national

NHK tags house of man who refuses to pay fees

82 Comments
By Casey Baseel

We’ve talked before about the oddities of how Japan’s public broadcaster, NHK, goes about collecting its fees from ordinary citizens. Rather than sending you an official bill in the mail, collectors will come to your door and ask you for a stack of cash to cover the 13,600 yen residents are technically supposed to pay.

However, many people refuse to pony up the money, since there’s no official penalty for nonpayment, and many feel that NHK’s programming is sub-par and rarely watch it. However, should you make one particular NHK collector walk away empty-handed, he just might mark your house for all to see, as he apparently did to one person we talked to.

For the sake of protecting his privacy, we’re going to refer to the man we spoke with as Koichi Murai, instead of his real name. Not long ago, Murai was sitting at home one night when, around 10 p.m., his doorbell suddenly rang.

Not expecting company, he nonetheless went to the door to see who it could be.

Unfortunately, when Murai opened his front door, standing outside was not a pizza deliveryman, but a gentleman dressed in a suit. The man introduced himself and said he was from NHK.

“Here we go again,” Murai thought, realizing he was suddenly in store for a lengthy debate if he didn’t agree to pay the fess. “I told him I don’t own a TV, which is the truth, but he insisted I still had to pay. ‘These days, you can watch NHK programming on your PC or smartphone,’ he said.”

Be that as it may, whether or not people who don’t have a TV in their home are required to pay NHK fees is still a bit of a gray area, and after 10 minutes of discussion, Murai closed his door without handing over any money. “I could tell the collector was still standing around outside, though” he says.

Curious as to what was going on, Murai looked out the peephole, only to see that the man was still standing in the same spot directly in front of the door. “It was so creepy!” remembers Murai. “I thought, is he just going to stand there silently forever?”

As Murai watched, though, the man reached into his bag, pulled out an item, and rubbed it against the exterior wall of the house, next to the door frame. Startled, Murai waited until the unnerving individual had finally walked away, then opened his door and peered outside, where he saw the mark (in the photo).

“Next to the door, there was a strange mark. It’s not that noticeable, but it really freaked me out. Marking my wall without permission, what’s up with that!? And it won’t come off.”

Murai contacted NHK, which was less than helpful in addressing his grievance. “We don’t tell our employees to do that sort of thing,” he was told. “You’re the only person to make this complaint, so it’s not like all the collectors are doing it.”

So, where exactly does NHK draw the line on acceptable levels of employee vandalism?

Read more stories from RocketNews24. -- Don’t own a television? Japan’s public broadcaster doesn’t care, but still wants your money -- Man sues Japan’s public broadcasting corporation for excessive use of foreign loan words -- Court ruling orders anyone with a TV-equipped device to pay NHK’s public broadcasting license fee

© RocketNews24

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82 Comments
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This extends to abusing their power on Japanese locals. If the government did cared about Japan's future and population, they should've done something about this ridiculous payment. This broadcast network should be abolished or restaff the executive section.

20 ( +23 / -3 )

perhaps he should shave his head and apologise

5 ( +7 / -2 )

NHK : Irgun by ultra nationalists and employs vandals. NHKKK?

9 ( +13 / -4 )

They also vandalize your home with a sticker above your door that says NHK.

I hope the man sues both the collector and NHK and wins big time. Both are responsible and NHK should not be allowed to just wash its hands of poor behavior committed by its employees doing their appointed duty.

I urge all of you to be direct with the NHK collectors. They should be ashamed of performing this task and bothering people who never asked for NHK in the first place. Let them know. Urge them to find employment that does not amount to stalking and harassment. The last time the NHK collector came to my place, I gave him hell. Funny thing is, he should not have even been here because my wife pays! But I did not even tell him that!

19 ( +23 / -4 )

I never gave them a dime in the whole 10 years!

23 ( +26 / -3 )

Here's a tip, don't open the door if you don't know who it is. Works for us.

25 ( +27 / -2 )

Once, NHK came to my house to collect the fee. As I told the man that I didn't have any televisions, up chimed the "NHK News" the tune from the telly n my lounge.

"Er...Youtube", was all I could muster before hastily closing the door upon the rep.

