!!! Warning to TV Licence Inspectors !!!

shruikan2553 · 12-05-2014 10:56pm

Why would I pay for a TV licence? I have the internet.

Pocoyo · 12-05-2014 11:01pm

I will pay 160e for a tv licence if it includes free unlimited access to the internet.

JRant · 12-05-2014 11:37pm

frozenfrozen wrote: »

You don't get funding from rte, you get it from sound and vision fund and rte will put up the balance on it, unless they're making the thing themselves. Not rte's fault they didn't agree to the terms/amount wanted/plan/vision

You're comparing somebody looking to get commissioned to somebody getting a job at rte?

Well it's not the majority of 18-40 yo fault they didn't agree to the terms/amount wanted/plan/vision of RTE, yet still have to fork out.

JRant · 12-05-2014 11:40pm

frozenfrozen wrote: »

The costs involved in running rte aren't fully covered by the tv license, the ads pay for the rest... they're not pocketing it as far as i'm aware

They're not 'pocketing it'!!!

Joe Duffy & Tubs say hello.

SIX PACK · 12-05-2014 11:43pm

kumate_champ07 wrote: »

just switch up the volume on your tv, pretend you cant hear them

You should be a comedian mate seriously lmfao

old_aussie · 12-05-2014 11:54pm

TV licence, how quaint, that's sooooooo 1960's Australia.

American Pie · 13-05-2014 12:10am

Kate!!! wrote: »

Then prepare for a fine or better yet jail time !!!

I'm sorry, I couldn't help but comment on this. I know you were probably just trying to troll, but still. Do you think that not paying for a TV licence, a charge that doesn't even exist in some countries and would seem ludicrous to people in them, is worthy of Jail time? Even when some criminals get off with fines and suspended sentences for what are actual morally wrong crimes?

Shakespeare's Sister · 13-05-2014 12:31am

I don't have a problem with people who have a TV not paying it - I avoided it as long as I could too, but when you're nabbed, you haven't got grounds for feeling hard-done-by/being aggressive to the inspector. It's the same for everyone.

Turtyturd wrote: »

Every letter from them comes in the old tenants name. I look forward to seeing a motorway chase with her an Gardai on the news some night because she hasn't paid her tv licence or shown up in court.

I thought it was applicable to the address rather than the person?
Sorry if I have it totally arseways!

shruikan2553 · 13-05-2014 12:42am

Magaggie wrote: »

I don't have a problem with people who have a TV not paying it - I avoided it as long as I could too, but when you're nabbed, you haven't got grounds for feeling hard-done-by/being aggressive to the inspector. It's the same for everyone.

I thought it was applicable to the address rather than the person?
Sorry if I have it totally arseways!

They'll keep going in a cycle. Find a name for an address, chase after them, send them a summons, send someone out to get a name. So in this case they'll be chasing the previous tenant as they think they are still at the address.

godwin · 13-05-2014 1:11am

I don't watch RTE ever, Ii have not had TV licence since1993, and won't get one in the near future. Thank you the people who pay my share of a service I never avail of.

lertsnim · 13-05-2014 3:47am

_Redzer_ wrote: »

Tell ya what, rte, make your service a subscription plan so you only sign up if you want to watch rte.

Oh that's right, they know nobody would ever subscribe to that crap so they make it mandatory for everyone...

And what if you've already got sky with rte on it. Wtf would you have to pay for it twice?

Funnily enough Sky subscriber numbers in this country soared only after RTE joined the service. This notion that nobody wants to watch RTE is nonsense. The weekly ratings will tell you that.

Blong!hahaha · 13-05-2014 7:37am

BBJBIG wrote: »

Says on the Radio that they will now come to visit us on the Weekends ...
So ... disturb my Weekend - and, get a Fist in the Face.

LordChessington wrote: »

"Hi, TV license inspector"

"HADOUKEN!!!"

Shouldn't that be "SHO-RYU-KEN!!!"..? :pac:

Bongalongherb · 13-05-2014 8:11am

A license is usually needed to transmit a signal, the TV is not a transmitter. I am one of the genuine folk that does not have a TV, I have not had a TV for the last 8 years thereabouts, so if an inspector wants to see, I just bring them in and show them that I have no TV.

But this will be all defunct soon as the communications license (whatever it's called) will be coming in soon. So if you have a transistor radio or computer then you still have to pay, and I'm sure this will be again illegally taken from source/wages.

