TV License Part III
I have stopped paying the license as my daughter and I do not watch terrestrial TV or watch any live stream programs. I, therefore, phoned the TV Licensing people last year and the person I spoke to said he would make a note on the system. This obviously did not happen because today I received a letter stating someone is coming to my property for an inspection…Good Luck to them is all that I can say.
Now I have written about TV Licensing before in Part (1) and Part (2) links below.
Part (I).
https://www.cymrumarketing.com/2020/02/07/uk-tv-licensing/
Part (II).
https://www.cymrumarketing.com/2021/02/08/tv-licensing-pay-as-you-go/
I also have located the page that says what to do if you think you do not need a TV License: https://www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one/topics/telling-us-you-dont-need-a-tv-licence.
According to the TV Licensing Agency.
If you tell them you do not need a TV License, they will send you confirmation of your No Licence Needed declaration. They will want to come to your property to confirm this as true. This is because when they visit and make contact, they usually find one in eight people* that tell them they don’t need a TV Licence actually do need one.
If you are not licensed, you risk prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000** plus any legal costs and/or compensation you may be ordered to pay.
Proof You Need a License.
Now my question is how can they prove anyone watches TV if they enter a property?
Owning a mobile phone, laptop, computer or tablet does not prove anything.
In fact, I do have a laptop, tablet, and mobile phone but would I be willing to allow them to inspect them, I most definitely would not.
It would be against GDPR to allow anyone access to a device that has sensitive data on it as in my case as I own a business and I would be breaching the security of my client’s data if anyone gained access to my devices.
They would need proof of probable cause that I watched TV or Live streamed which I and my daughter do not.
I am too busy running a business to waste my brain cells watching TV.
If they have an issue and want people to pay they should introduce a pay-as-you-go paywall, that would solve the problem rather than use bully tactics to scare people into paying.
I will not be intimidated and I know my rights.
I do not have to let anyone into my property or access my devices without a warrant and I certainly would not allow anyone to access my devices unless they had a court order. Furthermore, once it was proven that none of my devices had a history of watching TV or Live Streaming I would sue the entities in question.
Entering Premises Without a Warrant.
In general, the police do not have the right to enter a person’s house or other private premises without the person’s permission unless they have a warrant, then that would be different. However, they can enter without a warrant under special circumstances: when in close pursuit of someone the police believe has committed or attempted to commit, a serious crime, or. to sort out a disturbance. The only other people that can enter your property if the statutory right is granted to a person in the state and public service jobs in specific situations only.
Some examples of these roles are:
- Police officers
- Fire service workers
- Ambulance workers
- Council and local authority trading standards officers
- Some enforcement agents
Final Notes From The Editor.
Introduce a pay-as-you-go paywall and stop the bully tactics. If you suspect people watching TV, send out the TV Detector Van!
About me: I am connected with some top mainstream journalists on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/renata-b-48025811/ and have refrained from posting on this social media platform even though I have over 10K connections. I feel however that I have to speak on behalf of public interest who may also be in similar situations as myself yet receive threatening and intimidating correspondence, that a pay-as-you-go paywall should be introduced with immediate effect and that people should be made aware of their rights and not be intimidated into paying when they are certain they do not watch TV.
I also agree there will be people claiming they do not watch TV when in reality they do, surely smart TVs (sorry I do not have one) can send a signal to the TV Licensing people similar to Smart Meters if the TV is accessed or not. Furthermore, why not introduce a subscription just like Netflix, Disney, and Amazon Prime Video, this would solve the problem unless they are worried they will not have enough subscribers?
Further Reading:
- Calls for BBC to scrap extra charge on licence fee instalment plan | The US Sun (the-sun.com)
- Do I need a TV Licence? – TV Licensing ™
#TVLicense #TVLicensing #TVLicenseBullyTactics #Intimidation