10 ( +13 / -3 )

i would be really interested to see if they would do this to a foreigners household in japan - i wonder what it could mean for international relations and how it affects foreigners moving into japan to live and work.....

2 ( +4 / -2 )

The guy may be marking the house to remind himself not to waste anymore time going there. Annoying that he is marking the house, but if it keeps him from coming back, I'd be ok with them marking my house this way.

4 ( +8 / -4 )

NHK going yak style.

11 ( +12 / -1 )

10PM?? Anyone ringing my doorbell at that hour is going to get told off - more so if they're NHK.

This is vandalism pure and simple. Call the cops, press charges. NHK needs to either be funded from taxes or turned into an optional programming like sky perfect.

15 ( +18 / -3 )

First of all, any collector coming at that time of the hour is already wrong. We don't even accept sales during dinner hours and Sundays even if it's just over the phone,,we say it's family time and to call back during the week in appropriate hours. This system that NHK has I find very annoying. I never paid the fee even if I get to watch their channel. I'm not that crazy about their programs as well,, it'll only take me less than 30 mins to check what's interesting, and sadly I find nothing.

8 ( +11 / -3 )

I was harassed for over a year on this issue. It got to the point where calm often turned to storm in my demur. In a cooler moment, I asked the NHK 'fee collector' to show in writing in either Japanese or English where it states I MUST pay. It was the last time I ever saw him. Most BS programs that I watch on my TV now have a very large message in the center of the screen asking me to call a number to get rid of the message. I have never called as I know they will make me pay their fee. I am curious if anyone who has been a part of paying this fee has ever been able to cancel that payment. I have never heard that anyone has. I know I would be extremely upset if anyone decided to mark the wall in front of my house. Can't imagine a collector showing up at 10 p.m. either.

3 ( +6 / -3 )

Agree withsensei123 and to expand to avoid getting ripped off, never buy sell or deal with people who come to your door. My wife asked a guy who passed by to take the broken microwave and in an unusual manner she accepted that she had to pay Y1000 for him to take it, ans 5 min later realized she had a lapse of judgement. NHK relies on the same bullying and lapse of judgement to collect fees.

If NHK really had a good product, people would go to their local store or call and beg them to connect it but they have such a crappy product that they have to give it away then wonder why people wont even buy their BS/CS service.

5 ( +6 / -1 )

Just more static from NHK. NHK should be privatized.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

I am curious if anyone who has been a part of paying this fee has ever been able to cancel that payment. I have never heard that anyone has.

When broadcasting switched over to digital, lots of people who hadn't bothered/gotten around to buying new tellies cancelled their NHK subscription. We did. All it took was a phone call, which was handled very politely, and a week or so later the unused part of our subscription fee was returned to the bank account it had been paid out of.

8 ( +11 / -3 )

"around 10 p.m., his doorbell suddenly rang" - "NHK, which was less than helpful" - An organization, of any kind, which condones this behavior? 10pm? Call the cops, file the complaint, why not?

7 ( +8 / -1 )

I am curious if anyone who has been a part of paying this fee has ever been able to cancel that payment. I have never heard that anyone has.

Same with cleo. I cancelled when they switched over to digital.

7 ( +7 / -0 )

This is going too far. Speaking of which, I wonder that corrupt former NHK executive ever get prison time?

5 ( +5 / -0 )

So you can be sued if you don't pay, despite not owning a TV and never watching NHK, but it's not illegal for them to vandalize your house?

11 ( +13 / -2 )

My main beef with paying NHK is this: They don’t pay me. It took over 2 years for me to get payment for being a sailor in the NHK movie 蝶々さん. When I play piano on ららら♪クラシック it takes months to get paid. And these are shows I don’t even watch. Not only am I not watching TV at all, I am doing work for them while they take forever to pay and then come by my door and ask me to pay. I’m not having it.

 

My advice to all who want them to go away: Ask them to speak English. Even if they do, given that you don’t speak Japanese (as far as they know) it stands to reason that even if you can watch NHK on your PC, phone, or TV, you probably don’t. If you don’t have to meet them face-to-face at the door (for example if you use the intercom system in any decent mansion), this works also for Japanese.

4 ( +7 / -3 )

I told the NHK years ago that I dont have an anntena on my roof so its impossible for me to get NHK, I dont have any interest in Japanese TV because I can get all my english language TV via the internet . never seen him since.

