How we gave up the TV Licence - Hassle Free

[British Red]

Part of homesteading for us is using our money wisely because we don't have much actual income to pay external expenses

About 5 years ago, we gave up the Television Licence because it just wasn't value for us.

Since then we've saved over £1,000, got access to fantastic TV for much less money.

We've also done it legally, without any nasty letters or enforcement visits! In this week's video we explain how we
did it.

 

[MartinK9]

I use my harassment letters as fire starters.... another saving

 

[demented dale]

Part of homesteading for us is using our money wisely because we don't have much actual income to pay external expenses

About 5 years ago, we gave up the Television Licence because it just wasn't value for us.

Since then we've saved over £1,000, got access to fantastic TV for much less money.

We've also done it legally, without any nasty letters or enforcement visits! In this week's video we explain how we
did it.

My friend demanded that they cease and desist from sending their signal to her aerial. She threatened them with court action. Best to say they show that many repeats that you'll be using last years licence. I am nearly 57 and I dont even know what tv licence looks like x ps bushcraft series with Ray mears was pretty decent though

 

[FerlasDave]

I use my harassment letters as fire starters.... another saving

Are they yours or are they addressed to “occupier”? …Whoever that is

 

[FerlasDave]

We use Amazon prime a lot, mostly because packages can be sent easily and we have subscriptions to things like toilet roll and pet food. But I really enjoy the discovery plus add on. Lots of outdoor and nature/wildlife shows on there, and it’s cheaper than some other services like paramount. Well worth a look if you’ve not seen it yet!

 

[demographic]

We've been legally licence free for a few years now.
Watch Netflix and Amazon plus Ch4 (mostly for their very good news) but no live programmes.
Also no BBC TV (which I have to say is no great loss, the news just isn't news and the only part I miss is early showings of Attenborough's stuff). ITV was never a loss.

 

[British Red]

Are they yours or are they addressed to “occupier”? …Whoever that is

Isn't that Theo? Strange last name Ccupier.

 

[MartinK9]

Are they yours or are they addressed to “occupier”? …Whoever that is

I'm still waiting for a visit after a decade..... despite waiting in on the days they say they're coming round

 

[demographic]

Isn't that Theo? Strange last name Ccupier.

Lenny Henry, 1987?

 

[brambles]

How do you save over £1000 by not paying a £159 a year licence for 5 years? Is that the "new maths" we hear about?

 

[British Red]

How do you save over £1000 by not paying a £159 a year licence for 5 years? Is that the "new maths" we hear about?

We gave up the licence and stopped paying full price for streaming services (did you watch the video, we talked a lot about this )?

More than two thirds of the UK have streaming AND a TV licence and many have SKY as well. At one point SKY were charging an elderly relative over £70 a month because they didn't know to demand a better deal (when we cancelled for them they offered to reduce it by more than half)

The whole point of this video is not to just trundle along paying for things that you aren't getting value from

 

[Woody girl]

I havnt had a working TV for many years, even after cancelling, I still got letters threatening me that I was breaking the law despite the fact that the two years wasn't up.
I refuse to phone them every few years to tell them I don't need a licence, as I agreed on the phone that I would let them know if I needed another licence. As far as I'm concerned, it was a verbal agreement, it is still legaly binding.
I still don't have a working TV, don't watch it at all..obviously, so I don't need a licence.
End of matter.!

I've been threatened with visits, non have materialised , and if I did get the knock, I'd just say no thank you, and close the door.
After all, they are door salesmen, and have no right of entry to check, even if you invite them in to do so. So don't do that.
Eventually they stopped sending letters as I just popped them back in the post with return to sender written on the front.
Eventualy I also wrote, I do not wish to receive threatening letters from this person, on it in big red marker.
The letters stopped.

 

[slowworm]

When I had a property with no TV and no internet (so no chance of live BBC) I could never stop the letters which I think crossed the line into unacceptable threatening behaviour.

