Code of Service

This code of service will explain who we are and what we do. If you would like more information, you
will find our contact details at the end of this document.

Our role is simple – to fix disruption to free to view TV received through an aerial, such as Freeview,
BT, TalkTalk and YouView, that is possible when mobile services are upgraded.

Restore TV only provides support for problems with TV received through an aerial and has been
caused by mobile service upgrades below 900 MHz.

What is mobile broadband?
Mobile broadband is more widely known as wireless internet access. It is delivered via mobile
networks to enable you to use your mobile devices such as smartphones, laptops and tablets to
access the internet. Mobile networks in the UK use different radio frequencies (airwaves): 700 MHz,
800 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2.6 GHz, 3.4-3.6 GHz, 3.6-3.8MHz. These frequencies are used for mobile
broadband.

What has this got to do with you and your TV?
Some mobile broadband and TV received through an aerial use parts of the radio spectrum – bands
of frequencies (airwaves) – to reach us. The frequencies used by some mobile services are close to
those previously used for free to view TV. As a result, when a nearby mobile mast is upgraded, there
is a small chance that your aerial, TV, or set-top box could struggle to receive a good TV signal.

You are more likely to be affected if you live in an area with weak digital television reception, have a
TV signal booster or your property is very close to a mobile mast.

Mobile networks are continuing to expand and when and where they will be upgraded depends on
the rollout plans of the mobile operators. For information on mobile and broadband availability in
your area, visit the Ofcom coverage checker – https://checker.ofcom.org.uk/en-gb/mobile-coverage

If your TV is affected, Restore TV can help.

How will you know if your TV is affected?
Typical issues include poor sound, blocky images (pixilation) or a ‘no signal’ message being shown on
screen. These symptoms might be experienced some or all of the time. Only free to view TV received
through an aerial will experience problems; your viewing will not be affected if you watch cable or
satellite TV.

If you notice new TV interference, contact us and we will check to see if a mobile mast has been
upgraded close to your home.

You can also find TV related advice, on the following help pages:
www.freeview.co.uk/help, www.bt.com/help/tv, community.talktalk.co.uk and support.youview.com

Who is Restore TV?
Restore TV is an independent programme created to ensure that all UK viewers continue to receive
free to view channels, such as Freeview, BT, TalkTalk and Youview, or are offered a suitable
alternative, if mobile service upgrades cause TV interference.

The Restore TV programme is run by Mova. Mova is owned by and represents the UK mobile
operators: EE, Virgin MediaO2, Three and Vodafone.

To ensure we deliver a high-quality service, we report to the Coexistence Technical Working Group
chaired by Ofcom, representing consumers, broadcasters and mobile operators. It monitors and
advises on our performance to ensure the interests of free to view TV viewers are properly served.

How do we help?
We identify homes at risk of experiencing TV interference from mobile signals below 900 MHz. We
send those homes a postcard explaining the issue and asking viewers to look out for new
interference to their free to view services.

Please be aware that the majority of viewers who receive a postcard from us will not experience any
interference to their TV when mobile services are upgraded in their area.

If you live in a house with its own aerial, here’s how we help:
If you are responsible for your TV aerial, have received a postcard from us and experience new TV
interference to your free to view TV, you should contact us either by phone, email, by letter, or via
our website. Our contact details are at the end of this Code of Service.

We will assess whether the interference might be due to mobile signals below 900 MHz; for example,
we will check whether a new mobile phone mast has recently been upgraded in your area.

If we believe the interference is due to the mobile signal upgrades, we can send you a filter to fit
yourself, free of charge. Fitting instructions are included and we can provide further advice online
and by phone.

In most instances, fitting the filter will resolve any interference from the new mobile services. If it
does not resolve the interference and, if you are eligible, we may be able to arrange for a Restore TV
engineer to visit your home, at no cost.

The engineer will test whether related mobile signals are contributing to TV interference; and fit a
mobile signal filter to your TV system. The filter blocks mobile signals below 900 MHz and enables
you to continue receiving and watching free to view TV as normal.

If the TV interference is not due to mobile signals, the engineer can provide advice on how to retune
your TV or other common causes of interference. The engineer will also fit a mobile signal filter to
prevent any interference if new mobile masts are upgraded in your area in the future.