0 ( +3 / -3 )

Let NHK show commercials, and there will be no further need to collect fees.

4 ( +6 / -2 )

welcome to NHK! Conspiracy!

1 ( +2 / -1 )

If you don't have a TV but your PC has a TV tuner, do you still technically own a TV? And even if you do have a TV but do not watch NHK why is it assumed you do anyway and hence have to pay? Maybe NHK should just go on a subscription service model instead of being publicly available. Only those who want to see NHK programs have to pay. Having them show commercials is also another alternative.

3 ( +4 / -1 )

Am I the only one who read this and thought (if the story is actually accurate)...hellloooo...scammer! Not NHK at all.

9 ( +9 / -1 )

I had a confrontation with one of those slick salesmen the other day. I answered on the interphone, where he said he was from NHK and that our place was "not yet registered" despite our having lived there six years. I told him that it was because we have no TV, never owned one, and even if we did we hate NHK's propaganda and wouldn't watch it online either. This is all true. Even then, he asked me to come to the door as there was paperwork he needed to confirm. Just to get rid of him I opened the door and surprised him with my caucasian face, as we'd been speaking Japanese. This seemed to throw him off a bit. I asked to see his ID and then I reminded him that there is no legal obligation to pay their fees, nor do we have a tv nor even a tv receiving device and WE DON'T WATCH NHK! He put his stupid papers back in his briefcase, bowed deeply, and walked away. He didn't mark our door with anything, either.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

I never gave them a dime in the whole 10 years!

Yup! Never did, never will, never open up my door, going on 15 years and for the remainder of my years in Japan, I do solemnly swear, likewise and to NEVER give these people a dime!

4 ( +5 / -1 )

Vandalism by an NHK employee at a late hour? Now this gets your attention to this sensationalist piece. I take it with a few grains of salt.

That said, I'm sure some are proud of civil disobedience. Skirting the levies is the same as not paying taxes or for school lunches.

-11 ( +0 / -11 )

No, sorry, can't get over this. The man LITERALLY committed an act of vandalism and is not only NOT being charged for it by the police, but the victim in question is taking the blame. They know full well who the collector for that area is, so there is absolutely no excuse as to why he is not arrested. Does NHK think it's some sort of group above the law? obviously they do! and the law allows it.

3 ( +6 / -3 )

The first (and last) time the NHK stalker to my apato I had just moved to there (3 days, how does NHK know? creepy!!). The conversation didn't last 2 minutes and he ended up handing me a panphlet in english, which it was pretty useful as a makeshift funnel.

2 ( +3 / -1 )

So THAT'S why that NHK sticker is over my door. It was there before we moved in 6 years ago, rental house, but they haven't knocked on my door yet.

A Totate salesman knocked at my door at 11:00 PM, for the second time that night, after checking out a local new house. I got so pissed!

3 ( +3 / -0 )

FizzBitt: "So THAT'S why that NHK sticker is over my door. It was there before we moved in 6 years ago, rental house, but they haven't knocked on my door yet."

No, the sticker is there because the previous tenant had a contract with NHK. Once you make a payment and sign a contract, they put the sticker over your door, or name-plate, or what have you. You then get a monthly bill sent to you by mail. So, whoever lived there before you subscribed to NHK. What the criminal in this story did is something completely different. It MIGHT explain why they haven't knocked on your door, though (ie. if they think you are a contracted, paying customer by mail, there's no need for criminal harassment). I have a sticker on the place I live now but I certainly have never paid -- it was there when I moved in.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

whether or not people who don’t have a TV in their home are required to pay NHK fees is still a bit of a gray area

NHK may claim such, but there really isn't much "gray" about it. If you have no device "capable" of receiving NHK's broadcasts -- and a PC without a TV tuner installed or a non-1-seg phone are one step removed from being "capable" -- you don't owe them one single yen.