Even though we have a licence now we hardly watch any BBC stuff so could easily live without it if things get tight.

 

[Jared]

BlackBeltBarrister has a whole series of videos about the BBC License fee, and in particular how badily the wording is on the TV Licensing website and letters.

Like you can watch some stuff on iPlayer without a license fee, namely anything from S4C.

 

[Tengu]

I just ignore them.

 

[SaraR]

I havnt had a working TV for many years, even after cancelling, I still got letters threatening me that I was breaking the law despite the fact that the two years wasn't up.
I refuse to phone them every few years to tell them I don't need a licence, as I agreed on the phone that I would let them know if I needed another licence. As far as I'm concerned, it was a verbal agreement, it is still legaly binding.
I still don't have a working TV, don't watch it at all..obviously, so I don't need a licence.
End of matter.!

I've been threatened with visits, non have materialised , and if I did get the knock, I'd just say no thank you, and close the door.
After all, they are door salesmen, and have no right of entry to check, even if you invite them in to do so. So don't do that.
Eventually they stopped sending letters as I just popped them back in the post with return to sender written on the front.
Eventualy I also wrote, I do not wish to receive threatening letters from this person, on it in big red marker.
The letters stopped.

Yeah, I found the tone really annoying too. I don’t appreciate getting threats when I’m not doing anything wrong. They also had freepost everything if you wanted to sign up, but nothing to say that you didn’t have a TV. Now you can do it online, but they’ll still waste money sending you a letter every 6 months, because clearly they don’t believe you.

 

[HereBeDragons]

Thought I’d chip in my ten pence.
Haven’t had a TV licence since 1993.
When I moved to North Wales I simply didn’t own one. When I moved in with my now wife, we just read books and listened to music.
When the kids came along we bought a computer with a big screen and DVD player. Then we bought a flat screen monitor and DVD player.
A few years back we had to renew said monitor and ended up having to buy a telly. We have no aerials on the house. One day, over 10 years ago got a visit from one of those licensing Charlies. I invited him in and challenged him to get some reception on my device. Made him a cup of tea, he stayed about half an hour before giving up and going away. Haven’t heard from them since.

 

[Macaroon]

In the UK, as a law abiding householder, who else has the right or the authority to send unsolicited and faux-threatening letters to your address, and to be in a position to send third party goons, who can and have tried to be very intimidating and threatening, demanding that you prove that you do not do something that they might be able to charge you for?

I'm in my mid 70's, and have never had a television; I have informed them of every change of address and of the fact that I still have nothing to do with television. I even let one of them into the house, many years ago, having fallen for the 'let me check, then we're gone forever' lie, but they have hounded me with the fake prosecution letters and the third-party visits carried out by people who are paid on commission and who, allow me to assure you, will never gain access to my property.

The best of it is that I do listen to R4, in the car and at both ends of my day, and if things were different I'd be quite happy to pay, what, £80.00. p.a. for that; but you can't. Seems it's beyond the wit of man to differentiate between the Home Service on the wireless and astronomical salaries for people who have no need of more salt and I don't know who they are anyway.

Please tell me I'm wrong and that any other enterprise could operate in the same heavy handed and deceptive way to provide themselves with funding?

 

[Gill]

TWo friends worked as tv licensing officers for a long time , they are both based here in Scotland and there is only a handfull of them in the whole country .They were all over the full country chapping doors even the highlands and islands .they dont have much authority and there is no such thing as a tv detector van its a myth . So i would not pay it either

 

[Herman30]

In Finland we pay for tv license via tax. So even a person without tv has to pay for it.

The television fee in Finland was between €244.90 and €253.80 per year for each household with a television. It was the primary source of funding for Yleisradio (Yle). In 2013 it was replaced with the Yle public broadcasting tax (Finnish: yleisradiovero, Swedish: rundradioskatt), a progressive income tax up to €163 per person. People with low incomes, under the age of eighteen years, or resident in Åland are exempt from the tax.