ScooBStu

Recieved a letter tonight off them and the opening sentance was:

I see from our records that in August 2005 you visited Dixons Stores Group and bought or rented a TV, or other equipment capable of receiving TV programme services.

The thing went on about I do not have a license registered here blah blah blah. Its in my girlfriends name.

I want to know is this legal - I did not break any laws and was not suspected of doing so - I also gave no persmission to share my name and address with the company and they did.

Dixons reckon it is part of the TV licensing act that they have to forward the details on - Why? I do not need a license to purchase the equipment only to use it - It could have been a present for all they know.

ScooBStu

Made me feel like Big Brother is watching me!!!!

imlach

Been like that for years.....retailers must pass on your details IIRC.

TV Licensing are very much of the "guilty until proven innocent" mentality. Just the way they work I'm afraid.

imlach

http://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/information/tvdealers.jsp

ScooBStu

Wound me right up and still has - It is not a law that you have to have a tv licence to purchase an item capable of recieving TV channels - Has anyone ever challenged this as I am sure it is in breach of the data protection act.

Complete bollox if you ask me!!!

davegtt

Theyre not saying you need a licence to purchase a TV though are they? Otherwise you wouldnt have been able to purchase it in the first place

Some people dont half get worked up over nothing, just write back and say for all your clerical expertise surely you'd have half a brain to search to see if the property has a TV licence and not the owner of the TV?

imlach

...but you've got a tv licence (or rather, your girlfriend owns one for the house you reside in), so why not just tell them that & move on? Saves a lot of stress all round.

I had a similar situation when the tv licence guy knocked on the door on Boxing Day, but I just told him his database was wrong, showed him the licence, and he was on his way.....1 minutes inconvience. Easy.

rr_ww

Simple answer. Take the equipment back to Dixons. And buy it from another retailer.

They'll soon stop grassing people up.

Apparition

I used to own a lock up shop. Every single year we'd get a TV license reminder...... They eventually they got the message. Plonkers

David Lock

It would really **** me off too if that happened, legal or otherwise.

And I see thay are having a TV ad campaign trying to bully/frighten students about getting a Licence or they're in the Tower without the option. Give them a break I say and use public money to go after the kids who don't insure their cars instead! dl

Brendan Hughes

From this site:

What happens if we don't notify you?

It is an offence not to notify us of every transaction. Failure to do so could result in a fine of up to £1,000 per offence for you, or the store manager employed by your company.

Recently a major retailer was fined a total of £14,400 plus £1,350 costs for failing to notify TV Licensing of television equipment sales and rentals in 3 of its stores.


So if Dixons lose your profit of 100 quid if you take it back, I don't think they'll be crying themselves to sleep at night...

supertouring

Bought TV via web - got letter from TVLicencing as it is in wifes name not mine.

Told them TV licence number by return.

Had to replace TV due to failure 3 months later.

Got letter from TV Licencing again!

Note that they know all addresses and anyone without a licence is a suspect as they assume everyone has a tv. No licence,

imlach

On the other hand, the tv licensing folks do tend to tell a few white lies from time to time....take their ultra-high tech detector vans for example....full of very sophisticated & delicate measuring equipment which can pinpoint a tv signal down to a few millimetres.......aye....true 007 stuff.

.......however, when you look inside one, always puzzled why they need such big vans to carry around a few sheets of paper in the back with unregistered addresses on it

fast bloke

I could never figure out how those vans worked. Must be magic

imlach

Yeah....have a look here http://www.bbc.co.uk/pressoffice/pre...tor_vans.shtml

Really is a lot of <cough> bull

.....Hmm...super advanced cloaking technology which makes them look just like any other white van on the street. Amazing stuff. Must be REALLY expensive all that hi-tech paint etc.


.....Is this a script for Dr Who that got mixed up in the TV Licensing website editors intray?


...woo....state of the art eh? Not like any old car can have "GPS satellite technology to track down an address" these days is it

Wow. Are we exporting this hi-tech expertise?