4 ( +4 / -0 )

My daughter was traumatized by one of these collectors. What you must know is that the job is contracted out to companies that go around and collect the money. The more they collect, the bigger their commission. My daughter returned home, and this guy in a suit was waiting in the lobby of her building, which has an auto-lock. She opened the door and went in, but he slipped in at the last minute. He took the elevator up with her, and got off on a different floor. She was nervous, but relieved he got off on a different floor. A few minutes later, the doorbell rang, and the voice said NHK. Naively my daughter opened the door, and he said, that she hadn't paid her NHK payment and he was here to collect. My daughter told him that she didn't have a TV and wasn't going to pay. When she went to shut the door, he stuck his foot in it and forced his way into the apartment. This really scared my daughter, and she quickly dialed my wife, as this piece of scum kept telling her she had to pay. My wife answered and my daughter was almost in tears as this guy is berating her. My wife said to give him the phone, and she was arguing with him, but he wouldn't leave. Finally I said, pay the guy, by credit card, and we will cancel the payment the next day. He finally left, with his payment. The next day, my wife called NHK to lodge a complaint, and that is when we found out that these collectors don't technically work for NHK, I took the phone and told them to never send another collector to her apartment. If they did, I would contact a lawyer and begin legal preceding. They promised to take her name off the list, but to this day, my daughter is always nervous when she sees these type of guys around her apartment, and I don't blame her.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

Simple solution : Make NHK ONLY available to those who pay - like they already do for their "B...S..." programmes and "Cable" or "Hulu" etc. (Not many people are going to complain then !)

1 ( +2 / -1 )

MarkX , if that true you should lodge a formal and a criminal police complaint. I did once when an apt guard decided to step in uninvited with the delivery guys. The management came to bow and the guy was immediately fired. Trespassing law in japan is quite serious.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

If I recall many of these collectors are not actually NHK employees, but rather 3rd party collection agencies hired by NHK. There are various laws that actually protect us from these collectors. There is a series of videos on youtube in Japanese from a Japanese lawyer confronting many of these guys for falsely reprenting they are NHK, in one case the collector was arrested. I forgot the search trm in Japanese but if you browse youtube you might find them.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

You can ask for NHK to send you a letter that will take you off the list. I made a mistake and payed the man once thinking I was doing the right thing, my Japanese wife is always the honest one and I was surprised that she didn't pay. They came again and I told them they made a mistake and they had to pay me back the money, they didn't agree and kept coming back for more. To get out of paying just call HHK and ask for the english speaking staff, be nice and ask for the letter you can sign and return to NHK to take you of the list. I was told to do this by NHK staff after I told them I would sue them for harassment. I apparently owed ¥100000, yep and I didn't pay.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

I came to the door naked with a knife... Never bothered my again

-2 ( +3 / -5 )

An NHK rep visited me once, looking for cash. I told him I never watch NHK, which is true, and he went away.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

Whether you actually watch NHK or not is not the criterion. When you own a receiving device you pay the charges. But people make their own independent rules, don't they?

-3 ( +3 / -6 )

Not really. The rules are already made - the punishment for non-payment is nothing. So people not paying are acting within the rules.

-1 ( +2 / -3 )

Not really. The rules are already made - the punishment for non-payment is nothing. So people not paying are acting within the rules

Oh, yeah. That's the logic. The rules are just symbolic. No punishment means just ignore them.

So people not paying are acting within the rules

Keep telling that yourself and you begin to believe it. People not following rules are actually following them.

-5 ( +2 / -7 )

I didn't make the rules. If you don't like them, then complain about them. Hate the game, not the player.

3 ( +5 / -2 )

I didn't make the rules. If you don't like them, then complain about them. Hate the game, not the player.

I didn't say you made the rules. Neither did I say I didn't like them, nor complained about them. And ignoring rules to me is not a game, it's ignoring responsibility.

-6 ( +2 / -8 )

Whose ignoring the rules? The rules say that if you don't pay, there is no penalty.

1 ( +5 / -4 )

Not agreeing with a law does not give one the right to break it. If you disagree with a law, work through official channels to have it revised. Contribute to politicians who agree with you. Fund the elections of others. But breaking the law means you are criminally liable, and I think NHK should be able to pursue punishment in these cases.

That said, marking someone's home is vandalism.

-3 ( +2 / -5 )

Whose ignoring the rules? The rules say that if you don't pay, there is no penalty. [Who is ignoring...?]

The fact there is no penalty for not following rules does not mean you are free to do so. Well, maybe you are wired this way: if there is no sanction you can do as you like.

