HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has announced proposed new measures to stop rip-off agents taking advantage of people and pocketing their tax repayments. Taxpayers can use Repayment Agents to make claims for tax refunds, and many are happy with the service they receive.
However, many taxpayers have complained to HMRC that the scale of the charges are unclear or even hidden, while questions have been raised about how some agents secure agreements from customers.
To combat this, HMRC has now launched a 12-week consultation “Raising standards in tax advice: Protecting customers claiming tax repayments” to consider ways to better protect taxpayers from Repayment Agents who make routine tax claims on people’s behalf but can take up to half, or even more, of the payment.