Fly me to the moon
Let me play among the stars
Let me see what spring is like
On a-Jupiter and Mars
In other words, hold my hand
In other words, baby, kiss me

AlanS181824 · 13-05-2014 8:47am

I pay my licence, couldn't be arsed with the hassle of having to worry about some inspector coming to my door and not knowing what to do!

vidor · 13-05-2014 8:54am

Trying to find some info on the new universal licence that's coming into effect (next year) but with no joy. Anyone have a link?

mfceiling · 13-05-2014 9:03am

vidor wrote: »

Trying to find some info on the new universal licence that's coming into effect (next year) but with no joy. Anyone have a link?

Just bend over. It's just another tax that will go up every year. Regardless if you have a tv or not you will pay this charge.

Sky, vodafone, o2 and all the other huge companies will continue to invest in their networks etc but our "broadcasting" tax will still pay Tubridy's enormous salary. I presume RTE will not need the advertising revenue now that the entire country will be paying this new tax? Pat Rabitte me arse...

Bongalongherb · 13-05-2014 11:19am

A whole prison compound full with people for non-payment of the broadcasting license fee. Twilight-zone stuff indeed. Rob and beat a person and walk free, but be imprisoned for not paying your TV license. This justice system is insane, only a madman could make these laws.

Shakespeare's Sister · 13-05-2014 10:31pm

Bongalongherb wrote: »

A whole prison compound full with people for non-payment of the broadcasting license fee. Twilight-zone stuff indeed. Rob and beat a person and walk free, but be imprisoned for not paying your TV license.

Would someone who has beat and robbed a person walk free? That's not to say I don't agree prison sentences can be bafflingly lenient.
How long would a person be imprisoned for not paying their TV licence?

Where do these laws come from? I don't think a person just makes them up on the spot. Any legal eagles here?

Luap · 13-05-2014 11:17pm

Me no speaky zi english.

dickwod1 · 13-05-2014 11:35pm

Magaggie wrote: »

Would someone who has beat and robbed a person walk free? That's not to say I don't agree prison sentences can be bafflingly lenient.
How long would a person be imprisoned for not paying their TV licence?

Where do these laws come from? I don't think a person just makes them up on the spot. Any legal eagles here?

Robber's walk free 2 months ago ... http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/two-robbers-who-forced-pensioner-to-flee-home-walk-free-from-court-30058943.html

AFAIK a few days in prison for no TV licence if you havn't bought one before your in front of the judge otherwise a fine ...
http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/411-people-jailed-last-year-for-not-paying-their-tv-licence-30235625.html

whisky_galore · 14-05-2014 9:08am

dickwod1 wrote: »

Robber's walk free 2 months ago ... http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/courts/two-robbers-who-forced-pensioner-to-flee-home-walk-free-from-court-30058943.html

AFAIK a few days in prison for no TV licence if you havn't bought one before your in front of the judge otherwise a fine ...
http://www.independent.ie/irish-news/411-people-jailed-last-year-for-not-paying-their-tv-licence-30235625.html

Nice to know the priorities of our 'justice' system.:rolleyes: The law is clearly an ass.

stateofflux · 14-05-2014 9:13am

Temptamperu wrote: »

They only "disturb you" if you haven't paid your licence... so pay your bill like the rest of us and you will never see them again.

only a fool would willingly pay for such a joke of a TV network

rubadub · 14-05-2014 9:34am

old_aussie wrote: »

TV licence, how quaint, that's sooooooo 1960's Australia.

list of those with & without and those who since banned it http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Television_licence

Magaggie wrote: »

How long would a person be imprisoned for not paying their TV licence?

The imprisonment is for not paying court fines. I think it is treated as a totally separate offence. To some this is a moot point -those who love a good sensationalist bull**** story, as though one day a tv inspector calls and the next day they are doing hard labour next to junkies.

the_monkey · 14-05-2014 9:51am

If I have a PC and I can watch TV online , do i need a TV license ?

or if I remove the ability of my TV to receive TV signals and just have it connected to DVD/BluRay and a media player - do I need a license ?