-7 ( +2 / -9 )

The fact there is no penalty for not following rules does not mean you are free to do so.

On the contrary, it means exactly that.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

On the contrary, it means exactly that.

The way you are wired, yes. And it negates the need for any social code of conduct. It exposes those who are confident in and proud of maneuvering through mazes in civil legislation and codes of conduct people are supposed to abide by.

-6 ( +2 / -8 )

No. If you had to pay, there would be punishment for non-payment.

2 ( +6 / -4 )

There's a difference between NHK's "rules" and actual laws or social responsibilities, and last time I checked Japan is supposed to be a democracy in which we are free not to watch or consume media that we politically disagree with or dislike. I think choosing not to support NHK's government-biased propaganda machine is neither a denial of responsibility nor a violation of the law. It's an act of free speech, and NHK is obligated to terminate your contract if you so request. And they do indeed do this. Those of you who think this is obligatory at all cost either love to watch NHK all the time, don't mind spending the money, or don't have any sense of political conscience.

6 ( +6 / -0 )

My favourite was always saying "I don't understand" and then getting them to speak English and then when they did I continued to "Say I don't understand, your English! Damn NHK and their educational shows". Then, just continue to look completely non-plussed until they go away and presumably mark your wall.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

I am all for this "NHK tagging." But as with any graffiti it should be done tastefully and artistically. Will a NHK throw-up be next?

-5 ( +0 / -5 )

Do the ultimate protest... don't own a TV.

-2 ( +4 / -6 )

yoheikunApr. 13, 2014 - 10:15PM JST There's a difference between NHK's "rules" and actual laws or social responsibilities, and last time I checked Japan is supposed to be a democracy in which we are free not to watch or consume media that we politically disagree with or dislike. I think choosing not to support NHK's government-biased propaganda machine is neither a denial of responsibility nor a violation of the law. It's an act of free speech, and NHK is obligated to terminate your contract if you so request. And they do indeed do this. Those of you who think this is obligatory at all cost either love to watch NHK all the time, don't mind spending the money, or don't have any sense of political conscience.

I agree with this position. However there's a guy earlier in this thread who had a television and was watching NHK and still tried to deny he owed anything. You can't watch NHK and still refuse to pay, that's simply theft.

-15 ( +1 / -16 )

We have closed our bank account which was using by NHK collect as subscriber fee. Later, we pretended to be foreigner and couldn't speak and understand Japanese and didn't watch NHK. No one from NHK comes again after that.

I believe Government should ban NHK door knocking activity. It’s disgrace and shame. NHK should not force peoples to pay fee because of they own TV. Civil right group should sue NHK for breaking civil right by forcing peoples to pay subscriber fee even NHK does not sure they watch NHK channels or not.

If NHK does not enough budget to run current format and then NHK should cut its some of programs.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

I don't think NHK uses the sticker by the door system anymore. About six months ago someone came around wanting to get us to pay for the BS broadcasting. I told him I couldn't answer the door because I was sick and in my pjs (the truth). Then a few weeks later I phoned NHK to see if he was legitimate, which he was. I told the woman on the phone that we only pay for the regular non-BS services because even though the apartment owner installed an antenna capable of receiving BS a few years ago, we had not registered for that and the TV displays a message that it cannot receive BS. I asked if the guy had come around because the sticker had apparently come loose and blown away at some point (I just noticed it was missing before I made the phone call.) The NHK woman said they discontinued the use of stickers some time ago.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

It's an interesting situation, the Broadcast Law requires you to have a contract with NHK if you have TV equipment that can receive NHK broadcasts. So assuming you own a TV, object and don't sign up, you're in breach of contract law, a civil issue for which NHK would have to sue. Too hard and too expensive to do so most get away with it if they don't pay up. It makes the broadcast law unenforceable.

We pay. Not only because there's a moral imperative to support public broadcasting (although disappointed by recent board appointments) but NHK support the emergency broadcasting system we were all glued to in March 2011.

-3 ( +2 / -5 )

SwissToniApr. 14, 2014 - 01:22AM JST It's an interesting situation, the Broadcast Law requires you to have a contract with NHK if you have TV equipment that can receive NHK broadcasts. So assuming you own a TV, object and don't sign up, you're in breach of contract law, a civil issue for which NHK would have to sue.

