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| Capita TV Licensing goon Ian Doyle, who was exposed this week by The Daily Mail. |
For years we have been highlighting the unscrupulous and dishonest tactics employed by certain TV Licensing goons employed by BBC contractor Capita Business Services Ltd.
Given this week's damning press coverage (see here and here for starters), it appears that the rest of the nation is finally waking up the heinous commission-chasing antics of some of Capita's finest.
The BBC, in the finest arse saving traditions of the organisation, denies any knowledge of Capita wrongdoing, but the warning signs have been clear to see for years.
A recent Twitter poll, conducted by the TV Licensing Blog, confirms that 97% of 969 people that voted disbelieve the BBC's claim that it knew nothing about allegations of foul play against Capita TV Licensing goons.
In today's article, we explore some of the clear warning signs about the conduct of Capita TV Licensing employees that were highlighted to the BBC. but which the BBC chose to deny and ignore.
1. Yorkshire Capita TV Licensing goon threatens occupier with search warrant:
At the start of 2012 we wrote about an aggressive TV Licensing goon operating in the West Yorkshire area.
The angry goon, with spittle flying and his nostrils flared, broke TV Licensing rules by threatening the occupier of a Halifax property with a search warrant unless he allowed access.
Later on it turned out that the BBC had picked up our commentary of the incident and questioned Capita about it. In its response to the BBC, Capita denied any association with the goon on the basis that he refused to show any ID and his paperwork "looked wrong". Clearly Capita is under the illusion that its TV Licensing henchmen would never, ever attempt to conceal their identities.
Despite Capita's pleas of innocence, it later transpired that the aggressive door-knocker was indeed one of its TV Licensing goons by the name of Philip Oldcorn.
2. Hartlepool Capita TV Licensing goon forces door handle:
As we reported in late 2012, a Capita TV Licensing goon was caught on camera forcing the front door handle of a Hartlepool property after the lone female occupier tried to leave him out in the cold.
The incident was reported to the police and the goon in question eventually came out with some cock and bull story about snatching at the door handle in an attempt to free his trapped foot. Even if that was true, which it almost certainly was not, quite what his foot was doing over the threshold remains unclear.
A month after the incident we sought information from the BBC about it. It transpired that despite the involvement of the police, Capita had failed to even mention it. The first the BBC knew was when we started sniffing around for information.
3. TV Licensing detector van collision:
In early 2014 we reported how a TV Licensing detector van had been damaged during a bizarre game of cat and mouse in Stoke on Trent. These vans are owned by the BBC, but operated by Capita as part of the TV Licensing operations contract.
During the incident the detector van, registration number VX09 VEK, was being pursued by the legally-licence-free occupier of a property it had earlier had under surveillance. We do not doubt for one moment the identity of the van, not least because we have seen several others with similar registration marks. The way the vans are fitted out is also very distinctive.
The two vehicles collided on at least three separate occasions as they raced down a narrow country lane. Video footage of the incident suggests that the detector van must have sustained significant damage to its bodywork, so we decided to ask the BBC for information about it.
The BBC replied that it held no such information. In other words, it would appear that Capita had not informed the BBC that one of its drivers had played dodgems with a detector van. Truly astonishing.
4. Teesside TV Licensing goon lashes out at the occupier of an unlicensed property:
In mid-2014 video footage emerged of a Capita TV Licensing goon, subsequently identified as Oswald Norton despite his reluctance to show ID, striking out at the occupier of an unlicensed property.
The occupier had answered the door to the TV Licensing man with the camera rolling. After exchanging differing opinions on the legalities of the TV licence fee, Norton withdrew from the property and the occupier followed him down the road. Norton arrived back at his vehicle and clearly objected to the fact that the occupier had filmed its registration number, so he struck out at the camera.
Thinking that Norton would have run to his bosses to get his side of the story in first, we asked the BBC for further information about this incident. The visit record released by the BBC made no mention at all of the fact that the goon had lashed out, so presumably Capita hadn't considered it noteworthy enough to include. The visit record did make brief reference to the occupier filming.
We know that complaints were made to both the BBC and TV Licensing about this incident, so we're a bit confused about why so little information was forthcoming when we asked about it.
These are just four incidents out of many that should have sent clear warning shots to the BBC about the conduct of Capita TV Licensing employees.
For the BBC to say "we knew nothing" is complete and utter claptrap.
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3 comments:
Of course the BBC knows. As far as they're concerned the end justifies the means. i.e. Maximising revenue.
I'm also finding it massively implausible that the BBC didn't know all this was going on. It's just unbelievable.
Strange the BBC never seems to know whats going on in ts name ..however they "know" every un-licenced address in UK is breaking the TVL laws
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