Argos - VAT Receipts and Credit Notes

[paulears]

I'm getting frustrated this week with purchases from big names who are clueless on VAT!

Tesco - you have to go to customer services, present your receipt and the write one out. Trouble is, the item costing £119.99 is apparently £96! I pointed out it was actually £100, but they didn't have the maths, just a calculator which removed 20% from the total. I gave up in the end. At Argos, it got worse. £189.99. Can I have a VAT receipt please. Till receipt presented. No - I went on, could I have a VAT receipt with the VAT shown on it. I was reassured by it having a VAT number on the back. I asked for the manager, who understood (hooray) and he pulled out a pad and with his calculator, wrote one out, popped it in the box and away I went to discover it was actually a CREDIT NOTE, in big letters - for £189.99, but with the VAT broken down. They don't even understand the fact the credit note is sort of 'money' - I guess I could go back in a spend it?

So I connected head office with a scan of the credit note - they say it's fine as a VAT receipt, and it's not a credit note, despite being written on a credit note pro forma, signed and dated.

Is it really too much to expect branches and head office to understand really basic accounts? As for Homebase - the promised VAT receipt hasn't come yet as promised?

Even using the simplified invoice rules for the amounts involved, a credit note really is different to a receipt - or am I just expecting too much?

 

[Mr D]

Purchased a computer at PC world once, asked for a VAT receipt (it was solely for business purposes). They had to call a manager and he had to get advice from the business corner of the store before writing one out by hand.
I then pointed out that he had just added 20% on to what I had paid and I wasn't paying extra, the price I paid included VAT, demanded a fresh VAT receipt. Took around half an hour to get a VAT receipt that was correct, only took a few minutes to buy the computer. I now avoid that store for all business purchases.

 

[STDFR33]

I think you are possibly complicating life.

You are probably in receipt (pardon the pun), of a simplified VAT invoice.
https://www.gov.uk/vat-record-keeping/vat-invoices

Just reclaim the correct amount of VAT and move on with your life.

 

[kulture]

I think you are possibly complicating life.

You are probably in receipt (pardon the pun), of a simplified VAT invoice.
https://www.gov.uk/vat-record-keeping/vat-invoices

Just reclaim the correct amount of VAT and move on with your life.

Useful if the invoice value is under £250. I suggest that a computer under £250 is useless.

 

[paulears]

I'm aware of the simplified rules, as i mentioned, and I'm happy taking the chance anyway - but I cannot believe a VAT inspector would not know the difference between a VAT receipt and Credit note, and believe one was the other?

 

[UKSBD]

They had to call a manager and he had to get advice from the business corner of the store before writing one out by hand.

Could you not buy it from the business corner section?

 

[Mr D]

Could you not buy it from the business corner section?

Long way to walk - computer about 15 feet from checkout. Normally just use checkout for stuff.
Prefer not to do long walks except at the supermarket or Olympia.

 

[Alan]

Just spend the credit note - it is worth more than the VAT you can reclaim

 

[paulears]

I thought that too - but they said don't try to do this. So they know they've cocked up!