- Original Poster
- #1
Hello
I know that I'm not the only person in this position right now; in fact, I think it is probably quite common. Certainly my MP admitted to me that they are aware of this.
I took over a company during Corona and it was desperately insolvent. The previous Director has been diagnosed with dementia and I don't think there was any mal-intent on his part. I took over the company shares in lieu of redundcancy and worked hard to bring it back to solvency; I haven't quite achieved that yet but almost. However, I have a situation in which HMRC owes the company money and the company in turn owes HMRC. The two more or less cancel eachother out. I disclosed this to them some time back but I was told to wait. Well I have waited. My concern is of course now that I cannot fine them for non-payment but they can fine us.
I recently re-financed a property in order to put money into the company and because of (insert some accounting term here) the property ended up being transferred to a SPV Ltd and thus liable for SDLT, which I neither expected nor budgeted for... bad advice and that's being chased through the Ombudsman. But that's not my point. HMRC eventually started getting a bit narky and I 'phoned them up to the one 'phone line that seems to get an answer- the one where you pay them. I explained the situation and after being talked to like I was a criminal by someone who clearly didn't speak English as a first language, my offer of payment was rejected and their repayment terms were eye watering... NB I have indeed checked this was genuinely HMRC and not a scam.
My point is that HMRC, like all government bodies, encourage those who are non-compliant in any way but who want to become compliant to contact them, disclose their non-compliance and try to work out an affordable way to do so. But my experience is that if you stick your head over the parapet then you'll get it shot off by their snipers. Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending those who have systematically and persistently abused the system but in a post-Corona World they just have no sense of reality. I may well lose my house over this as well as all my savings- simply because I tried to do the right thing and keep myself, colleagues and creditors all happy. The company is now profitable and paying off its agreed debts. I try insolvency and recovery specialists- they all realise they'll make more money out of a closure than a recovery so where do you think they point me?
It really does seem as if this current incarnation of the government hates small business and wants us all gone. 40 years of running businesses and managing others, selling 2 successfully, retiring and coming back and I've never seen this situation yet in which we're stuffed no matter what we do.
Anyone any opinions?
Stuart
I know that I'm not the only person in this position right now; in fact, I think it is probably quite common. Certainly my MP admitted to me that they are aware of this.
I took over a company during Corona and it was desperately insolvent. The previous Director has been diagnosed with dementia and I don't think there was any mal-intent on his part. I took over the company shares in lieu of redundcancy and worked hard to bring it back to solvency; I haven't quite achieved that yet but almost. However, I have a situation in which HMRC owes the company money and the company in turn owes HMRC. The two more or less cancel eachother out. I disclosed this to them some time back but I was told to wait. Well I have waited. My concern is of course now that I cannot fine them for non-payment but they can fine us.
I recently re-financed a property in order to put money into the company and because of (insert some accounting term here) the property ended up being transferred to a SPV Ltd and thus liable for SDLT, which I neither expected nor budgeted for... bad advice and that's being chased through the Ombudsman. But that's not my point. HMRC eventually started getting a bit narky and I 'phoned them up to the one 'phone line that seems to get an answer- the one where you pay them. I explained the situation and after being talked to like I was a criminal by someone who clearly didn't speak English as a first language, my offer of payment was rejected and their repayment terms were eye watering... NB I have indeed checked this was genuinely HMRC and not a scam.
My point is that HMRC, like all government bodies, encourage those who are non-compliant in any way but who want to become compliant to contact them, disclose their non-compliance and try to work out an affordable way to do so. But my experience is that if you stick your head over the parapet then you'll get it shot off by their snipers. Don't get me wrong, I'm not defending those who have systematically and persistently abused the system but in a post-Corona World they just have no sense of reality. I may well lose my house over this as well as all my savings- simply because I tried to do the right thing and keep myself, colleagues and creditors all happy. The company is now profitable and paying off its agreed debts. I try insolvency and recovery specialists- they all realise they'll make more money out of a closure than a recovery so where do you think they point me?
It really does seem as if this current incarnation of the government hates small business and wants us all gone. 40 years of running businesses and managing others, selling 2 successfully, retiring and coming back and I've never seen this situation yet in which we're stuffed no matter what we do.
Anyone any opinions?
Stuart
