Do You Still Have a BBC TV Licence?
In the News
Half a million homes have ditched their TV licence in favour of alternative media claims Essex Live. Do you still have one, do you receive yours free or discounted? What is your favourite alternative to BBC TV licence using?
PhilipMarc Thanks for that. I usually watch Netflix if anything. Enjoying Monk at the moment. If we abroad I won’t have to deal with the BBC. What a mess that company has become.
eyeballkerry We are hoping to retire to Northern Italy, but that will be a few years yet. You are 100% right when you say the BBC is now a mess. I remember Monk I used to love those programmes shall be having a looksie on Netflix for that this week. Thanks for the reminder 
EmmaWright762 I don’t usually enjoy murder mystery dramas but really enjoy Monk. I like the fact that sometimes you know who had done it and other times you try to work out who did it.
Yes we still have our tv license and we won't be getting rid of it. We watch our TV a lot and use it for lots of different channels and streaming services.
Source: www.tvlicensing.co.uk/check-if-you-need-one
Do I watch/use those services? No.
And they can take a hike with the threat of scaring people into forcing people to pay even if it's not needed.
I've not had a TV licence for about 7 years now I think. I'm not a fan of the BBC at all, its grossly inefficient and I don't like its political stance which is left of centre. Also back in 2017 7% percent of the licence fee was to pay for their pension deficit for pensions they should never have received which were far too generous and above industry levels for many of their staff. BBC revenue has fallen and this pension shortfall is a fixed cost per year so can only imagine its a lot more than 7% now. I have no interest in funding this pension deficit.
However my mother has a free TV license so I watch any BBC stuff I want to watch there. However in recent times all I've watched is a few 'Impossible' episodes and 'the wheel'. However I've also seen a little bit of Wimbledon and the Olympics while there but I'm not that interested in that.
TV isn't super important to me. I watch youtube and some streaming services but mainly watch older material I have on a NAS drive which are DVD rips mostly.
It's about £170 a year now so £1700 over ten years. It's significant money. If you like the BBC then fair enough pay for it but I really think its unfair that people without a TV licence can't watch live channels funded by advertising. Those channels lose out on advertising revenue because homes don't have a TV licence. It's quite possible another half a million homes will give up their TV licence this year and the same again the year after. The BBC revenue is shrinking fast and this damages advertising funded channels too.
iplayer should move to a subscription model and live BBC channels should have advertising. It's getting to a point where only a minority of people have an interest in the BBC and its typically older people that like the BBC and younger people who aren't interested so its only going one way. A typical BBC production is grossly overpriced and uncompetitive.
BonzoBanana Good for you Bonzo, I gave my TV away to a neighbour just after lockdown due to the increase in electricity prices and not wanting to give the TV license people any excuse to be knocking on my door when I stopped my tv licence. I only watch itvx (not live) and netflix since I got married (he already had netflix). 
Yes for now, but really considering not renewing when it ends, all the cover ups from the BBC doesn't sit well with me, and paying them while suspended is sickening
We don’t watch BBC or iPlayer or go on any BBC websites etc in our house. I did stop paying about 6 months ago but then the ‘letters’ started so I got worried and set it up again. We only use the telly’s in our house for Netflix, Prime, paramount plus and YouTube.
Sarahjb76 If they are the only channels you watch you are paying the BBC TV licence for no other reason than to not receive nasty letters.
EmmaWright762 It’s so confusing 
One minute I think I need it to watch these things and another I think I don’t. As you say though, I think I am just paying it to avoid any letters! 
X
I do, but wish I didn't, it's about £46 per quarter I could have in my purse! Tv is so dire these days you'd have to subscribe to everything in order to watch anything worthwhile. I don't want to cancel as I know I would inadvertently watch something I shouldn't and get caught!
Lynibis That's how l felt at first although getting rid of my TV altogether helped in exchange for watching stuff on my laptop instead. Then l had a list as to what I could and couldn't watch nearby until l became used to it.
EmmaWright762 that's a good idea I will google and find out all the things I mustn't watch. I might even get rid of Sky as I rarely watch anything on there anyway.
Lynibis Just disconnect the aerial and satellite connection and use streaming services. Yes there are some live channels over the internet but don't use them. If you make a single mistake and watch by mistake you won't automatically be caught. You can watch live videos on youtube but only for minor channels which aren't professional channels. I.e. if a youtuber does a live video which is not broadcast on satelite or aerial that is ok. As far as I understand it if you watch BBC programs on foreign channels using a VPN that is not illegal if streamed. It is against the channels terms and conditions and not illegal. The BBC has advertising funded channels that are streamable and show BBC programs in the UK like the 'U' channels and they are legal to watch without a TV licence.