If you require additional filters for multiple TV sets, we will provide these on request at no cost to
you. However, if you watch free to view TV on more than one television in your house, you may have
a single aerial and an ‘amplifier’ that sends the signal to different locations. If so, then one filter –
fitted between the TV aerial and the amplifier – should resolve any interference to free to view TV on
all of the televisions in your home. It is only if you have separate aerials for each of your TVs that you
may need additional filters.

If you live in a flat or communal property with one aerial serving multiple homes, here is how we help:

If you are not responsible for your TV aerial (because this is the responsibility of your landlord or
property manager or you live in a care home, for example), have received a postcard from us and
experience new interference to your free to view TV, you should contact us, either by phone, email,
via our website or by letter.

We will assess whether the TV interference might be due to mobile signals below 900 MHz; for
example we will check whether a new mobile mast has recently been upgraded in your area.

We will also ask you to report the issue to your landlord, property manager, factor or residents’
association and ask them to contact us so we can arrange to provide the appropriate filters, free of
charge.

If your landlord or property manager has a contracted aerial engineer, we can deliver filters directly
to them. For those without a contracted aerial engineer, or if the contracted engineer needs some
help, we can provide over the phone technical assistance.

Working with the voluntary and community sector

We work with the voluntary and community sector to ensure those who may struggle with this issue
receive support and advice from people they know and trust. This includes the provision of a
chaperone to accompany a visit from a Restore TV engineer, if required.

You are eligible for this additional support if you:
● are 75 years of age or over;
● are registered blind or partially sighted;
● receive any of the following benefits: personal independence payments (PIPs); attendance
allowance; constant attendance allowance or War Pensioner’s Mobility Support.

What ifs?
What if the filter doesn’t stop the interference?

In the majority of cases, the filter will resolve any interference due to mobile signals below 900 MHz
and enable you to continue receiving and watching free to view TV as normal.

For a small number of viewers, the filter may not restore an acceptable level of TV reception. If this
does not work, we will look at other solutions such as re-aligning or replacing existing TV aerials;
improving cabling; or, as a last resort, moving you to another service, such as free-to-view satellite
television. Restore TV engineers are trained to provide advice on how best to restore your free to
view TV service.

Where mobile signals below 900 MHz are diagnosed as the cause of interference to free to view TV,
we will bear the cost of restoring your TV reception or providing a comparable TV service.

What if you have an amplifier in your loft?

You may have an amplifier in your loft if you have a weak TV signal or if you have several TVs. In this
case, a filter needs to be connected between the aerial and the amplifier. We can arrange for an
Restore TV aerial engineer to do this for you, at our expense, providing you do not have satellite or
cable and are eligible for an engineer visit.

What if you have a rooftop aerial amplifier?
If you have a rooftop aerial amplifier, a weatherproof filter needs to be installed. We can arrange for
a Restore TV engineer to do this for you providing you do not have satellite or cable and are eligible
for an engineer visit.

What if you have an indoor set-top aerial?
If you have an indoor set-top aerial for your TV and we believe you may be experiencing interference
due to mobile signals below 900 MHz, we can provide help and advice. However, it is not within our
remit to provide a solution unless you are eligible for additional support and those mobile phone
signals are contributing to your TV interference (see ‘Working with the voluntary and community
sector’ above). Please refer to the useful guide on indoor aerials on our website for advice on how to
improve your TV reception in this case.

What if you are a business?
We identify businesses at risk of experiencing interference to their free to view TV from mobile
services below 900 MHz. We will send them a postcard explaining the issue and highlighting what to
look out for. We are not responsible for resolving this issue for businesses; however, if you are
affected, we can provide advice and guidance on what to do next.

What if you arrange for an independent engineer to carry out work to resolve free to view TV interference?

If you arrange, independently, for an aerial engineer to carry out work to resolve TV interference, we
are not obliged to refund any costs you incur.

Our commitment to you

We are committed to ensuring all UK viewers who rely on free to view TV can continue to receive it,
or are offered a suitable alternative, if the upgrade of mobile services below 900 MHz causes
interference.

We are committed to communicating clearly and effectively so you understand what is happening
and what you need to do if you notice new interference to your free to view service.

We are committed to supporting you via our contact centre and website.

We are committed to working with you to minimise disruption and inconvenience.

In particular, this means:

We will adopt best practice in all areas including communications, installations and technical
expertise.

We will communicate openly and clearly with you. Printed and online materials will follow the
principles of plain English and guidelines recommended by the Royal National Institute of Blind
People (RNIB) and other charities.

We will be clear about what you can expect from us.