ScooBStu

I wish I had not rang them and complained and would anyone who gets this to do the following just to wind THEM up.

Do not respond to any of their letters, then should the time come to come round and have a chat - slam the door in their faces telling them to come back with a warrant - They aint allowed in you property otherwise. Also tell them you will take legal action if they enter your property and they are in the wrong. Then wait for the warrant let them in show them the license and job done.

TV licensing people extremely pi$$ed off and probably about £10,000 down trying to prove you are guilty.

imlach

Seems an awful lot of effort to go to just to get your kicks.

Believe me, once they find someone who gets their backs up, they pursue you like nothing else. Work colleague spent best part of a decade proving he had no tv (he didn't), and went to court over it. TV licensing had the best lawyers money could buy and the case got thrown out by the judge just as it began. However, he TRULY did not have a tv, so had a point to prove....

You have a tv, so I'd think you'd have better things to do with your life....

mart360

tv licencing...

they only know one line of attack,

its simple and effective....

can you produce a licence... yes / no...

if no , for whatever reason legitimate or not....

an instant caution and threat of prosecution..

nothing like respecting human rights eh.....

oh and it was like this before we went pc..

there all stricklty by the book,

dont look for understanding or anything else.. the only way to get these gestapi off your back is to have a licence..


M


ps been, there done, it survived, and have the t shirt

M

Col

My mates a lawyer and has never bought a licence in his life, he says if they appear at your door dont let them in, simple as that. As long as they cant see your tv i.e. through the front window as they are knocking on your door! they cant do a thing.

imlach

Here's the case of my ex-colleague....

http://www.marmalade.net/lime/david_guest.html

alcazar

iTrader: (2)

Simple answer, do as a lot of folk now do, pay cash for your TV and give the store a false name and addy, or none at all.

As mentioned in the speeding thread, or similar:

Amount of energy expended by HMG to keep other things legal (eg: car insurance) = very little.

Amount of energy expended by HMG to collect revenue = infinite

Alcazar

imlach

That may be the case for him, but there is evidence that the original poster here has recently purchased a television, so I suspect they could get a warrant based on that piece of information......

boomer

I believe that it costs over £200M per year just to collect the TV licence fee. How many extra hospitals/teachers/police is that?

Why don't they just add 0.000000023% (or whatever) onto general taxation and simply scrap the licence and all it's associated administration and overheads?

Legally, should you stream the BBC via the Interweb, you need a licence (in the UK that is, not anywhere else), but how can they tell? What if you buy a TV in Poland (or other EU country) - do they have to disclose your purchase?

Stone-age solution to a space-age problem - yup, sounds like the BEEB!


mb

imlach

Or just convert the BBC to being a subscription service, but what the evaders don't realise is that the cost to them would go up....

It's odd how the chavs that usually evade the licence fee are quite happy to shell out close on £600/year for Sky.

Butty

iTrader: (2)

I've been here before when my wife bought a telly, rather than me.
Just ignore the letters.
I can't understand why the dumb4ucks can't look at their dbase to see that there is a valid licence at our address, but in my name?

Brendan Hughes

Fantastic. Love all the comments about "what about my human rights?" I thought SN was against all these sandal-wearing lefty tree-huggers?

Confused....

ajm

My previous TV licensing rant:

http://bbs.scoobynet.co.uk/showthread.php?t=409362

We are still ignoring the letters, and still they come!

Scooby-Doo

I had this when I purchased some equipment and the TVL is not in my name. Bin it and wait for the red letter that threatens legal action if you do not buy a TVL. Binned that as well.

Why don't they check the address before wasting money on letters and postage....

GC8

Warrant applications are rare; if theyve evidence for the warrant then they usually prosecute you. The warrant is useless though, as it doesnt allow forcible entry to be made.....

Simon

Simon C

I used to work in retail and as a student had a visit from the TV licensing.

If you use a Tv and video with no airel plugged in ie as a video monitor, you do not need a TV license. That was said by the man that came to do us for no tv license. We did however, show him all the tv's in the house connected only to videos. Never heard from them again.