violence (or some other rubbish) to get them to attend. If you have guests or a babysitter, make sure they do not let the inspectors in either. It is an offence to watch an unlicenced TV, even if you don't live there. Ignorance (of the a lack of a licence) is no excuse.

I used to work with a guy who really didn't have a TV. He eventually bought a licence for a TV he didn't have, because he got fed up with the hassle.

Iwan

2 blokes at my work never used to have TVs. One is late 30's and has recently conceded due to his kids clamouring, the other is younger and doesn't have kids so still isn't bothered about having one.

No idea how much grief they get from the licencing bods, but i think fair play if they genuinely have no need for one and don't have any equipment capable of recieving

The only thing i watch is the news and DVDs, the news you can get streamed off the net these days for free. It can't be illegal to recieve it otherwise you'd be breaking the law in every other country around the world if you watched BBC news 24 (etc.) without a UK licence.

My TV is only a year or so old, but when it breaks i'll seriously consider not bothering with another. I've got a widescreen iMac which i can watch my DVDs on, and can either read the news off the net or stream it.

StickyMicky

when i move into my own place i would consider binning the tv as wellits very rarely used

i also watch most of my stuff on the pc monitor, i did hear that you could change to a black and white licence to get you off there lists (was ages ago) but i dont see why thats even remotley fair as you still receave the coloured broadcasting??

its all a load of bollocks !!

Lum

What's all this I keep reading here about standalone DVD players having a TV Tuner built in?
My Pioneer 525 doesn't and I have only ever seen one DVD player that does, and that was only because it was a combo DVD and VCR.
VCRs have a tuner so they can record programmes, DVD players don't need to do this, so a DVD player and a Plasma screen would be fine.

Now if anyone knows how to disable the tuner on my Toshiba 48WH08B and make it fire up in RGB mode by default, they would make me very happy.

hawkthescoobslayer

My wife once got shouted at by a TV licence inspector saying they would sue us for this, take us to court for that blah blah blah. It all started when we bought the house next to ours to use for business purposes. They kept send ing letters to my HOME asking for payment for the house we'd bought. I kept saying I didn't have a tv they said yes you do. I told them to get lost I didn't like being called a liar...anways to cut a long story short it was with great glee when they turned us with 3 yes 3 vans and a policeman. I said wait one second I'd like JUST the policeman to enter my house and check..

said policeman then entered house and came back out smiling to tell the licence people the house was EMPTY and in the midst of renevation

1 for the good guys

paul

john_s

iTrader: (1)

ISTR there was a test case about this a few years ago. I think it was held that you need a TV licence if you watch BBC video streams across the net only if you're watching it in the UK. Residents of other countries don't need to.

Best find an anonymous proxy in another country if you don't want to pay up. :P

John.