Actually I think you're mistaken. If you own a TV and don't have a contract then you cannot be in breach of contract. You can't breach a contract you never entered into.

Instead you have failed to make a contract with NHK, but are using their services. This makes it theft, which is a criminal charge.

Here's a simple example. You go into a convenience store and pick up a pack of gum valued at 100 yen. You put down 50 yen at the register. The teller refuses to accept 50 yen since the marked price was 100yen and you have no meeting of minds and no contract. If you then consume that gum or walk out of the convenience store with it then you will be arrested for theft. Having no contact doesn't magically place you in a responsibility-free zone legally-speaking, nor does it mean you can get free gum or free TV shows.

You might also fall afoul of Japan's new intellectual property laws for viewing TV shows without a contract. This is also a criminal charge.

-12 ( +3 / -15 )

I'm amazed at all the thumbs-down people are getting for pointing out that you're supposed to pay and that you're technically a thief if you don't. Also a bit surprised at all the thumbs-up my post got. Maybe because I said we cancelled. Well when we got a new telly, we started paying again. So now all those of you proud that you don't pay and are gratuitously rude to the collectors can thumb me down.

-6 ( +3 / -9 )

NHK... Government sanctioned extortion.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

If I were the home owner I would have told him to come back during normal business hours. As far as the tagging goes, I would report it, document it, and cover it up. The next time he comes by, I probably would give him more than a simple "I am not going to pay."

If NHK wants the money, then they should just bill the cable companies, and then they in turn would just bill the subscriber pay the fee. I have never paid, yet I get the screen warning when I do watch NHK on the need to subscribe. If they have that much technology to tell that I haven't paid via JCOM, then they should work out a deal with JCOM to collect from them and just add it as part of the basic cable fee. But I guess that would probably be thinking too outside of the box for some.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

I am scared to open the door because somehow they say I have racked up over JPY320,000 over the years of not paying....I am likely on their hot list of NHK door collectors as I get strange people ringing my doorbell.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

10pm?! Not even the takkyubin comes that late. So was this joker a real NHK man or perhaps some of those deluded wannabe officials that sometimes roam around in Japan?

While I understand they need to fund their propaganda channel somehow, I'd rather see it done by tax or by making the channels unwatchable to those not paying. To have some idiots running around from door to door seem like a damn waste of time and energy in these days.

1 ( +3 / -2 )

Where is tmarie when we need her? "Two wrongs don't make a right."

Just pay.

-6 ( +2 / -8 )

Have never and will never pay the clowns at NHK!! Got cable TV myself and plenty of good channels with proper international programming .. I never watch Japanese TV it's all garbage just like the music here.. So why would I pay for something I don't use and for that matter support the BS propaganda NHK spews?!

0 ( +2 / -2 )

Hobo marks! What does that one mean?

Not paying yet. Try here again! (actual NHK guy) Man lives here. (Someone posing as NHK while they scope out the neighborhood).
0 ( +0 / -0 )

None of these collectors are NHK employees. They're paid on commission based on how many people they extort.

2 ( +4 / -2 )

Frungy, I'm no lawyer but I disagree with your opinion there. The law requires a household to register with NHK if there's a TV receiver in the house. As soon as you buy the TV you've entered into the contract. It's a bit like the TV license fee in the UK, except there you can end up in criminal court and even prison if you don't pay.

3 ( +3 / -0 )

None of these collectors are NHK employees. They're paid on commission based on how many people they extort.

Let's say that this is true in this case, and the guy was actually collecting for NHK. If I understand, the law says one has to pay, but if they mark your house, there is nothing that says you can just paint over it. If they leave a bigger mark, then I would take them to court for vandalism. People can put up with that little "idot reminder" showing up on NHK if you don't pay, but I think if they strated tagging houses that don't pay with marks, then even the timid Japanese public would hopefully rise up and join in a lawsuit to pt an end to the forced consumption of NHK. One person without the media backing in terms of brining this case to the public probably will not have the money to sue successuflly in court. But, if these collectors start doing this en masse, probably enough people will join in a class action (if they have that type of thing in Japan) and put a halt to it.