I've been watching the old 70s BBC scifi show on youtube 'Survivors' and it maybe a pirate source but its on youtube and streamed and I watch it without a TV licence. This is an issue between the BBC and Youtube and not my concern.
In Greece there is a TV licence component added into your electricity bill, the more you use the more you pay. it's only pennies but everybody pays it, it seems a fairer way to police it.
Auntielettie It's not actually fairer if a large percentage of the population have no interest in those channels. Yes we should be taxed for essential services even if we don't use them like the fire brigade but no we shouldn't be compulsory taxed for TV entertainment.
Sarahjb76 hermionegranger Yes! Is this a competition or a giveaway regardless of entry as I would like £200 too!
No! We never watch live tv and don't even have aerials plugged in to the TVs. We have an extensive collection of dvd's which we never get tired of.
Personally, I think all BBC services should be subscription based. At least then those who want it can pay for it and those that don’t won’t get it and won’t have to pay. 
I find it completely absurd that TV watchers have to pay the BBC to watch ANY station! That's not fair at all.
I only stream and have disconnected the aerial, although I've never heard of anyone getting a fine because they are watching iplayer 
I have not had a tv licence for the past 6 years.
I don't even have a TV.
I use my Samsung Smartphone for everything.
Besides, I'm definitely not a fan of the woke BBC and would not watch any programmes they produce.
Am old school and prefer to watch TV as my favourite shows are on so I have to pay for a TV licence
Haven't paid for a TV licence to the A-BBC (Anti-British Broadcasting Corporation) in years and never will again. May A-BBC HQ burn to the ground very soon.
I do still buy a licence, but I’m thinking of dropping it as I’ve netflix, Amazon Prime and BT, I never watch anything on terrestrial TV, I stopped watching the NEWS, because of it’s woke left wing bias during COVID.
Yes I pay for tv licence as I watch itv bbc . As well as sky q n netflix. So have to pay and it's gone up!
hermionegranger no but recommend 2nd hand cats they are the best. My old 2 were 2nd hand I knew them from babies so transition to mine was easier for my old boy who suffered from anxiety. His sister struggled more but she hated physical change. Staff were staff aslong as they cuddled her cleaned her tray fed her a few times a week she wasn't fussed which member of the team did it
I do as there's a few things I like on the beeb. My daughter watches some of the documentary and I like bbc radio 6 on in the car
hermionegranger If anyone replies tell them to consider me too, lol. We all need more money hermoine but this is not really the place to ask. Have a little sense and look at more realistic approaches such as googling for grants etc
I do but I begrudge having it when I have a Sky subscription. It’s way past its sell by date now, the BBC should go commercial like other television forums. The fact not paying it can get you a criminal record is ridiculous in terms of it being an entertainment mandatory fee. I agree that people should also pay for what they use but this is so out of date.
Gromit22 Yes the crime is the TV licence itself not people not paying a compulsory tax on owning and using a TV with live services. Those who like and want BBC services should pay for it and those that are happy with free services like ITV, Channel 4 etc should not be hassled to pay it. That seems to be the most moral solution but that is not where we are.
Gromit22 I totally agree with you Gromit, so many people pay for the bbc tv license simply out of fear of getting a criminal record or over the top horrible threatening letters. If they want to have adverts or charge a subscription I might consider them again.
I have a TV license purely and simply because roughly 5/6 years ago I had a knock on my front door by a tv license person and was reminded that I had forgotten to renew my license. Long story short a few weeks later I received a £400 fine in the post !!!!!!!!!
reannsgran That sounds like you were using BBC services or watching live tv so the fine was applicable I guess. It really annoys me I can't watch live tv that isn't the BBC but I still don't watch live TV and of course don't use BBC TV services either so I'm impossible to fine. I watch all the BBC TV (a couple of quiz shows mainly) at my mother's house who lives nearby but it wouldn't be a great sacrifice to stop watching those anyway. The TV Licence people have no right of entry and you can simply say 'no thank you' and ask them to leave your property and shut the door.
BonzoBanana I hadn’t long lost my son so I was all over the place mentally. The ‘normal’ me would no way have let them in !
reannsgran Yeah they take you by surprise and seem mildly threatening and try to seem like they have authority to be there but really they are no different to door to door salesmen you can just shut the door and forget about it. I think its important we don't watch the BBC when we don't have a TV licence though otherwise if statistics show that people aren't buying TV licences but still watching the BBC they will just add the cost to council tax or something in a few years. The government needs to understand a huge percentage of the population aren't interested in the BBC and supporting it. It needs to be charged only to those who want the service.
reannsgran sorry for your loss. It’s easy to forget things when you’re mourning. I would have appealed in your circumstances.
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