Safeguarding Our Money...

HMRC has been accused of facilitating fraud by paying fictitious tax rebate claims submitted in the name of unwitting taxpayers by third-party agents. Taxpayers can apply for a rebate if they have paid too much tax. They can choose to appoint an agent to do this on their behalf, but some firms are harvesting details of individuals to make bogus claims.

But surely, if the taxpayer notices this and cries foul, HMRC will listen to them? Well, Reader, you're not going to believe this.... 

Jim Mackie, a former police officer and private investigator, says HMRC refused to investigate when his wife’s details were used by a tax refund firm to submit an invented rebate claim worth £5,000 in her name last year. HMRC sent the full payment to the Lancashire-based firm Waltonbridge, which purported to be the appointed agent for Mackie’s wife.

“The first we knew about it was when HMRC wrote and said that rebate cheques were being sent to the ‘agent’,” said Mackie. “The claim, sent in my wife’s name with a signature that was not hers, was for tax paid on interest received from PPI payments. She hasn’t claimed a PPI payment since 2012 and for that amount of tax to be due she’d have had to have received a fantastical £100,000.”

Waltonbridge passed on just over the half the money in the form of a cheque, deducting a 48% fee, but the Mackies do not intend to cash it. Instead they have reported the suspected fraud to HMRC which told them it was satisfied the claim was genuine.

Yes, you read that right. Agent says 'No, I never authorised this!' and HMRC says 'Yes you did, the agent can't be wrong'... 

“It relied solely on Waltonbridge’s word,” Mackie said. “These scammers are stealing hundreds of thousands of pounds a year from HMRC and HMRC is happy to sit back, let it happen, then blame us, the public, for making false complaints.”

Remember Ronnie's 'nine most terrifying words'?