TV license

thatsmyboy

Folks just wondering if you can help. I don't have a tv in my apartment in Galway but the inspector has sent me letters saying the tv is here although there is no chorus and sky here at all. I got a final warning off them today. What do people suggest I do . Thanks

Carawaystick

If you don't have a telly, you don't have to buy a license

thatsmyboy

Yes but will inspector want to come in to my apt to check

monkeysnapper

i think if you have a laptop or pc or even radio you may have to have one. feel free to correct me if im wrong.

blabley

thatsmyboy wrote: »

Yes but will inspector want to come in to my apt to check

They might do... but if you don't own a TV that's not an issue

blabley

http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/consumer_affairs/media/tv_licences.html#l1f4da

You do not require a television licence to watch television on your computer or mobile phone. However, the computer must not be able to receive a signal distributed by conventional television broadcasting networks, for example, cable, satellite or aerial.

hfallada

I think they just assume everyone has a tv licence. Just ignore the letter. They are just sent out in huge batches. They cant find you if you dont have a tv

monkeysnapper

hfallada wrote: »

I think they just assume everyone has a tv licence. Just ignore the letter. They are just sent out in huge batches. They cant find you if you dont have a tv

i dont think thats the correct way to deal with this. your better off contacting them to tell them you dont have a tv. you dont want to find yourself in front of a judge trying to sort out fines. messy

donegal.

theres a form you can fill out declaring that you no longer have a tv, that'd stop them hassling you .

No Pants

monkeysnapper wrote: »

your better off contacting them to tell them you dont have a tv. you dont want to find yourself in front of a judge trying to sort out fines. messy

Fines for what exactly?

thatsmyboy

I rang their tv license office yesterday and they won't even send me out a form to declare I do not have a tv license guy kept saying " inspector saw one the day he called" crap I'm on a third floor apt and he must have some eyesight as he saw what is not there. I don't know what to do now. All the guy kept saying yesterday was " I advise you to get a license ". Do I have to get a license to declare I do not have a tv. I never had chorus or sky under my name at this apt so there is no record of this . Will I just pay it once off to get this muppet off my back. I'm moving out in three months anyone

GerardKeating

thatsmyboy wrote: »

I rang their tv license office yesterday and they won't even send me out a form to declare I do not have a tv license guy kept saying " inspector saw one the day he called" crap I'm on a third floor apt and he must have some eyesight as he saw what is not there. I don't know what to do now. All the guy kept saying yesterday was " I advise you to get a license ". Do I have to get a license to declare I do not have a tv. I never had chorus or sky under my name at this apt so there is no record of this . Will I just pay it once off to get this muppet off my back. I'm moving out in three months anyone

Send them a registered letter, declaring you have no TV.

Also state that you will seek legal advice if the contine to harrise you with this false demands, that this is causing you stress making you unwell

Also ask for the name of the inspector that claims to have seen the TV, that you want to sue him/her for demanation. You might need to make this an FOI request.

The main effect of the above is to give them work and delay any court action.

newbie2

I'm not sure we're getting all the facts in this thread TBH.

thatsmyboy

Well if you know more than I do we'll done . There is no more to tell. I can make stuff up for you if you like . Your a kinda person that believes in "no smoke without fire" where sometimes there can be.

Fred Swanson

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thatsmyboy

I'm thinking of just going out and buying a tv if I'm forced to get this license although when I do need to watch TV I just watch it on my iPad so I'm annoyed over all this.

HurtLocker

thatsmyboy wrote: »

I'm thinking of just going out and buying a tv if I'm forced to get this license although when I do need to watch TV I just watch it on my iPad so I'm annoyed over all this.

Are the warnings addressed to you by name or just "the resident".

newbie2

thatsmyboy wrote: »

I'm thinking of just going out and buying a tv if I'm forced to get this license although when I do need to watch TV I just watch it on my iPad so I'm annoyed over all this.

sounds like a good idea

thatsmyboy

Yes the letters are in my name. I met the inspector one sat morning and I gave him my name, I was rushing out the door late for work so I really can't remember what I even said to him as I had slept it in and was running very late ( actually his knock on the door woke me )
But the thing that annoys me is the guy has wrote in his report he saw a TV !!
Even if I had a TV I'm on the third floor he would need a crane to see in my window

thatsmyboy

NEWBIE 2 ......do you work for an post by any chance just looking back at your two quite un helpful posts. I think from my point of view if you don't have something constructive to say can you just not post on my thread please

Fred Swanson

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HurtLocker

thatsmyboy wrote: »

Yes the letters are in my name. I met the inspector one sat morning and I gave him my name, I was rushing out the door late for work so I really can't remember what I even said to him as I had slept it in and was running very late ( actually his knock on the door woke me )
But the thing that annoys me is the guy has wrote in his report he saw a TV !!
Even if I had a TV I'm on the third floor he would need a crane to see in my window

It'll be a weird court case when your charged for having a tv when you don't.

