TV Licensing has confirmed the key rule it follows before anyone can be hit with a hefty fine. Speaking to the Mirror, a TV Licensing spokesperson said that avoiding the licence fee is a criminal offence and can result in a fine of up to £1,000.
TV Licensing's approach to enforcement
TV Licensing also said that if people don't pay when they need to, detection equipment may be used at addresses without a TV Licence. Stressing that "prosecution is a last resort" and that it wants to "help you avoid this", it pointed to one key rule it follows: it will always write to people first before taking any further action, such as sending an officer to an unlicensed property. TV Licensing said this approach gives customers plenty of notice to act before it's too late.
A TVL spokesperson told the Mirror: "TV Licensing has a duty to collect the licence fee from anyone who requires one. Detection vans are one of a number of approaches in our enforcement of the law, and we always write to customers before visiting a property to ensure customers have ample opportunity to obtain a licence."
Detection vans and how they work
Officials said they couldn't provide any details about detector vans. Sharing that information could help people avoid paying the TV Licence fee.
On its website, TV Licensing says: "We operate a fleet of vans equipped with advanced detection tools. These can identify TV receiving equipment at targeted addresses within minutes."
It explains: "As the responsible public authority for TV Licensing the BBC must ensure that collection and enforcement initiatives are effective and efficient, and use of detector vans is a part of this process. The BBC has a duty to secure arrangements such that those who fail in their obligations to become properly licensed are caught. Detection is only used when other, more cost-effective enforcement methods have been exhausted."
What happens if you don't have a licence
On its website, TV officials explain that people may not have a Licence for various reasons. "For example, some people without a Licence may have simply forgotten to buy one; others don't require a TV Licence, or may require one but deliberately evade paying for one", it notes.
If a Licence is not bought or there is no declaration stating one is not needed, it says: "If no response is received from an address, it will be listed for a visit from a visiting officer to enquire about the licensing requirements and to allow the purchase of a licence if one is required."
TV Licensing does not presume that anyone is committing an offence, however, it is fair to licence fee payers to ensure that those deliberately evading the payment of the licence fee understand that the penalty for licence fee evasion upon conviction could be a fine of up to £1,000 (or £2,000 in Guernsey).
What a TV Licence covers
A standard TV Licence costs £180, and a black-and-white licence costs £60.50. It covers a household for all TV channels, including BBC, ITV, Channel 4, U&Dave and international channels; pay TV services such as Sky, Virgin Media, and EE TV; live TV on streaming services like YouTube and Amazon Prime Video; and everything on BBC iPlayer. This includes watching, recording and downloading on any device.