Seems for the 1st you don't and the 2nd you do ... crazy. (at least it used to be this way, I don't know if they changed the rules or not)

No TV license's here in Spain - just woefully ****e TV with 20 min add breaks during films..

whisky_galore · 14-05-2014 9:53am

the_monkey wrote: »

If I have a PC and I can watch TV online , do i need a TV license ?

or if I remove the ability of my TV to receive TV signals and just have it connected to DVD/BluRay and a media player - do I need a license ?

Seems for the 1st you don't and the 2nd you do ... crazy. (at least it used to be this way, I don't know if they changed the rules or not)

No TV license's here in Spain - just woefully ****e TV with 20 min add breaks during films..

According to the law, even if you have a broken tv in the attic it is deemed repairable and requires a licence, you couldn't make this sh!t up.

MugMugs · 14-05-2014 9:57am

the_monkey wrote: »

If I have a PC and I can watch TV online , do i need a TV license ?

or if I remove the ability of my TV to receive TV signals and just have it connected to DVD/BluRay and a media player - do I need a license ?

Seems for the 1st you don't and the 2nd you do ... crazy. (at least it used to be this way, I don't know if they changed the rules or not)

No TV license's here in Spain - just woefully ****e TV with 20 min add breaks during films..

If it is capable of receiving a TV signal then you need a licence. In fact, if your PC has a tuner card (how 1990) then you need a licence.

the_monkey · 14-05-2014 10:03am

MugMugs wrote: »

If it is capable of receiving a TV signal then you need a licence. In fact, if your PC has a tuner card (how 1990) then you need a licence.

OK so they changed the law, but it really pisses me off that if I got a TV and removed its ability to receive tv signals and just had it connected to DVD player and media so I choose what to watch .. i'd still have to pay a license..

blackwhite · 14-05-2014 10:12am

KTRIC wrote: »

They have no right to enter your house and in Ireland you are innocent until proven guilty. I refuse to pay for a tv licence and my tv set will be gone very soon. They can f*ck right off if they think they're coming into my house to poke around.

Strangely enough, under Irish law a TV licence inspector has greater rights of entry than a Garda.

yoyo · 14-05-2014 10:16am

blackwhite wrote: »

Strangely enough, under Irish law a TV licence inspector has greater rights of entry than a Garda.

Surely they'd need a warrant to enter your house? Can they really do anything if you told them to get lost? I doubt it..

Nick

MugMugs · 14-05-2014 10:30am

yoyo wrote: »

Surely they'd need a warrant to enter your house? Can they really do anything if you told them to get lost? I doubt it..

Nick

They need a warrant to enter. And need your name to get a warrant I'd presume :P

onlyme! · 14-05-2014 10:34am

In the UK you only need a licence if your TV is recieving live broadcasts when you switih it on, so removing the Ariel lead there's no need for lience .
You Need a licence if you watch live TV over the net as well

blackwhite · 14-05-2014 10:38am

yoyo wrote: »

Surely they'd need a warrant to enter your house? Can they really do anything if you told them to get lost? I doubt it..

Nick

2009 Broadcasting Act, they have the right to enter your home without a warrant to establish whether or not there is a television.
They don't have the right to force entry.

Will pull up the Act for the exact references.

EDIT

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2009/en/act/pub/0018/print.html#sec146

146.— (1) An issuing agent may appoint persons to be officers of the issuing agent for the purposes of this Part.

(2) A person appointed under subsection (1) shall, on his or her appointment be furnished by the issuing agent with a certificate of his or her appointment and when exercising a power conferred by subsection (3) shall, if requested by any person thereby affected, produce such certificate to that person for inspection.

(3) An officer of an issuing agent may enter at any reasonable time any premises or specified place for the purposes of ascertaining whether there is a television set there and a television licence is for the time being in force in respect of the premises or specified place authorising the keeping of a television set at the premises or specified place.

(4) An officer of an issuing agent may request any person on the premises or at the place where he or she finds a television set or evidence of such to produce the television licence for the time being in force in respect of the premises or specified place for inspection by the officer.

onlyme! · 14-05-2014 10:44am

blackwhite wrote: »

2009 Broadcasting Act, they have the right to enter your home without a warrant to establish whether or not there is a television.
They don't have the right to force entry.

Will pull up the Act for the exact references.

Amazing

An Englishman's home is his castle!

An Irishman's home is errrr the states!

blackwhite · 14-05-2014 10:50am

onlyme! wrote: »

Amazing

An Englishman's home is his castle!

An Irishman's home is errrr the states!

