The number of people complaining to His Majesty’s Treasury and Customs Agency about companies claiming tax returns on their behalf has more than tripled in two years, a Money Box investigation has found.
Many say this is happening without their knowledge or permission.
HMRC acknowledges there are significant concerns about the repayment agents and is “considering their next steps”.
The complaints concern so-called “deeds of assignment”.
So far this year there have been 1,808 complaints, compared to 545 for all of 2020.
A deed of assignment is when a person assigns their right to something, usually money, to another person to claim on their behalf.
When used properly by reputable tax refund companies, they can help people get money they would otherwise probably not claim.
But the market is unregulated and open to abuse.
John Strawbridge is retired and received three letters from HMRC two months ago.
The letters explained that the £974 marriage allowance John claimed would be paid to a tax refund company as required.
The problem was that John had never heard of the company involved, had never called for the money, and two months later still hadn’t seen a cent of it.
“It was a big shock,” he said.
“I’m always very careful to fill out all my income tax and all other forms and keep copies, so … I spoke to my wife and said, ‘What on earth is going on, we haven’t done anything about it. We’d better find out what’s going on.'”
Because a deed of assignment is a legal document, both parties must agree to cancel it – it is impossible for just one party to do so.
In John’s case, he spent weeks trying to contact the company HMRC, which he was told paid his money. He hasn’t heard anything, gotten nowhere and has no idea when he might see any of his money.
“I was wondering how on earth could this deed of assignment be made?
“I didn’t give them permission to take money from HMRC and put it into their bank account instead of mine.
“I was absolutely certain that we never asked for a deed of assignment, and I am absolutely certain that I would never have forgotten to give someone else the opportunity to take all this money from me … because I am sure that it was a scam.”
2019 – 246 cases
2020 – 545 cases
2021 – 749 cases
Jan 2022 – 16 Aug 22 – 1808 cases
Source: Money Box FOI request to HMRC
Since the tax refund sector is unregulated, it can be abused by some companies operating under the legitimate companies.
While some people knowingly sign up with a payback company, get their money as expected, minus an agreed fee, and move on for others, there is nothing but confusion and anger.
HMRC recognizes that there are significant concerns about the use of repayment agents and earlier this summer launched a review of how to better protect taxpayers who use them.
Finally, it said it is currently “analyzing the responses to this consultation and considering next steps”.
Joanne Walker is from the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, which submitted a submission to HMRC as part of its review.
“That’s worrying, but it’s not really a surprise, it’s consistent with what we’ve seen over the last few years,” she said.
She added that some companies “are unresponsive, charge very high fees, make over-promises, and have unclear or hidden terms and conditions.
“We saw a lot of advertising on social media and maybe an online request form suggesting that someone should check if they are eligible.
“People could fill out one of these request forms… and there may be a checkbox there. If they accidentally tick this box, it can involve signing various terms and conditions and in itself can lead to the generation of an application and a deed of assignment, even though the taxpayer thinks they were just asking.
“We have asked HMRC to stop accepting the deeds at face value as some of them may have been fraudulently produced. By simply asking the taxpayer if there is a deed of assignment and if they understand what it means, so taxpayers really need to report to HMRC when they are married.”
You can hear more of this story on BBC Radio 4’s Money Box podcast by clicking on it here.
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