TV Licensing Offers Refunds for Bilsdale Transmitter Disruption

The BBC has offered TV licence refunds to customers severely impacted by the Bilsdale transmitter fire.

Television, radio and mobile communications services were disrupted when fire broke out at the 314 metre high guyed tubular steel mast on 10th August 2021.

The transmitter covers Teesside, North Yorkshire and southern County Durham, delivering services to an estimated 570,000 homes. Of those, around 100,000 homes are still experiencing disruption more than six weeks later.

Because of the transmitter's location within the North Yorkshire Moors National Park it has not been straightforward for its operator, Arqiva, to effect repairs or erect a temporary replacement.

A few days ago, when I was out on my travels (as I have been a lot recently, so apologies for the lack of articles), a Twitter commentator joked that she would be expecting a refund of her TV licence fee due to the disruption.

I replied, as I usually do, that TV Licensing is in the business of taking money from people, even where no payment is due. It is not in the business of offering refunds to people, however justified their claims might be.

Having said that, you could have knocked me over with a feather when the announcement came a few days later that refunds would be made in certain limited circumstances. Of course there's always a catch with TV Licensing and the eligibility criteria, as described by a TV Licensing PR harlot in the quote below, means virtually no-one will be eligible.

Announcing the move, the aforementioned TV Licensing PR harlot said: "Customers in the affected area who have been unable to receive TV coverage for over a month, and who are unable to view BBC programming through BBC iPlayer and on cable and satellite platforms, will be eligible for a refund or be offered a free extension to their TV Licence to cover the months affected.

"We are continuing to work with our suppliers Arqiva to ensure services in the affected area are resumed as soon as possible."

So to get a partial refund the customer will need to prove to TV Licensing's satisfaction that their usual signal comes from Bilsdale, they have been without Bilsdale service for more than a month, they do not have access to TV programmes via a cable or satellite services and they cannot access TV programmes online.

By our reckoning that's about a dozen households that are eligible!

The BBC has been criticised for its failure to offer refunds to every affected household.

Local politician Ben Houchen, the Conservative Mayor of Tees Valley, told the Northern Echo: "Although it is great to see the BBC recognise the impact of the Bilsdale mast fire by offering to give out some refunds, there are thousands of people across Teesside, Darlington and Hartlepool who have been affected by this and won't get a penny under their policy.

"The people hardest hit by the fire are those who rely on TV and radio to know what is happening in their communities and they have felt cut off from the world by going and days or even weeks without signal.

"Their services may have been restored now, but the BBC should still offer a small token gesture that won't cause them a great deal of strain but will mean the world to those who have been without their TV and radio. You wouldn't expect to pay a phone or broadband bill if you had been cut off for weeks so why should this be any different?"

Andy McDonald, the Labour MP for Middlesbrough, said: The consequences of the fire at Bilsdale mast are still being felt by many people across the region.

"Television has been a lifeline for many throughout the past 18 months, particularly for those who are vulnerable and shielding. It seems only fair that those still without television reception receive a TV licence rebate."

Alex Cunningham, the Labour MP for Stockton South, took a slightly different view, saying that transmitter operator Arqiva should take greater responsibility.

He said: "The onus is on Arqiva as the service operator to resolve this and, while the BBC's announcement is welcome, it is Arqiva who are responsible for the maintenance of the mast and the company should not be let off the hook. Perhaps they should meet the costs of the refund as goodwill gesture.

"This issue is causing frustration for many people. For many older people who rely on the TV and radio for companionship, the lack of services is having a negative impact on their mental wellbeing.

"I hope Arqiva and the landowner are engaging constructively to ensure this issue is resolved as soon as possible."

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