T.V. Licensing
Discussion
daz3210 said:
Seen as you pretty much need an decent outside aerial or sat dish these days to receive TV, is it not enough for them to stand outside and look for the presence of such?
Certainly I know of no one who can receive digital without these things.
I can and do with no problems. A small indoor aerial works fine for meCertainly I know of no one who can receive digital without these things.
BB
Is there any way at all of avoiding the licence fee, but watching say sky etc?
It seems entirely unfair to me that you have to pay for something that you don't want/don't receive.
Almost like having to pay water rates when there is no water to be supplied (i.e. as in when droughts occur)
It seems entirely unfair to me that you have to pay for something that you don't want/don't receive.
Almost like having to pay water rates when there is no water to be supplied (i.e. as in when droughts occur)
daz3210 said:
Is there any way at all of avoiding the licence fee, but watching say sky etc?
It seems entirely unfair to me that you have to pay for something that you don't want/don't receive.
Almost like having to pay water rates when there is no water to be supplied (i.e. as in when droughts occur)
It's called a 'TV Licence' for a reason, rather than 'BBC Licence', even though 100% of the money goes to the BBC (minus Crapita's cut for administering the scheme).It seems entirely unfair to me that you have to pay for something that you don't want/don't receive.
Almost like having to pay water rates when there is no water to be supplied (i.e. as in when droughts occur)
What they SHOULD do is make BBC channels opt-in (easy to do now it's all gone digital); if you opt out, you shouldn't have to pay the BBC (especially as 95% of the output is utter drivel). They'll never make the BBC subscription though as they would lost fortunes as people decided that, actually, they can do without it thankyouverymuch.
Last I heard they get about £3.2bn a year in licence fees.
Funk said:
It's called a 'TV Licence' for a reason, rather than 'BBC Licence', even though 100% of the money goes to the BBC (minus Crapita's cut for administering the scheme).
What they SHOULD do is make BBC channels opt-in (easy to do now it's all gone digital); if you opt out, you shouldn't have to pay the BBC (especially as 95% of the output is utter drivel). They'll never make the BBC subscription though as they would lost fortunes as people decided that, actually, they can do without it thankyouverymuch.
Last I heard they get about £3.2bn a year in licence fees.
Yes, the TV licence is a tax, rather than a charge for access like a Sky subscription. A bit like the difference between road tax and paying to use a toll road. The major difference is that the income from the TV licence is ring-fenced to fund the BBC rather than going into the general pot of taxation. Imagine how well looked after the road system would be if a similar system operated with road tax.What they SHOULD do is make BBC channels opt-in (easy to do now it's all gone digital); if you opt out, you shouldn't have to pay the BBC (especially as 95% of the output is utter drivel). They'll never make the BBC subscription though as they would lost fortunes as people decided that, actually, they can do without it thankyouverymuch.
Last I heard they get about £3.2bn a year in licence fees.
Wax1234 said:
I got a Plasma from Asda last month, expected to get asked my address but didn't!
As far as I'm aware Asda are in the wrong then but not your problem!If asked you could always give your postcode as SW1A 2AA and when asked which number reply 10
In fact you can give any address because they never ask for proof - I brought a new TV last year, my Son collected it and gave a random address!
Not that it helps much....
New Zealand got rid of the Television Licence about fifteen years ago.
However there was a major difference, it was a tax (but called a fee). In theory, if you couldn't get a TV signal, but had a telly you could apply for an exemption - but nobody had ever actually had an exemption.
So there was a campaign of civil disobedience - and it ended up with over 10% of the tax take being used to collect and enforce it. (The tax was actually payable by the owner, multiple tellys meant multiple bills).
The government caved in and got rid of it (and then raised road tax to compensate).
NZ telly is probably as bad as the US for the length and number of adverts.
New Zealand got rid of the Television Licence about fifteen years ago.
However there was a major difference, it was a tax (but called a fee). In theory, if you couldn't get a TV signal, but had a telly you could apply for an exemption - but nobody had ever actually had an exemption.
So there was a campaign of civil disobedience - and it ended up with over 10% of the tax take being used to collect and enforce it. (The tax was actually payable by the owner, multiple tellys meant multiple bills).
The government caved in and got rid of it (and then raised road tax to compensate).
