HMRC declares war on tax-dodging landlords

All this in an evenly balanced world is one thing. if only !!! But from my experience now on the otherside of a 8 year tax investigation where it appears my name was simply pulled from a tax office lucky dip bag to be investigated. I endured 8 years of a lets dig and see from these government shysters they call tax inspectors. A few years in and it was clear the government shysters were simply fishing in the dark. They had nothing other than their own jealous spite that was hidden behind rigged rules giving them at all times, the upper hand to demand, smerk and bully. They simply made it up as they went along. After several years, one of the tax shyster knowing he was getting nowhere even offered to shut the whole thing down "if" I would admit to fiddling something and then, pay a 5 figure sum in settlement. He also told me if I did not accept his offer, I would face many more years of hassament until, I did admit what they were trying to pin on me because he said, they had all the time in the world and would unless, I gave in, keep going, and keep running up accountants bills asking loads of pointless questions. I refused his off the record offer, and five years further down the line the shysters had to conceed and admit that in fact, in contrast to my not paying enough in tax, I had in fact, been paying substantially more in tax than I ever needed. This mainly was due to failings by my accountants who had failed to claim proper allowances. This resulted in, after eight year of hell, a huge tax refund. The bottom line the inland revenue never had any reason other than their own jealous spite to investigate me. The revenue wasted tens of thousand of pounds in man hours digging for something that wasn't their. They found nothing, so they simply created something instead to pin on me. At the end of it all, all they offered me was £150 in compensation for 8 years of hassle and hell. The reason they only gave me £150 they say is because it is public money. Odd thing is, when it comes to MP's on the fiddle, first class flights for govenment staff and the royals or, a whole host of others milking the system at every corner. Then there never seems to be any shortage of public money to go round. To date the revenue, are even still trying to duck out of paying my accountants bills that they ran up over the 8 years. What the revenue should now do, is hold the tax shysters to account and if, as they say, they don't want to use public money. The tax shysters themselves or their managers should be made accountable for their actions and then made to pay the bills they pointlessly ran up from their own pockets. So before this bunch of government shysters ( the revenue ) start harrsing private landlords the government first want to get some tight controls on this bunch of target chasers because from my direct experience, what they cannot find honestly they make up, then hide behind rigged rules to enforce what they make up.

I wonder when HMRC will tax benefit claimants who keep Housing Benefit. Keeping Housing Benefit is currently an income that doesn't attract taxation also allowing the claimant Unemployment Benefit. If HMRC where to tax kept housing benefit, and then the Government refused to pay claimants who had an income, then Landlords might actually get paid. I unfortunately will not take benefit claimants as the costs have been so high. I've actually left a property empty than take a benefit claimant, which I feel is wrong for all. There are good Benefit Claimants but one still ends up subsidising good ones. The Government also needs to create Legislation to make Tenants responsible and fine them, just like bad landlords are fined. The Deposit Protection Service makes it Law to fine the Landlord 3 x deposit if not protected, why not fine Tenants 3 x rent if they do not perform their duties? Although I have great tenants now it's been a learning process and I honestly wished I hadn't made the effort of self employment.

The only landlords that HMRC does not know about are those not using letting agencies - but even then, they can tell the houses are being rented. There is probably a lot more to gain looking at what the top 1000 most powerful people in the country do tax-wise - Top politicians and businessman. There must be millions on tax avoidance at that level !