TV detector van
TV detector vans are vans which, according to the BBC, contain equipment which can detect the presence of television sets in use.[1] The vans are operated by contractors working for the BBC, in order to enforce the television licensing system in the UK, the Channel Islands and on the Isle of Man.
History
The first TV detector van was demonstrated on 1 February 1952.[1]
In 2013, the Radio Times obtained a leaked internal document from the BBC giving a breakdown of prosecutions for TV licence evasion.[2] The eighteen page document gave a breakdown of the number of people evading the charge, as well as mentioning the number of people employed to catch those who do not pay their television licence.[3] However, no mention was made of TV detector vans being used to catch such people, prompting media speculation over the truth of their existence. In response a BBC spokeswoman rejected claims that the vans are a hoax. "Detector vans are an important part of our enforcement of the licence fee. We don’t go into detail about how many there are or how they work as this information might be useful to people trying to evade the fee."[2]
In popular culture
- The "Fish Licence" sketch on Monty Python's Flying Circus, aired in 1970, mentions a "cat detector van", a parody of the TV detector van.
See also
References
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