I'm not a lawyer but could the OP make a request for the information they have on him under the Data Protection Act?

It's harassment anyway. I'd tell then to back off or show the evidence they have. Don't buy a licence, once you do you're on their list until you move house.

silentrust

monkeysnapper wrote: »

i think if you have a laptop or pc or even radio you may have to have one. feel free to correct me if im wrong.

Well if you have a computer with a tv card or similar that you use to watch or record television as it's being broadcast then you do need to pay for one.

silentrust

HurtLocker wrote: »

It'll be a weird court case when your charged for having a tv when you don't.

I'm not a lawyer but could the OP make a request for the information they have on him under the Data Protection Act?

It's harassment anyway. I'd tell then to back off or show the evidence they have. Don't buy a licence, once you do you're on their list until you move house.

Well said HurtLocker,

I had this nightmare six months ago when the Inspector came round and spoke to one of my housemates who misunderstood and said that we watched TV as we play DVDs on our laptops.

They wrote to me and I wrote back explaining we had no television. They wrote back saying, Yes you do!

I wrote back again saying it was a misunderstanding, there was no television in the house and that they were welcome to send an Inspector to check this.

They wrote back again to say essentially they thought I was lying and that although there might not be a television in the house now, unless I paid up they would take me to court.

I wrote to them again saying I would see them in court.

Two days later the Inspector came round. I showed him every room in the house and he left.

I received an apology around a week later.

So bottom line you need to stay strong and call their bluff even if you're threatened.

godtabh

thatsmyboy wrote: »

I'm thinking of just going out and buying a tv if I'm forced to get this license although when I do need to watch TV I just watch it on my iPad so I'm annoyed over all this.

Why would you do that?

As has been suggested write to them formal. State you dont have a TV and that an inspection is welcome at a suitable convenient time.

No Pants

thatsmyboy wrote: »

But the thing that annoys me is the guy has wrote in his report he saw a TV !!
Even if I had a TV I'm on the third floor he would need a crane to see in my window

Has anyone ever gone to court with a floorplan of the house/apartment and asked the inspector to point out where he was standing and where he saw the TV? In most places I would think the TV cannot be seen from the front door and if he's proved to be lying in court...

newbie2

12-04-2012, 22:48

thatsmyboy wrote: »

Hi folks ,I bought a new LG flatscreen TV today and all is going well I have it working fine except when i attach my sky plus box to it the TV wont respond to the sky remote for turning volume up and down ,it is changing channel but thats through the box but the sound itself from tv is not going up or down with my sky remote. Anyone any ideas please as i dont want to have to be using 2 remotes as im having to raise volume up and down with tv original remote

Model is LG 37INCH LCD 1080P

Thnaks in advance

Do you have a TV or not?

HurtLocker

newbie2 wrote: »

I'm not sure we're getting all the facts in this thread TBH.

newbie2 wrote: »

12-04-2012, 22:48


Do you have a TV or not?

You're doing you're damnedest to have an argument with the OP. He said he had no tv in his apartment either take him for his word or stop trolling. That quote was over a year ago. He's asked for help not a questioning of his life story.

newbie2

It's my experience that the majority of these posts about "not having a TV" do not contain all the facts and the OPs generally just tell us their side of the story. In this case - the OP seems worried that the inspector will come back to his apt and check if he has a TV -

Yes but will inspector want to come in to my apt to check

I fhe has not TV - why is he worried if an inspector wants to check?

Fred Swanson

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HurtLocker

newbie2 wrote: »

I fhe has not TV - why is he worried if an inspector wants to check?

-Has had bad experience with the TV licence inspector lying and doesn't want anything to do with them.

-Doesn't want to consent to a search of his property without a warrant when the searcher refuses to show or doesn't have probable cause or evidence.

There are many reasons but you've zoned in on the illegal one, the OP has stated he doesn't have a tv in his apartment what more do you want? A tour of his apartment. As for his new tv post, that was a year ago a lot can change in a year.