It's just another example of how bad the civil servants in the various Govt departments seem to be at drafting legislation.

One thing to note though - no where in the Act does is state that it is an offence to refuse access to an inspector. i.e. If you refuse to open the door, then they cannot force you to do so, and there is no punishment in the Act for refusing to do so.
What they can (and usually will) do, is take refusal of access as partial evidence that you are trying to conceal an unlicensed television.

The Act is so badly written it's embarrassing.

mickydoomsux · 14-05-2014 10:53am

So what you're saying is that we should be getting English lawmakers to be writing up our Acts for us to make them watertight?

/hides

blackwhite · 14-05-2014 11:03am

mickydoomsux wrote: »

So what you're saying is that we should be getting English lawmakers to be writing up our Acts for us to make them watertight?

/hides

English legislation is often as poorly drafted as Irish legislation.

A Primal Nut · 14-05-2014 11:05am

Surely there is no need for inspectors anymore now that everything is digital. Just encrypt the RTE signal and charge people the equivalent of the license fee to decrypt it.

Caliden · 14-05-2014 11:42am

A Primal Nut wrote: »

Surely there is no need for inspectors anymore now that everything is digital. Just encrypt the RTE signal and charge people the equivalent of the license fee to decrypt it.

Logical but you forget about who is in charge. They're ignorant of anything technical and would have to hire consultants to help them out because reading and learning about it for themselves is beyond them.

They would rather practice their 'fence straddling' and 'question avoiding' speak than better themselves.

yoyo · 14-05-2014 12:07pm

blackwhite wrote: »

2009 Broadcasting Act, they have the right to enter your home without a warrant to establish whether or not there is a television.
They don't have the right to force entry.

Will pull up the Act for the exact references.

EDIT

http://www.irishstatutebook.ie/2009/en/act/pub/0018/print.html#sec146

But they are powerless to force entry. If they request you let them in and you refuse can they get a warrant straight away, even without a name?
If you close the door to them what can they do? I did just that at the communal door of my apartment building (much to my neighbours delight I'm sure!, I have a license) and that was it.
Fwiw: I have no time for these inspector people. I was summonsed to court incorrectly even though I had a license (the inspector f*cked up the address). I received the summons Christmas eve (not a joke).

Nick

H3llR4iser · 14-05-2014 12:07pm

The main issue I have with the concept is the assumption that everybody will have a TV and the level of hounding involved; I actually caught these "inspectors" (more like peeping Toms) trying to peek inside the windows in my residential area.

A curiosity: do Sky/UPC ask for a valid, current TV license number when subscribing or renewing? If not, forcing them to do so would be a very easy way to enforce the payment and take the hassle out of it: the people watching TV will pay, the others will be left alone to enjoy any form of entertainment that doesn't involve letting your brain rot in front of Fair City.

Also, when the DVB-T switch happened maybe, and just maybe, they could have put the "free" channels on a keycard service just like some "premium" channels work elsewhere in the EU: the TV license would have come in the form of a card to put in the DVB-T receiver, allowing you to watch the outrageous muck RTE channels for one year, they you'd need to buy a new one.

If the evasion is as high as they claim, it's likely that the money recovered this way would have covered the cost of the infrastructure and then some more.

kuntboy · 14-05-2014 12:09pm

Ray Palmer wrote: »

You are a parasite and no amount of explaining exempts you form your responsibility to pay for your licence. You are precisely the reason the system is changing at a cost to the state. Don't forget that. :P

No, the reason the system is changing is because the government squanders and wastes OUR taxes to an unimaginable degree in an effectively unaccountable manner on inefficient, bloated, heavily unionised, unsackable dossers in RTE and other public sector bodies so they can buy their votes and get re-elected.

The day they use OUR money well is the day you have ANY moral high ground.

mathie · 14-05-2014 12:17pm

A Primal Nut wrote: »

Surely there is no need for inspectors anymore now that everything is digital. Just encrypt the RTE signal and charge people the equivalent of the license fee to decrypt it.

What percentage of the population currently pay? 70%?

I can guarantee that it'd drop to about 10 - 20% if it was optional.

They'd rather force people to pay that give people the choice.
Totalitarianism is 5hiting itself.

Fred Swanson · 14-05-2014 12:19pm

This post has been deleted.

whomitconcerns · 14-05-2014 12:23pm

mathie wrote: »

What percentage of the population currently pay? 70%?