Still, you don't have to answer the door at 10 pm and since Japan has deemed it that you can't defend yourself at home, I would call the police and have them take the person off my property for trespassing that late at night.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

Japan currently has no class action system.

1 ( +1 / -0 )

presto: "It exposes those who are confident in and proud of maneuvering through mazes in civil legislation and codes of conduct people are supposed to abide by."

Like the guy who vandalized someone's house and will never be punished for it?

NHK needs to get with the modern world; those who don't pay get no service. Those who do can see the crap NHK has to offer. You should never be forced to pay for stuff you do not consume simply because someone has shoved it through your door.

0 ( +2 / -2 )

SwissToniApr. 14, 2014 - 02:36PM JST Frungy, I'm no lawyer but I disagree with your opinion there. The law requires a household to register with NHK if there's a TV receiver in the house. As soon as you buy the TV you've entered into the contract. It's a bit like the TV license fee in the UK, except there you can end up in criminal court and even prison if you don't pay.

I'm not a lawyer either, but I did study contract law when I was younger, because it is a useful thing to know about considering how many contacts you're likely to enter into in your life-time.

To have a valid contract you need the following:

a sum in legal tender (that's yen in Japan) a meeting of minds (all parties must understand what is expected of them in terms of the contract) an offer and explicit acceptance without duress

You cannot have an "implicit" contract that isn't stated from something like buying a TV, and frankly those EULAs that only pop up AFTER you have bought the software (and thereby constitute duress since they already have your money but you can't use the software without agreeing) are legally unenforceable because they don't meet the requirements for a contract.

We have a special name for contracts that you don't have to agree to. They're called "laws". Laws bind you without requiring any agreement or acceptance or even (in some legal systems) an understanding of what they're all about. That's why NHK's only recourse here would be to file criminal charges, because there is no contract. People talking about a contract really have no clue what it takes to make a contract.

Regardless though, you need to understand that if you watch NHK without paying the fees then you're breaking the law. It really is that simple. That NHK would have a tough time proving that you watched NHK is beside the point.

-11 ( +3 / -14 )

The government should just impose a one-time "NHK tax" on new televisions and other devices sold in Japan. Those who don't want to pay the tax can just buy a used TV.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

How many of you who don't pay still watch NHK? I've seen the "I'll never pay!" posts for 10 years now, and have always wondered. We pay the basic fee of something like ¥14,000 yearly, paid out of my bank account, and I had them block BS. In the event of a disaster I'll watch NHK before I'd rely on 'wide shows' for information. The other networks don't have the reach of NHK. We often enjoy the Taiga too.

No one thinks paying for cable TV or Internet is odd, why just NHK?

2 ( +2 / -0 )

So now all those of you proud that you don't pay and are gratuitously rude to the collectors can thumb me down.

Yes, Cleo, and that's exactly what the gaijin anti-NHK clique has been and continue to be doing. It's probably a convinced, tenacious group that hate the programming, or hate to pay for programming they are not interested in and prefer commercial infected television. Fortunately it's a minority. Most people do pay the charges and those having problems with over zealous collectors, or people who pose as such, are few and far between.

0 ( +1 / -1 )

I will pay charges deducted from my bank account by NHK on a monthly basis. no way in hell would I hand over wads of cash to someone knocking on my door. And that is what they ask you to do there and then. As if I even have 25,000 yen sitting in my purse at any time (thats what they asked for the last time they called). You would think with all the scandals they would have ended this practice long ago. Maybe they have. Maybe these guys that come around these days are actually nothing to do with NHK.

2 ( +2 / -0 )

I wish all pay for TV was optional, we got BBC here in the UK and have to pay a yearly TV licence because of it. why not encrypt the signal like satellite TV does, that way people who don't want to pay, don't have to watch it.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

I successfully canceled after my wife signed a contract. My wife was tired of the guy ring the doorbell so she answered it and she signed up. Later that evening after I found out what happened. I called the collector whose name was on the contract but they wouldn't answer. I then called NHK and explained the situation that I don't have a TV and that I have a cell phone that uses one SEG but that I had just changed to an iPhone which does not have that feature. It was very lengthy, I had to go to the head office of my prefecture and spend about an hour talking to the guy who took notes and typed up a statement which he asked me to sign but I didn't sign. I haven't heard from them since then.

0 ( +0 / -0 )

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