VAT Assessments query

David Floyd · 2004-09-29T13:53:56+00:00

Can some of you VAT experts out there help please. A client has been in default of submitting VAT returns for nearly 4 years. They have a huge assessment built up which they are about to pay to the bailiffs. If I bring their affairs up to date and get all the outstanding VAT returns submitted, can the actual VAT due be substituted for the amounts actually assessed. I appreciate that there will still be penalties, interest etc. But because the assessments have been increasing they are very likely to be in excess of what was actually due. I've looked at Notice 700 and can't find the specific answer and the search facility on HMCE site is currently down. Thanks, David Floyd

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Troy Steadman 21 years ago

Well no you didn't, you said:

"If there are a lot of returns involved over a long period, this might not go entirely smoothly but the best approach is definitely to submit the outstanding returns. And submit them to Southend, not to the bailiffs. But have copies available to show the bailiffs that they've been submitted, together with your recalculation of the amounts properly due".

David doesn't have the Returns or the information to put on them. The only way to get get duplicate returns will be to phone the Inspector.

Most VAT inspectors I've known are very nice people and striking up a rapport with them is a "must have". The bailiffs are under the control of a local solicitor aren't they? The local solicitor under the control of a Local Inspector? And the debt is unconnected to the VAT owed? So how does submitting 12 returns to Southend stop the bailiffs taking away your tables and chairs?

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Troy Steadman 21 years ago

This is very interesting and IMHO is what Usenet is all about, David's client's family are in a desperate situation and, in the future, when other people are in a similar situation, they will be able to search Google and find all this conflicting but informative help.

We all base our methodology on what worked for us, which course depends on particular circumstances. There is no need to be rude IMHO but Hey! You're Welsh so express yourself! Be happy *you* haven't got a girl's name!

The method most people use when they have 16 (my commonsense-ometer prevented me from calculating the correct total earlier) VAT returns to submit in one go is to photocopy the most recent, change the dates and datecodes to try an make it "seem" like a proper return, and then send it to Southend.

My experience suggests they won't be able to process it but you may know different.

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Nogood Boyo 21 years ago

On Thu, 30 Sep 2004 at 22:47:10 in uk.finance Nogood Boyo wrote: [...]

I don't know why I qualified that with the bit about realistic steps... you should let them know anyway...

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Troy Steadman 21 years ago

"The more I read of your stuff the more I despair".

I hope David keeps us informed of how this evolves. The business we rescued got an amazing deal from the VAT man (nobody can tell you how good a deal because there are no facts to benchmark against), but even with penalties and interest they must have paid far less than they would have done if they'd submitted and paid the correct Returns. Didn't make any difference however, when I walked past their premises a few weeks ago they were boarded up.

Let me FWIW and in an idle moment guess how this will pan out:

1) Relatives pay the bailiffs. 2) More bailiffs arrive, matey has other creditors and has been buying his stocks retail from local shops using cash takings. 3) A week from now Evrite book arrives. Apart from being useless in its own right, the Evrite book is almost completely empty. 4) Relatives spend £150 on duplicate bank statements which David spends 2 days summarising, which gives him no more idea of the turnover than he would have had if he'd stared at the wallpaper. There are no inputs because there are no cheque stubs and few invoices and the credit cards have not been used for years. 5) David plucks a figure for turnover out of the air, reasons that there must have been inputs so it is only reasonable to inculude them, sends them to Southend, by this time the VAT man is chasing another year's worth of VAT returns. 6) Bailiff arrives from the IR.

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Troy Steadman 21 years ago

Hey Nogood, how'd you reckon the match will go next week? I used to work with a Welsh woman who I detested and whenever Wales lose at anything I visualise her devastation and smile inwardly.

On the other hand I lived in Mumbles, had a beautiful girlfiend there, Pennard is the prettiest place in the world.

You're a bit a know-it-all, do you think you and Ole Spelling-Mistake can predict the score?

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Jonathan Bryce 21 years ago

They haven't been doing their VAT returns. The accounts and tax returns are normally based on the information compiled for the VAT returns, so I would say it is very unlikely they would have these.

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