I can guarantee that it'd drop to about 10 - 20% if it was optional.

They'd rather force people to pay that give people the choice.
Totalitarianism is 5hiting itself.

your right there. i pay every year but i dont watch any Irish stations on tv or on the internet or listen to any public national broadcasters. So I definitely wouldnt pay if i didnt have to.

Pocoyo · 14-05-2014 12:27pm

mathie wrote: »

What percentage of the population currently pay? 70%?

I can guarantee that it'd drop to about 10 - 20% if it was optional.

They'd rather force people to pay that give people the choice.
Totalitarianism is 5hiting itself.

Id pay them to scramble it for me!

c_man · 14-05-2014 12:28pm

MugMugs wrote: »

If it is capable of receiving a TV signal then you need a licence. In fact, if your PC has a tuner card (how 1990) then you need a licence.

I know people who live in areas where you can't actually receive RTE normally yet they're still liable for the tv tax

Obviously they have to get Sky.

H3llR4iser · 14-05-2014 1:02pm

mathie wrote: »

What percentage of the population currently pay? 70%?

I can guarantee that it'd drop to about 10 - 20% if it was optional.

They'd rather force people to pay that give people the choice.
Totalitarianism is 5hiting itself.

Really doubt so...most people simply don't seem to be able to live without TV, it's all they do in their free time, all they talk about and so on.

I'd say it's almost like a drug to most, they will watch and keep watching the screen for a long time even if they don't really have an interest in what it's airing - an adult living in Ireland spent an average of 3 hours 35 minutes per day in front of a TV in 2013, and judging from what I observe in the people I know, this figure might be somewhat underestimated - Nielsen report here: http://www.agbnielsen.com/Uploads/Ireland/TVCONSUMPTIONREPORT2013.pdf

A bit like cigarettes and alcohol, I doubt many people would just "give TV up" because they can save a few Euro by doing so...

rubadub · 14-05-2014 1:23pm

H3llR4iser wrote: »

Really doubt so...most people simply don't seem to be able to live without TV, it's all they do in their free time, all they talk about and so on.

He is not saying only 10-20% will watch tv, it's that few will subscribe to RTE, if optional then people might just get sky in or netflix or some alternative.

I wrote before about this, and why RTE viewing figures are not very relevant, and how the logic of high viewing figures meaning popularity is bogus

rubadub wrote: »

Viewing figures never impress me, when a service is forced upon you the use of it is no real sign of people being pleased with it, or particularly wanting it. During the late late show timeslot if they showed a dog running around a garden it would pull in massive figures, and so lots of advertising revenue, so they can then use this to justify a ludicrous wage for that dog, when any old dog could do it. Instead they keep the same old dog and run him into the ground till he's almost dead, on ludicrous wages.

People have spent the €13.30 per month on the licence fee and might not have spare cash for what they would have otherwise have gotten, e.g. a €7 per month subscription to netflix. I have no netflix sub, if RTE was a subscription service I would have taken netflix instead. Since RTE is forced upon me I have enough TV to make me not bother with netflix, as I would not get full use of it, I would watch some RTE stuff instead, just make do with it, netflix is not as good value as I already have a service.

I likened it to a cooker licence before, if you have a cooker you must buy a licence, the government will employ overpaid poor quality chefs, and deliver food to your door each day (and to your holiday home too) these chefs will get massive salary increases each year since figures show people eat the food, so they must like it. The food is delivered to your door each day, don't like it, tough, bin it, just like unwatched TV. Many would hate to see food go to waste or cannot afford an alternative, so they make do and eat it, doesn't mean they like it, but they would twist figures to make it appear people must love it, and would hate if they changed chef. Behind the scenes you will have helpers for the chefs, one just just putting on salt, another just putting on pepper, probably overqualified with years of chef training, or chemistry training, just like many weather people and news announcers are overqualified and overpaid.

Another would be a government newspaper, if they took over the irish times then sales for other papers would plummet, and use faulty logic that people must love it. People make do with what they are given or forced upon them, when the free metro papers first appeared I noticed far less other papers being bought in work.

wandatowell · 14-05-2014 1:26pm

I only paid cos an Inspector caught me out. Fairly nice fella for a a robbin' c*nt.

vidor · 14-05-2014 1:44pm

Still no sign of anything online about this?

!!! Warning to TV Licence Inspectors !!!

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