enjay Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 I've just had a letter from the TV Licensing people saying "we have recently been advised that you bought television receiving equipment in June 2007 from [insert name of supplier]. However we have no record of a TV Licence in your name at the above address". Aside the fact that the school does have a licence, how come they could get hold of this information? Are suppliers really allowed to go telling third parties about my purchases with them? I've had a quick read of their terms of sale, and don't notice anything to that effect. An even weirder thing about all this is that I actually didn't buy any TV receiving equipment! The closest purchase I made in June was a graphics card with "TV out"...
SpuffMonkey Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 I think retailers are obliged by law to tell the licensing people about purchases of receiving equipment.
rush_tech Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 Retailers aave to tell them when you purchase any thing that can recieve a TV signal. I got one when I got a USB Freeview Dongle
TechMonkey Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 TV licensing also aren't very bright about matching addresses and names up, they only seem to go by exact full anme to address matches. Have heard of a wife buying a TV but the license is in the husbands name, address the same and snotty letters started pouring in. Didn't seem to matter that surnames were the same at teh same address.
localzuk Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 As the others have said, retailers are legally required to log details of all tv sales and forward them to the TVL people within 28 days. This includes: * TVs * VCRs * DVD recorders * Set-top boxes * PCs with broadcast (TV) cards * TV cards It also means that if you sell your tv to someone second hand, you have to inform the TVL people also...
enjay Posted July 9, 2007 Author Posted July 9, 2007 Okay, so I guess it is outside of their published Ts&Cs if it is national law. I'm still a little confused though, since I didn't actually buy anything capable of receiving a signal! I've passed the letter on to our Bursar to clear up - it seems more like his domain than mine :-)
Joedetic Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 Have any of your members of staff bought a TV for use in school or in their office....or maybe even one of the kids / staff doesnt have a TV license at home but wanted to buy one so stuck the school's address down! The rule is though, as long as you're not using the device to recieve broadcast programming then you're allowed to have one without a license. I know because i was investigated AND visited by the tv licensing folks. They cycle through your channels to see if you can recieve any TV. All they got was static so I was fine (That and i'd already declared that the TV was only being used for playback of non-broadcast media.)
bishopsgarthstockton Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 The same sort of thing happened to me last year when i baught a freeview box for my girlfriend's palace. Had to give my name and address to some butch Argos woman.
enjay Posted July 9, 2007 Author Posted July 9, 2007 @Joedetic - it quotes my name, the supplier's name and the month in which it was purchased; I guess if what Localzuk says is true, i.e. PCs with broadcast cards, then it will apply to the graphics card with TV out which I bought in the stated month. I'm not receiving TV on my PC (sadly!) but would be covered by the school's TV licence even if I was. It's poor form from the TVL just to cross-reference my name against the address, and not look at the address itself.
mrforgetful Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 The rule is though, as long as you're not using the device to recieve broadcast programming then you're allowed to have one without a license. I know because i was investigated AND visited by the tv licensing folks. They cycle through your channels to see if you can recieve any TV. All they got was static so I was fine (That and i'd already declared that the TV was only being used for playback of non-broadcast media.) Interesting, I was always under the impression if you had equipment capable of receiving a broadcast you had to have a license inspite of if you used the functionality or not. Also don't they include the Radio license in the TV license now? But if you don't have a TV but do have a radio what do you pay? I totally disagree with the license anyway and saved about £80 last year from not having one. Bought one when I got a warning letter.
enjay Posted July 9, 2007 Author Posted July 9, 2007 @MrForgetful - it depends how you define 'capable of receiving a broadcast'; for example a TV connected solely to a DVD player and nowhere near an aerial is acceptable (although you will still get aggressive letters from the TVL because they assume that everyone has a TV, so send nasty letters to any address which doesn't have a licence).
localzuk Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 @mrfogetful - nope, you definitely don't have to have one if you don't use your equipment to receive broadcast signals. You have to have it set up to do so in order to need a license. I have also been investigated and visited over my old address having a tv but only for dvd's and gamecube. The house didn't have an aerial, and there was none plugged in to the tv. I don't believe you have to have a license to receive radio any more.
mrforgetful Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 @NickJones - I thought they said if say, the TV has a tuner, then you need a license. I thought the only way not to have a license was to only have monitors (so no tuner) and I guess a DVD player/games console/video player (not recorder). Anything else with a tuner you had to license.
mrforgetful Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 no I found it you're correct: What if I only use a TV to watch videos/DVDs/as a monitor for my games console? Do I still need a licence? - You need to notify us in writing that this is the case and one of our Enforcement Officers may need to visit you to confirm that you do not need a licence. Please write to us including your name, address and the reason you believe that you don't need a licence at: TV Licensing Bristol BS98 1TL
Joedetic Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 Well. Due to the fact that when my year moved into the University Halls of residence they stopped the communal TV license so we all had to get one but I, and a LOT of students, are far too cheap and there are such wonderful things as bit torrent for the few decent programs on the tv. It's understandable if you're buying a tuner device like a freeview box that they would want your name and address because that's all it does...recieve broadcasts. With regards to radio licenses i'm not sure about that because people without tv licenses can have cars...and cars generally have radios. I'd like to see the blokes from TV licensing run out onto the A34 with a clipboard trying to get people to stop so he can give them a fine. I suppose the BBC have to get their funding from somewhere but it's just daft when they're introducing stupid rules like if it's a property with tvs in rooms with locked doors then it needs to have a separate license for each room that someone is living in.
CHR1S Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 What happens if I dont watch BBC? Isnt the licence only for BBC stations or is that one of those myths?
Joedetic Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 Oh.....and I had an arial socket connected to a community antenna that the whole of the halls of residence had access to. My tv was only about 4' away from the socket, if that. They didnt seem to care, but what they didnt do was check my PC for a tuner card (not that it has one). I think you have to have the license for the other stations because they all use the same antennas so part of the licensing goes to maintaining the antennas (I /think/)
mrforgetful Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 What happens if I dont watch BBC? Isnt the licence only for BBC stations or is that one of those myths? According to the licensing site it's if it's anything operated by a UK company or using UK based broadcast equipment so Cable and Sky are not excluded. Also don't forget Channel 4 receives funding from the License Fee.
localzuk Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 The license is for any viewing of tv transmitted from anywhere within or outside the UK - regardless of whether it is the BBC or not. A good explanation is available here: http://www.tvlicensing.biz/info_on_tvlicensing/index.htm
gwendes Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 You cannot just tune out the channels that receive funding from the license... hell, it's cheap enough anyway.
localzuk Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 Huh? £135 is not cheap! That is a very large chunk of money to people who have low income and large outgoings.
Guest Guest Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 Huh? £135 is not cheap! That is a very large chunk of money to people who have low income and large outgoings. And £135 is quite alot for a handfull of episodes of TopGear! Apart from when i stick the weather on TG is all i ever watch on terrestrial. They should go PayPV and see how much money they make...
localzuk Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 Exactly! The only things I watch on tv are top gear, dr who and two pints. Everything else is generally rubbish. I can buy the box sets for less than that.
witch Posted July 9, 2007 Posted July 9, 2007 techmonkey: the exact same thing happened to me - I bought the TV but the licence is in my husband's name - I couldn't believe that they don't search by address, and I pushed it until the 3rd or 4th nasty letter before giving in. If the house is registered as a one family residence, (on the census) I would have thought that the licence should be done by address, not name. I was really furious that I was automatically being accused of something I had not done - the tone of the letter was most definitely accusatory, and could have really scared someone less bolshie than me!
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