Lets give him the benefit of the doubt

silentrust

HurtLocker wrote: »

-Has had bad experience with the TV licence inspector lying and doesn't want anything to do with them.

-Doesn't want to consent to a search of his property without a warrant when the searcher refuses to show or doesn't have probable cause or evidence.

There are many reasons but you've zoned in on the illegal one, the OP has stated he doesn't have a tv in his apartment what more do you want? A tour of his apartment. As for his new tv post, that was a year ago a lot can change in a year.

Lets give him the benefit of the doubt

Well said Hurtlocker,

As I mentioned the Inspector on his second visit was only content when I'd allowed him to search every room in the house. It was more than they were entitled to do in my opinion (I certainly wouldn't agree to the Police giving every room a once over "just in case" I was harbouring contraband) but I hoped if they did they would leave me alone.

My experience of the TVLA in the UK was that they weren't altogether honest like you said too. One of them misled me into believing that you needed a licence if you used the internet (not true) and another that you needed one if you just use your TV to play DVD's and games (which is not true in England).

joeysoap

thatsmyboy wrote: »

I'm thinking of just going out and buying a tv if I'm forced to get this license although when I do need to watch TV I just watch it on my iPad so I'm annoyed over all this.

The wording of the tv licence act mentions something about a 'receiving apparatus', and iPads weren't even in Steve Jobs head when the tv/wireless law was being passed, so I would guess that is one of the reasons the tv licence is being abolished to be replaced with a household charge. How they are going to collect this I don't know but suspect that like a lot of other countries it will be added to the electricity bill. I do have a licence for this house but personally if I didn't have a tv then I wouldn't buy a licence.

DuckSlice

If your household, business or institution possesses a television or equipment capable of receiving a television signal, you are required by law to have a television licence. Even if the television or other equipment is broken and currently unable to receive a signal, it is regarded as capable of being repaired so it can receive a signal and you must hold a licence for it. Failure to produce evidence of a television licence to an inspector can result in a court appearance and on conviction, you can receive a substantial fine. People who have been fined and who have breached court orders directing them to pay their television licence can be imprisoned.


thats from the citizens information website. it also says on there that you dont need it to watch such things as rte player etc, but if your computer can receive signal from an aerial/sattelite/cable then you do need it.

joeysoap

AFAIK Licence is being abolished either next year or year after, probably added to the electricity bill as in say Portugal

Similar to the UK television licence, but without the dreaded detector vans, every month the state relieves the majority of Portuguese residents of €1,75 (plus five per cent IVA) by way of their electricity bills, an amount, a tax, which is then passed on to stateowned television

Doubt it will be as low as €1.75 a month though :mad:

silentrust

joeysoap wrote: »

AFAIK Licence is being abolished either next year or year after, probably added to the electricity bill as in say Portugal

Similar to the UK television licence, but without the dreaded detector vans, every month the state relieves the majority of Portuguese residents of €1,75 (plus five per cent IVA) by way of their electricity bills, an amount, a tax, which is then passed on to stateowned television

Doubt it will be as low as €1.75 a month though :mad:

Such a shame - I haven't had a TV in five years now because to be frank I think it's 99% absolute rubbish. It works out much cheaper for me to buy DVD box sets second hand of TV series I enjoy and watch them on my laptop then it does to pay for a damned scrap of paper.

Agree though it'll probably just be another 10 euros on everyone's electricity per month and we won't get a say in the matter as everyone has a TV don't you know? :-)

SweetPotatoes

I haven't read through all the posts here so forgive me if I touch on something that was already covered.

1) If you do not have a TV you do NOT need a TV license
2) If an inspector calls you do NOT have to let him/her into your home. The only people who can access your home without your permission are the Police with a search warrant.
3) These letters are sent out in bulk to every apartment, house, dwelling that is on their database and does not have a TV license. I can imagine a lot of the time an inspector has never called. They just try to put the onus on you to prove you have no TV when in fact the onus is on them to prove you do have a TV.
4) If an inspector at your door warns you because you do not prove to him/her you do not have a TV you can warn him/her back. You have the same citizens rights of warning as an inspector.

I got letters from An Post which ended up in the bin within two seconds after opening them. I have no TV and have no obligation to waste a second of my time explaining this.

dang

Hi,

I received a visit from a TV license inspector who didn't enter my premises and asked me if I have a TV. I said we watch TV through the Internet which we do.

