Almost 1,000 people have been caught in Caerphilly County Borough without a TV Licence this year, new figures reveal.
Nine-hundred and ninety have been caught by TV Licensing in the first eight months of 2011.
The organisation has also revealed that 930 of those were based in Caerphilly town. The figures have been published alongside a league table of top excuses given by people caught watching TV without a licence.
The top three reasons given by licence fee evaders in 2011 include:
- Amorous postman: “Since I had a bit of a fling with the postman I haven’t been receiving my mail so I didn’t get my TV Licence reminder.”
- Paranoid parakeet: “No-one watches TV apart from the parakeet. It calms him down and stops him ripping out his feathers.”
- Sticky-fingered kids: “I went to the PayPoint to pay for my licence, but I had to leave before I could pay as my kids were stealing sweets and I had to get them out fast.”
Warren Carr, TV Licensing spokesman for Wales, said: “Some evaders are very inventive with their excuses which can be quite entertaining. But the point is that watching or recording live TV without a licence is against the law. In fairness to the honest majority of people who pay the fee, we will prosecute those who try to avoid it.
“We would always prefer people to pay than risk a fine of up to £1,000. We offer a wide range of payment options to help spread the cost and suit people’s needs. These can all be set up quickly and easily online at www.tvlicensing.co.uk or by phone.”
Over the last two years 2,700 people were caught watching TV without a licence in Caerphilly County Borough with 1,411 in 2009/2010 and 1,312 in 2010/11.