Watchdog Could Have Overturned Huge Tax Bills 
A report has revealed that tens of thousands of tax demands are never investigated by an impartial judge, despite there being an Adjudicator’s Office set up to investigate any complaints about the taxman and its mistakes.

The report accuses HMRC of denying a fair hearing for taxpayers who dispute bills, as they fail to highlight their right to have their complaint heard by the adjudicator; claims which are backed up by the reports findings.

From an investigate, the report found that since September 2010 158,598 people have complained about unfair tax demands, yet only 40,827 appeals have been upheld and 117,771 rejected.

It also found that up to April last year, 716 claims had been taken to the independent adjudicator’s office, whilst 83,700 has been rejected – suggesting that only 1 in every 120 complains thrown out is judged independently; yet 1 in 4 which are independently adjudicated are upheld.

Experts say people making complaints to HMRC are unaware they can have their case reviewed by an independent referee; with one expert saying: “There’s a serious lack of information for individuals. A lot of people don’t know what the Adjudicator does or how it works.

“It’s woefully inadequate to have it mentioned at the bottom of the letter in a paragraph. There needs to be a much greater clarification about it from HMRC.”

It’s reported that the information given to those whose appeals are turned down includes only a website address for the Adjudicator, not a telephone or postal address.


For more information, please contact Glazers, Chartered Accountants London or visit www.glazers.co.uk





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