The issue of repayment agents became especially bad during the pandemic because they had a new set of potential victims – those who could claim work from home allowance. It’s no wonder that the number of complaints has rocketed over the past couple of years.
It’s good that HMRC are cracking down on this. While there is a legitimate place for agents (anyone with an accountant for a start!), there needs to be more protection in place against the scammers.
Is silly when people can just file a p87 for themselves and claim expenses just by going to the website. Don’t agree to anything on Facebook or the the phone unless it’s an actual accountant. Is just abusing peoples lack of understanding of the tax system. Is genuinely most the calls we get is people complaining and there’s nothing we can do as it’s all technically legal.
>In John’s case he’s spent weeks trying to contact the company HMRC told him it’s paid his money to. He’s heard nothing, got nowhere and has no idea when he might see any of his money.
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>”I wondered how on earth can this deed of assignment been made?
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>”I haven’t given them permission to take money from HMRC and put it into their bank account instead of mine.
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>”I was absolutely sure that we have never asked for a deed of assignment and I’m absolutely sure I would never have forgotten giving someone else the opportunity to take all this money from me… because I’m sure it was a fraud.”
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>”I was absolutely sure that we have never asked for a deed of assignment and I’m absolutely sure I would never have forgotten giving someone else the opportunity to take all this money from me… because I’m sure it was a fraud.”
Used to do phones for HMRC in a previous life, literally had dozens if not hundreds of these cases (I expect a very small proportion become formal complaints).
Literally in every instance I’d trace the issue back to some generic format deed of assignment form with the person’s signature on it, signing over exactly what they had spent the entire conversation prior to that point denying. I’d see a big text box stating that ‘[insert agent name] is entitled to any tax repayments due to the signatory’ – and then a signature right underneath it (at which point the person would then begrudgingly acknowledge having signed ‘*something’*).
So I’m going to take John’s word with a massive pinch of salt. Sometimes people are just thick as fuck.
3 comments
The issue of repayment agents became especially bad during the pandemic because they had a new set of potential victims – those who could claim work from home allowance. It’s no wonder that the number of complaints has rocketed over the past couple of years.
It’s good that HMRC are cracking down on this. While there is a legitimate place for agents (anyone with an accountant for a start!), there needs to be more protection in place against the scammers.
Is silly when people can just file a p87 for themselves and claim expenses just by going to the website. Don’t agree to anything on Facebook or the the phone unless it’s an actual accountant. Is just abusing peoples lack of understanding of the tax system. Is genuinely most the calls we get is people complaining and there’s nothing we can do as it’s all technically legal.
>In John’s case he’s spent weeks trying to contact the company HMRC told him it’s paid his money to. He’s heard nothing, got nowhere and has no idea when he might see any of his money.
>
>”I wondered how on earth can this deed of assignment been made?
>
>”I haven’t given them permission to take money from HMRC and put it into their bank account instead of mine.
>
>”I was absolutely sure that we have never asked for a deed of assignment and I’m absolutely sure I would never have forgotten giving someone else the opportunity to take all this money from me… because I’m sure it was a fraud.”
>
>”I was absolutely sure that we have never asked for a deed of assignment and I’m absolutely sure I would never have forgotten giving someone else the opportunity to take all this money from me… because I’m sure it was a fraud.”
Used to do phones for HMRC in a previous life, literally had dozens if not hundreds of these cases (I expect a very small proportion become formal complaints).
Literally in every instance I’d trace the issue back to some generic format deed of assignment form with the person’s signature on it, signing over exactly what they had spent the entire conversation prior to that point denying. I’d see a big text box stating that ‘[insert agent name] is entitled to any tax repayments due to the signatory’ – and then a signature right underneath it (at which point the person would then begrudgingly acknowledge having signed ‘*something’*).
So I’m going to take John’s word with a massive pinch of salt. Sometimes people are just thick as fuck.