We don't own a TV set, box or any device that can receive TV stations. We use a computer and phones to watch TV on a monitor. Basically I have been sent letters of legal proceedings because the inspector says that because I said TV I must own a TV set. I have been back and forth on email to explain that we don't. I have asked that the inspector visit our premises again so that I can prove it but they won't do it. I have now received a letter threatening a summons to court. I am so angry that they won't give me a chance to prove I don't have a TV and that the inspectors report holds true even though she didn't see any evidence of a TV. I really don't want to have to pay 106e for something I don't have. It's like paying car insurance when you don't own a car, it's madness.

So my question is, has this happened to anyone and have they gone to court? If so how does it work? If I can't prove to An Post and the Inspector I don't have a TV how can I prove it to a Judge?

Thanks,
Dang

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

dang

Hi Fred, but how do I do that and not end up in court? They won't call out to me again after me asking them about 4 times. The letter says in 5 days they will lodge a summons for me to appear in court. If I do go to court how can they prove I have a TV?

Fred Swanson

This post has been deleted.

dang

The thing is the Inspector keeps saying that I admitted to having a TV. I know I said we watch TV over the internet I never said we have a TV set or box or anything like that. So I assume it's my word against their's and however the Judge feels on the day. Otherwise how can they prove I have a TV and how can I prove I don't unless someone calls to my house again, which they refuse to do.

CarrickMcJoe

newbie2 wrote: »

I'm not sure we're getting all the facts in this thread TBH.

newbie2 wrote: »

12-04-2012, 22:48


Do you have a TV or not?

Sounds like Jack Nicholson v Tom Cruise

OP, if you don't have a TV you don't pay for a license. The broadcasting license is coming next year I think to cover any item that can receive a signal.

dang

CarrickMcJoe wrote: »

Sounds like Jack Nicholson v Tom Cruise

OP, if you don't have a TV you don't pay for a license. The broadcasting license is coming next year I think to cover any item that can receive a signal.

I know I don't need a license but my question is how does this work in court? How does a judge decide who is right if there is no proof from the inspector that there is a TV other than the fact she keeps saying I admitted to having a TV without seeing it for herself?

FreudianSlippers

dang wrote: »

I know I don't need a license but my question is how does this work in court? How does a judge decide who is right if there is no proof from the inspector that there is a TV other than the fact she keeps saying I admitted to having a TV without seeing it for herself?

Why not write to An Post (registered) and explain that you did say you watch TV on your computer, but you don't have any device in the house which falls under the definition in the legislation? Seems like the easiest thing to do rather than panic.

dang

FreudianSlippers wrote: »

Why not write to An Post (registered) and explain that you did say you watch TV on your computer, but you don't have any device in the house which falls under the definition in the legislation? Seems like the easiest thing to do rather than panic.

If only it were that simple. I have had a number of email conversations with 2 people in An Post stating that fact, one being high up in the department but they just won't listen to me. They just keep coming back and saying they cannot change the original report by the inspector. I am at the stage where they are going to send out a summons soon and I can't ignore that. So unless they change their mind and come back out to my apartment they are bringing me to court

No Pants

dang wrote: »

If only it were that simple. I have had a number of email conversations with 2 people in An Post stating that fact, one being high up in the department but they just won't listen to me. They just keep coming back and saying they cannot change the original report by the inspector. I am at the stage where they are going to send out a summons soon and I can't ignore that. So unless they change their mind and come back out to my apartment they are bringing me to court

Send them a registered letter stating that the original inspector's report was incorrect and should be changed. Make it clear that this is your last communication on the matter and that you'll see them in court if necessary. You will of course be legally represented in any court case and you will be pursuing your costs afterwards.

Fred Swanson

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Pro Hoc Vice

Fred Swanson wrote: »

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Costs don't work like that. There are scale costs in the District Court. You can of course get a solicitor a barrister and two seniors if you want, but the costs awarded will barley cover the solicitor, you will have to pay all the rest your self.

Five Lamps

There is a statuatory declaration form that you can sign and send back to the TV Licence people. I know this because I have done it before. Have a copy of the form if anybody needs it. They are supposed to send a declaration to you.

Despite what other posters say, there is an onus on you respond to the notice from the inspectors.

I would be surprised if An Post are bringing cases to court unless they have strong grounds to do so.

Fred Swanson

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