NZ telly is probably as bad as the US for the length and number of adverts.
BBC run a load of annoying adverts too but doubletalk means they call them 'trailers'. I opt out of TV for a few months per year and let my licence lapse for that period and have successfully encouraged others to do likewise. Paying cash for your licence at a paypoint enables you to do this and by using a nondeplume you know which letters are from TVL so can just bin them without opening.
Works well for me and others plus you can decide how much per annum you are prepared to pay for the service.
Even opting out for just one month represents almost 10% off what they get.
SM
Works well for me and others plus you can decide how much per annum you are prepared to pay for the service.
Even opting out for just one month represents almost 10% off what they get.
SM
Comments about the so called Detector Vans made me remember the old scare mongering ads in the 70's
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NmdUcmLFkw&fea...
"they're watching columbo" duh duh DUHHHHHHHH, busted!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8NmdUcmLFkw&fea...
"they're watching columbo" duh duh DUHHHHHHHH, busted!
CommanderJameson said:
It's very simple, I think.
If you don't want to pay the licence fee: Don't. It's completely legal to not pay.
But don't then go around watching BBC programmes.
Also please shut up about that thing you don't want, aren't paying for, and don't watch.
Actually you're not allowed to watch ANY output at all without a licence. The fact that 100% of the revenue goes to the BBC is besides the point. You're paying a tax to be allowed to receive live broadcasts, not just BBC channels. That's where I think it's a complete farce; people should be given the option to not receive BBC channels and be allowed to watch commercial output for free (paid for, as it is, by on-screen advertising or in the case of Sky, an additional monthly subscription).If you don't want to pay the licence fee: Don't. It's completely legal to not pay.
But don't then go around watching BBC programmes.
Also please shut up about that thing you don't want, aren't paying for, and don't watch.
If you never wanted to watch a single BBC programme, you'd still have to pay to fund them just to be able to watch ITV, C4 and Sky.
I've ditched Sky HD and my licence fee and now watch everything via catchup or download.
The UK licence fee is a bargain for the programming you get - as I tried to point out in my previous post, it's a lot worse in most other countries. Most of the primetime telly here in Germany is remakes or versions of off-peak UK shows; in fact, like our music, telly programmes are one of our best exports and it should make us all proud. Instead, us Brits wallow in self-pity whilst reading the Daily Mail.
Here in Germany, although they're far behind the UK in many many things, far more than most Brits would think, they exude self-confidence and self-belief. Perhaps we should learn to be a bit more confident ourselves.
Here in Germany, although they're far behind the UK in many many things, far more than most Brits would think, they exude self-confidence and self-belief. Perhaps we should learn to be a bit more confident ourselves.
I don't care how 'good' or 'bad' foreign programming is; it doesn't suddenly make me think that the dross they churn out here is any better. Indeed, I think it speaks volumes about the broadcasting industry worldwide.
I don't watch TV and more - I don't miss the adverts and the odd thing I do want to watch I watch online via catch-up services. Ditching Sky and TV tax = £500 a year better off!
I don't watch TV and more - I don't miss the adverts and the odd thing I do want to watch I watch online via catch-up services. Ditching Sky and TV tax = £500 a year better off!
OK - latest episode. My daughter has a house that's registered on local council records for past two years as being "not occupied.Couple of years ago I sent one letter back as "house not occupied". Despite this there has been a multitude of letters ,each one getting more threatening than the last. At one point ,TV licensing were about to take the Legal occupier to court for not having a licence. And al for an empty property ,with no power and certainly no TV installed . Latest letter states that property is "under investigation ". Oh ,well, if they're going down that road, then some old OAP ,saving for an overpriced licence ,is being left alone.
Got my latest letter last night. It talks about what to expect when they take you to court, and what you can do. Worded to look official and worry people. I wish I'd kept all the previous ones.
I appreciate them writing to me, don't get many letters nowadays.
Whenever I've owned a TV I've had a licence, and I wouldn't mind contacting them to tell them I don't have one, it's just great getting the letters through. After reading this thread I'm always looking forward to the next letter.
I appreciate them writing to me, don't get many letters nowadays.
Whenever I've owned a TV I've had a licence, and I wouldn't mind contacting them to tell them I don't have one, it's just great getting the letters through. After reading this thread I'm always looking forward to the next letter.
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