Forum for former BBC staff

Forum for former BBC staff
http://www.ex-bbc.net/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl >> News and Comment >> TV Detector Vans http://www.ex-bbc.net/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.pl?num=1470435160 Message started by Administrator on Aug 5^th, 2016, 10:13pm

Title: TV Detector Vans
Post by Administrator on Aug 5^th, 2016, 10:13pm

The Daily Telegraph reports, here, that "The BBC is to 'spy' on internet users by using a new generation of "TV Detector Vans".

The front page story will "lay to rest the myth of TV detector vans".

Meanwhile here in The Guardian, this page answers the question:-
"How do TV Detector Vans Work?",
or perhaps it doesn't.

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans
Post by WG on Aug 6^th, 2016, 11:09am

Perhaps the time has come to introduce a students rate for a BBC Licence, since at the moment detector vans hitting university "digs" are in for very rich pickings.

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans
Post by Administrator on Aug 6^th, 2016, 11:25pm

"The Register" has a technical look at the situation, here.

It the final paragraph, it advises viewers to pay the TV Licence as "it costs a lot of money to make things that people enjoy".

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans (vaguely related!)
Post by JohnW on Aug 10^th, 2016, 10:04am

I learned an interesting fact the other day, which is not entirely irrelevant here.

My mother's now 97, and following a stroke last year we've just moved her into a home where she can be looked after properly, 24/7.

As part of the 'clearing out' operation, we found her TV License, which acknowledged her as having a 'free license' for that residence.
But since this was now 'invalid' (as she's no longer resident at that address) I wanted to let the TV Licensing organisation know ... only to find that she still HAS to be issued with a new license for the room she lives in at the home, as each occupied room has a door on it!!

Not that this would make the work of the detector vans any more difficult, as many of the rooms have their TVs switched on almost as soon as they wake the patients up each morning.

Seemingly it doesn't matter that in my mother's case she's 97 years old (and is therefore entitled to watch 'for free' anyway!) or even that she's almost blind now! They don't issue Care homes with a blanket license to cover all the old inhabitants - I guess that would be just too simple!

Ah well. I suppose "it all makes work for the working man to do" (to quote Flanders & Swann).

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans
Post by WG on Aug 13^th, 2016, 8:55am

I have never come across a detector van-and have never known anybody being caught out. Have any readers or their friends had a "knock at the door"?

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans
Post by JohnW on Aug 13^th, 2016, 2:47pm

I guess that since most people coming here were members of staff, I can say with certainty that as a young technician we were told very early on in our 'career' that it was 'a sackable offence' to be caught without a TV license (it also covered Radio back in the day!!).
Can't say if that was the case for every recruit ... but it's my guess we were all 'frightened' into getting one early on in our time with Auntie, and I should imagine we all saw the benefit of contributing towards what programmes we were making, setting a good example, etc.

I confess to never having seen an actual License Detector van 'per se' but I do remember we were shown over one of those Commer vehicles that were sent around the country to survey reception of both TV and Radio signals, and one of the people who crewed that vehicle did say that if they were seen in an area that new license applications always went up around there!!

I know Reception testing isn't the same thing, but whether the staff were from BBC Transmission (as it was then) or simply Reception Advice, they were talking to 'the trade' (be that TV set rental companies or aerial erectors, it doesn't matter too much!) and they could easily have gotten information as to who had started to rent a new set or had an aerial put up (this was in the days when 'ordinary mortals' couldn't generally get hold of TV aerials/install them for themselves!) and that information could have got back to the Government department that dealt with such things. [I do seem to remember that if you bought a TV set, the shop selling 'had' by law to take your address details and they were submitted to the Licensing people (wasn't it the GPO back in those days?).

I suppose if it was 'discovered' that someone had bought/started to rent a new set, and they hadn't also applied for a license, that 'the Men from the (appropriate) Ministry' might call on the family and make them aware that a license was now required. Whether they were in a van (which could perhaps have been ex-WD, with a DF-type aerial atop!!) and that would have been enough to let people know that they could be 'found out'!!

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans
Post by Delboy on Aug 14^th, 2016, 11:24am

Many moons ago I did get a visit from the licence squad, I don't think the van said it was a detector on the side, just TV Licencing.
A quite aggressive ex-military type wanted to know why there was a 4+ month gap between my old one expiring & me getting a new one for my new address.
I explained that my stuff had been in storage at a friends house whilst I was away for work, followed by a holiday. He then said he may need to confirm this, who do I work for?
I then showed him my ID & 'C' course photo & told him to ring Wood Norton, at this point he beat a hasty retreat with a 'sorry to bother you'.

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans
Post by DMCP on Aug 14^th, 2016, 12:02pm

About 10 years ago, my previous house had a change of postcode.

Cue confusion at the licensing database!

A detector van turned up in our street and the rather officious occupants proceeded to knock on all the doors.

I don't know about the other houses, but I'd dutifully informed them of my postcode change, so was surprised when I was accused of having no license.

It turned out that the database computer expected me to have two licenses, one for each postcode!

I explained the situation, they went away and I thought that would be the end of it.

But 6 months later, we had a repeat performance.

Then again after 12 months.

I then moved house, so for all I know, it's still happening!

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans
Post by Amigo on Aug 14^th, 2016, 3:17pm

Going back to the 1968 period, I seem to remember that we were told that there would be a surge in TV licence applications every time a Local Radio Mk.1 Cortina Radio Car was in an area. The Clarke Mast with a "UHF" antenna on the top was enough to 'spook' the local populace....

Title: Re: TV Detector Vans
Post by WG on Aug 14^th, 2016, 7:50pm

...and we must presume that DetectorVans Ltd were(still are?) a contracted company on a service level agreement with the BBC?