Thursday, November 7, 2019
That Letter Again
The postman just came, leaving our annual letter stating that there is no TV Licence on file for our premises. The fee for this is 160 euro per year and it funds the public broadcaster (TV and radio). Many people do not pay this and many people watch TV on a device other than a TV, so the public broadcaster is in financial difficulty. Most rentals here come fully furnished, right down to kitchenware and teaspoons, so we only have a TV if it's part of the furnishings. In spite of the fact that we wouldn't own the TV, it's the responsibility of the occupier to buy the licence (this is how it's spelled here). A couple of places we've lived in haven't had a TV, so we wouldn't have to pay the fee in that case. This place had one, but we asked for it to be removed before we moved in--not because of the fee, but because it's a small place and we're not TV people (we do listen to the radio a lot), so it was taking up space that we could use for something else. The thing is, whether we have a TV or not, at a certain age, people get a free licence and Bill qualifies--our licence is upstairs, so we're covered, whether we have a TV or not. The licence moves with the person and is not tied to the dwelling. They do send inspectors around sometimes to ask to see the licence and people can be fined up to 1000 euro if they have a TV but no licence. We've never had a person call to the door, but every year we get the letter. Every year, I email the address they provide to tell them we either don't have a TV, have the licence, or both. They've always been really friendly and prompt in their replies. They check, find out that I'm telling the truth and thank me for letting them know. I am not sure why it doesn't come up before they send out the letter, but it could be because they have the address formatted in a weird way on the letter, which is different than how it appears on the licence--all the parts are there, but in strange places. In any case, I've sent off the email, so that should be done for another year. 😊
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1 comment:
I think in some countries they have radio licences, too--or they used to anyway. But now that the technology is changing and people watch on other devices, they are having to think abut how to adapt.
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