BBC covert surveillance ops struggle to catch licence fee evaders (2024)

TV detection equipment used to catch suspected licence fee evaders is 'struggling to keep up' with technological changes, an inspection report has revealed.

A detailed review into how the BBC runs these 'covert surveillance' operations said the 'success rate' of such tactics was 'limited'.

The report pointed out that only a 'small number' of 'deployments' of TV detection teams actually resulted in 'further enforcement action'.

Critics of the current licence fee funding model say the review indicates how 'outdated' and 'unenforceable' the current system is.

The inspection by the Investigatory Powers Commissioner's Office (IPCO), which oversees the use of such intrusive methods, provides a rare insight into the secretive world of the BBC's detection operations.

IPCO's report also said bosses in charge of authorising this undercover work 'fall short' in considering the 'proportionality' of signing-off such action.

The BBC is responsible for collecting the licence fee, with TV Licensing used as a trademark for companies contracted to carry out collection and enforcement functions.

The document has emerged not long after the BBC’s director-general Tim Davie said he was open to ‘reform’ of the licence fee and making it ‘more progressive’. This could see richer homes pay more for TV licences.

Last month the BBC boss also indicated potential changes to the controversial way the broadcaster enforces payment of the TV licence, saying it needed to be 'fair and proportionate'.

The undercover techniques include 'covert vehicles which contain the detection equipment' to see if a TV is being used at an address.

Use of these covert methods is signed off by senior BBC managers but is carried out by staff working for contractor Capita.

The inspection report, from 2022, which was uncovered by the TV Licensing Blog, using Freedom of Information rules, says: 'The Capita detection team are well practised in the delivery of the authorised activity and generally deploy in covert vehicles which contain the detection equipment.

'Operatives conduct a full risk assessment of the site prior to any deployment.

'That said, the success rate is limited, with only a small number of deployments resulting in further enforcement action, such as the execution of a search warrant.

'This could be due to the limitations of the detection equipment, which is apparently struggling to keep up with the technological advancements in television viewing.'

Peter Jones, lead author of the TV Licensing Blog, which describes itself as an 'unofficial guide' to TV licence rules, said: 'The revelation, from official sources, that the BBC's television detection capabilities are struggling to maintain pace with evolving technology is yet another indication of how outdated, unenforceable and irrelevant the current TV licence system is.'

He added: 'The sooner an alternative funding model is found for the BBC the better.'

The IPCO report, dated July 12, 2022, also described the processes followed in using these covert activities as 'a little confused and disjointed', while questioning whether the 'oversight regime' was effective enough.

The use of detector vans is subject to the Regulation of Investigatory Powers Act 2000 and the Regulation of Investigatory Powers (British Broadcasting Corporation) Order 2001.

Over the years the threat of TV detector vans on the streets has been used by the BBC to try and convince people to buy a TV licence.

Changes in TV viewing habits are among the reasons blamed for increased licence fee evasion rates, which rose from 5.5 per cent in 2012/13 to 10.3 per cent in 2022/23, according to a parliamentary document.

The streaming revolution has changed the way people watch TV with many viewing shows on other devices like laptops, tablets and smartphones, rather than the traditional TV set.

Currently people need to have a TV Licence if they watch any live TV, even through an online streaming service, or if they watch anything on the BBC's iPlayer.

This means people watching live programmes on services like ITVX and Amazon Prime Video still require a licence.

The price a TV licence recently rose to £169.50 a year up from £159. Nearly 1,000 people are prosecuted for not paying their TV licence each week.

A spokesman for TV Licensing said: 'TV Licensing's primary aim is to help people stay licensed, and we offer a range of concessions and payment schemes to support customers.

'We have a duty to collect the licence fee from anyone who requires one and prosecution is always a last resort.

'Detection vans are one of a number of approaches in our enforcement of the law and we always write to customers before visiting a property to ensure customers have ample opportunity to obtain a licence.'

'We continually refine and enhance all our processes to ensure they are efficient, proportionate and fair. We welcome independent scrutiny and informed views on how we can make further improvements.'

The report showed that TV Licensing detection teams were targeting people who had 'withdrawn the common law right of access to walk up to and knock on their front door' and who were also not recorded as having a licence.

The Withdrawal of Implied Right of Access (WOIRA) was said to exist for 30,000 addresses, with the report linking the practice in part to 'recognised protest groups'.