TV Licensing: Your Attention is Required

Two months ago we wrote about a very different sort of TV Licensing threatogram that didn't actually contain any threats.

We noted that it was a refreshing change to see TV Licensing adopt a more civilised tone in its usually caustic correspondence.

"Hopefully it will be a permanent arrangement and not just a short term measure to curry favour with the general public", we said, at a time when coronavirus was at its peak and people had far more pressing matters to worry about.

Well what do you know?! TV Licensing is back to its old tricks with its latest red-daubed missive, the "Your Attention is Required" threatogram.

In case you missed it, a scan of the letter appears at the head of this article (our thanks to our colleague Tiocfaidh ár lá at the TV Licence Resistance forums). The full text of the letter, which we shall deconstruct later on, appears below:

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YOUR ATTENTION IS REQUIRED

Dear Sir/Madam,

Despite having written to this address previously, our database shows that [full address and postcode]  is still not covered by a TV Licence. That means it's against the law for anyone to watch or record live TV programmes on any channel, or to download or watch BBC programmes on iPlayer at this address. This applies to any device you may use.

Act now to avoid further investigation.

You need to do one of the following:

• Buy at TV Licence

You can either pay £157.50 now, or spread the cost with a Direct Debit.

Go to tvlicensing.co.uk/pay

• Move Your TV Licence

To move your licence from an old address visit tvlicensing.co.uk/moving

Or call our 24/7 automated phone service on 0300 790 6097.

If a TV Licensing isn't needed at this address, or if the property is currently unoccupied, please let us know at tvlicensing.co.uk/noTV

Don't risk prosecution and a fine.

As long as this property remains unlicensed our investigation will continue. If you fail to get in touch, you risk prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000, plus any legal costs and/or compensation you may be ordered to pay. There is a 99% conviction rate for licence fee evasion cases determined by the courts in England and Wales.

For more information and other ways to contact us, please turn over. And if you've recently bought or moved a licence, thank you. Our records will be updated.

Yours faithfully,

[Signature]

[Name]

Collections Manager

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As promised earlier, we shall now take a closer look at the key wording of this letter. It is important to realise that TV Licensing chooses its words for maximum impact, but when those words are qualified and explained - which TV Licensing never does - then the occupier should realise how little there is to worry about:

• "YOUR ATTENTION IS REQUIRED": It isn't. As mentioned regularly on the TV Licensing Blog, anyone who has no legal business with TV Licensing - e.g. they do not legally require a TV licence - does not need to afford it any attention at all. People in this situation should not be doing TV Licensing's work on its behalf.

• "Despite having written to this address previously...": This is an immediate attempt to put the recipient on the back foot by making them feel obliged to respond. They aren't and they shouldn't.

• "...our database shows that [full address and postcode] is still not covered by a TV Licence": This may well be correct, although TV Licensing is well known for threatening the occupiers of properties with a valid TV licence. The inclusion of the address is to make the recipient feel that its content is targeted specifically at them. TV Licensing hopes that if the recipient feels they are under personal scrutiny, they will feel more persuaded into paying for a TV licence irrespective of their legal need to do so. Whenever possible TV Licensing likes to refer to the occupier of an unlicensed property by name for the same reason.

• "Act now to avoid further investigation": Anyone without the legal need for a TV licence is under no obligation to act. Acting provides TV Licensing with information to which it has no legal entitlement - information it could potentially can use and abuse later on. TV Licensing cannot be trusted with confidential personal information, so no-one should be volunteering any. TV Licensing is abysmal with data security.

• "If a TV Licensing isn't needed at this address, or if the property is currently unoccupied, please let us know at tvlicensing.co.uk/noTV": This statement confirms that TV Licensing has no idea at all what the licensable status of the property actually is. It is hoping that this fishing exercise will persuade the occupier into providing that information. Making a No Licence Needed declaration is a futile effort. Doing so rarely stops TV Licensing's enquiries at that property, despite any pretence from TV Licensing to the contrary. TV Licensing simply cannot believe that anyone can survive without the legal need for a TV licence. We know, as a matter of fact, that the presence of a No Licence Needed declaration flags the property for special attention.

• "Don't risk prosecution and a fine": The occupier of a correctly unlicensed property is at no increased risk of prosecution or fine by failing to respond, as they are under no legal obligation to do anything.

• "As long as this property remains unlicensed our investigation will continue": This is probably the only honest sentence in the whole letter.

• "If you fail to get in touch, you risk prosecution and a fine of up to £1,000, plus any legal costs and/or compensation you may be ordered to pay": The occupier of a correctly unlicensed property is at no increased risk of prosecution or fine by failing to respond, as they are under no legal obligation to do anything. Even in the case of someone caught "bang to rights" evading the TV licence fee, the Magistrates' Court Sentencing Guidelines indicate that the court considers TV licence evasion a very trivial offence, which usually attracts a Band A or Band B fine (likely to be well under £200 for most people convicted). In some cases the court will impose a conditional discharge instead of a fine.

• "There is a 99% conviction rate for licence fee evasion cases determined by the courts in England and Wales": This is deliberately worded in such a way that makes it sound like conviction is inevitable, but that is not actually the case. TV Licensing presents these figures in a very misleading way, as discussed in detail in one of our previous articles. Keeping it brief, only about half of "Code 8s" - those visits where TV Licensing considers it has gathered enough evidence to prosecute - result in the occupier being convicted. Many cases are dropped long before they get to court. In Scotland convictions are even rarer, as cases are usually dealt with by an out of court disposal known as a Fiscal Fine.

• "And if you've recently bought or moved a licence, thank you. Our records will be updated": Further confirmation that TV Licensing doesn't really know what the licensable status of the property actually is, so is desperately fishing for information.

We hope you've found this analysis useful. Remember correctly unlicensed folks - NEVER VOLUNTEER INFORMATION TO TV LICENSING.

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