We will work with other organisations to support people who need additional help.

If we need to make an appointment for an engineer to visit your property, we will try to arrange it at
your convenience.

If you have a problem with your TV service that is not related to mobile services being upgraded we
can suggest other sources of information and advice.

How will the public know if Restore TV is doing a good job?
To ensure we deliver a high-quality service, we report to the Coexistence Technical Working Group
chaired by Ofcom, representing consumers, broadcasters and mobile operators It monitors and
advises on our performance to ensure free to view TV viewers interests are properly served.

Service restoration
The key measure of how well we are doing our job is how quickly and effectively we restore free to
view TV received through an aerial for households that experience interference as a result of
upgrades to mobile services below 900 MHz.

If you:
● live in a house with its own aerial
● do not have satellite or cable television
● have TV interference which is diagnosed as being caused by mobile signals below 900 MHz
● have lost access to your main standard-definition TV services

We aim to restore your TV service within ten working days of booking your appointment. Where
other channels are affected, you will be offered the next available appointment but the waiting time
may be more than ten working days.

(Note: The ten working days begin when your appointment is booked.)

Where a filter is specifically requested by the viewer, this will be dispatched within five working
days.

There is no charge to viewers for our services.

Other measures of our performance

Awareness and communication

Ahead of new mobile masts being upgraded, we identify which nearby homes are at additional risk
of experiencing disruption to free to view TV. We contact these homes by post to make the occupiers
aware of the issue. We send a postcard to properties that contains information about the help and
support we offer and provides details of how we can be contacted. In areas where a high percentage
of the local population is within range of upgraded mobile services, we may run other targeted
communications activities to raise awareness of the potential issue and the support available.

Quality of service
We will measure and report on the proportion and type of viewer complaints compared with the
overall number of viewer interactions to evaluate the quality of service we offer. Our target is that
less than 0.25% of viewer interactions are complaints. To see a copy of our Code of Complaint, please
visit restoretv.uk/about.

Scale
We will target our communications to viewers most likely to experience interference to free to view
TV from mobile signals below 900 MHz and will refine our approach as needed. The content of our
communications will be clear and will not cause undue alarm to viewers.

Data protection and use of information
We will hold any personal information you share with us in confidence and in accordance with the
Data Protection Act (2018) and the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) effective 28 May
2018. We will not hold, or use, your information for purposes other than helping you to resolve any
TV interference. In no circumstances will we allow it to be used for marketing purposes.

Our assurance of courtesy and security
Our contact centre staff are trained to deal with all enquiries in a professional and courteous manner.

Restore TV engineers have undertaken training; have passed a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
check (this was previously known as the Criminal Records Bureau (CRB) check); and carry an identity
card with photo.

We contact viewers that have used our services to understand if they feel we are doing a good job.
We use these findings to improve our services.

If you have a complaint, you can let us know via any of the means listed below. We will deal with it
promptly, efficiently and fairly.

How to get in touch
You can contact us in a number of ways:

● call our UK-based contact centre on 0808 13 13 800. Calls are free from UK landlines and
mobile phones. Check the opening times for the contact centre on our website
restoretv.uk/contact us/
● via our website: restoretv.uk
● by email: enquiries@restoretv.uk
● by post: Restore TV, PO Box 358, Birkenhead, CH25 9EJ
● Via social media
● Facebook: facebook.com/RestoreTVHelp
● X: x.com/RestoreTVHelp

Please get in touch:
● if you have received a postcard from us and experience new interference to free to view TV;
● to request a filter;
● if you need advice on fitting a filter;
● for general enquiries;
● to make a complaint.

Background – filters
We have filters for different situations. A standard domestic filter is smaller than a pack of cards and
does not need either batteries or a power supply.

The filters are small boxes that ‘block’ mobile signals below 900 MHz being received by your TV
equipment and enable you to carry on watching free to view TV channels as normal. We have tested
each type of filter to ensure it works correctly in the UK.

If you only have a TV aerial and don’t have an amplifier, the filter plugs into the lead between your
TV set or set top box and the aerial socket.

We think most viewers will be able to fit the standard filter themselves in a matter of minutes.

If you have an amplifier in your loft (if you have a weak TV signal for example), the filter needs to be
connected between the aerial and the amplifier.

If you have a rooftop aerial amplifier, a weatherproof filter needs to be attached to the mast and
connected between the aerial and the masthead amplifier.

March 2025