Why is it?

[Tiffany]

Guy who rang last said, 'who are you', I said 'who did you want'. guy said 'Andrew' I said 'nope that isn't me, you've got the wrong number'. He then just rang off, so rude, didn't even say sorry.

I didn't know that about those detector vans, I remember them showing all the equipment in them too & a scan thing that showed who had T.V's on. Well, well well, it was all a hoax then. Devious b**tards

[Tonyblack]

The detector vans do work - sort of. But I'm told the performance they have to go to to try and use the equipment is plain silly and if you have a block of flats then you can forget it.

[Jan Van Quirm]

But they are (or used to be) almost useless at detecting anything and even if they were the information gathered by them is not acceptable in a court - unless that's changed in the last 15 years or so.

I used to work in the courts... Unless you give permission, even the police or certificated/court bailiffs do not have the 'right' to enter any premises without a warrant of some kind, which has to be applied for and issued by a magistrate or a judge (even in a civil court they have go through a procedure and obtain a court order or judgment and you would have the right to defend it so they cannot do this without giving you notice). The licence inspectors have absolutely no right to demand entry into anyone's dwelling if you do not consent -regardless of whether you have a TV which does or does not have a licence.

The fact that they think your not having a TV is suspicious is beside the point. Even if you live in flats with other households who do have TVs (and do or do not have licences for them) - which presumably makes it harder for them to prove you have an unlicensed set, they would be illegally abusing your human and citizenship rights by forcibly obtaining entry to your house without your consent or a search warrant or equivalent.

They try these hectoring tactics simply to save on the expense of having to take you to court 'on suspicion' in other words. And you would win and you could very likely have an excellent case for harassment for definite and probably defamation too (for the threatening letters in a shared mailbox)

[Tonyblack]

Absolutely right Jan. The sad thing is that these tactics do work on a lot of people and a lot of people who haven't broken any laws feel they have to give information and allow the inspectors access. Won't work on me though - I almost want them to try andget a search warrant.

[Tiffany]

This makes interesting reading, but I couldn't see anywhere where the T.V. licensing people have a right to go into your house.
http://www.yourrights.org.uk/yourrights ... your-home/

[Tonyblack]

This makes interesting reading, but I couldn't see anywhere where the T.V. licensing people have a right to go into your house.
http://www.yourrights.org.uk/yourrights ... your-home/

They don't Tiff. The only way they could is like Jan says if they applied for a warrant.

As I said, a guy phoned me up yesterday after reading my story. He was in his 80s and living alone and the licence people have called to his house four times. They haven't shown ID and they have demanded to enter his home. He has, quite rightly, refused.

As to ID - who knows what ID is supposed to look like? I could probably knock up a convincing looking ID card on my computer in half an hour.

[Calon]

I have to be honest and say I have for so long hunted the aisles for a decent tin opener. You buy them the bloody things break. Beans on toast has been saved inumerable times by my trusty Swiss Army Knife which has a tin opener design that is simple easy to use and never EVER breaks. It is interesting that the tin opener was invented some years after the invention of canned food. They just used a knife back then. And we dare to complain...how decadent of us.

[Jan Van Quirm]

Followed Tiff's link to the Liberty - for starters there is no mention of TV licence inspectors/officials on that list...

This is the clincher anyway

General Powers of Officials to Enter Your Home
Officials are subject to different rules of procedure because each is governed by a different statutory source, and there is no general code which covers their conduct. Normally any official must produce evidence of identity and authority before entering and may not insist on entering without first giving you at least 24 hours’ notice. If, after such notice, you refuse to let him or her in, the Magistrates’ Court may give authority to enter without your consent, by force if necessary. In general, if someone asks to come into your home, claiming to be an official, you should:

Ask to see the caller’s identity card.
Ask the caller what authority he or she has to enter your home.

Bottom line is they cannot come in without your consent and certainly not by just turning up at your door and demanding to come in. Officials - and as Tony says ID is pretty easy to fake - must obtain some kind of a search warrant, a search order or warrant of (house)possession / execution (goods to auction) / return of goods (unpaid HP items) which you will have had some notification of from the courts long before they could come knocking (civil disputes will specify what they're searching for or why) or in some cases an injunction which orders you to allow access to your dwelling for a specified purpose (such as to allow an ex to collect property usually in the company of a police officer / bailiff and/or solicitor).

Case dismissed as no case to answer. Costs to Tony

[Calon]

The only people or persons who can come into your house without a warrent are Customs and Excise. They dont need a thing.

[Calon]

everyone else does.

[Calon]

The whole tv detector vans and detecting a tv is nonsense. If a wall is 1 or 2 ft think and your tv is next to next doors tv there is no way to differentiate between either signal. TV licensing have no authority of entry. Ever at all.

[Calon]

And why is it people use 'of' as a verb? ..I should of...I could of...oooo now that gets me.

[Tonyblack]

I have to be honest and say I have for so long hunted the aisles for a decent tin opener. You buy them the bloody things break. Beans on toast has been saved inumerable times by my trusty Swiss Army Knife which has a tin opener design that is simple easy to use and never EVER breaks. It is interesting that the tin opener was invented some years after the invention of canned food. They just used a knife back then. And we dare to complain...how decadent of us.

I saw an interesting documentary about a British expedition to find the North West Passage from the Atlantic to the Pacific, The crew of the ships were well stocked with what was a new invention then - canned food. They had loads of it and therefore weren't worried about getting iced in as they could last for a couple of years on the stocks they took.

Only problem was - the cans they used were sealed using lead solder and the crews all got lead poisoning. They went crazy before they died. When they realised that the food was killing them some of them reverted to cannibalism. The Franklin Expedition.

[Straw Walker]

And why is it people use 'of' as a verb? ..I should of...I could of...oooo now that gets me.

It's obviously a corruption of have, ie. Could have. My least favourite word is 'get' or even worse 'gotton'. Sorry, I feel a new thread coming on.

[Tonyblack]

And why is it people use 'of' as a verb? ..I should of...I could of...oooo now that gets me.

It's obviously a corruption of have, ie. Could have. My least favourite word is 'get' or even worse 'gotton'. Sorry, I feel a new thread coming on.

Go for it!