20488

MANCHESTER TRIBUNAL CENTRE	Reference No: MAN/07/0715

	M B L SERVICES LIMITED	Appellant

and

THE COMMISSIONERS FOR
	HER MAJESTY’S REVENUE AND CUSTOMS	Respondents

Tribunal Chairman: Colin Bishopp

Sitting in public in Birmingham on 26 November 2007

DIRECTION
under Rule 30(8)

This appeal against a decision of the Respondents with respect to a surcharge assessment dated 13 April 2007 in the sum of £6851.95 being a reasonable excuse appeal as defined by rule 2 of the Value Added Tax Tribunals Rules 1986 as amended coming on for hearing this day

And upon hearing Mr J Puzey, counsel, for the Respondents and no one appearing for the Appellant

And this tribunal having heard this appeal under rule 26(2) of the said Rules and having announced its decision

And the Respondents by their said representative stating pursuant to the rule 30(8) of the said Rules that they do not require the said decision to be recorded in a written document in accordance with rule 30(1) of the said Rules

This tribunal finds that the Appellant does not have a reasonable excuse for the default which resulted in the Respondents making the assessment under appeal because, although no net loss of tax resulted from the Appellant’s rendering a reduced payment balanced by a repayment claim submitted simultaneously by its associated company, the requirement imposed on a taxable person by section 59(1) of the Value Added Tax Act 1994 is to pay “the amount of VAT shown on [his] return as payable by him in respect of that period.” There is no provision in the Act or elsewhere which enables one trader to discharge his obligation by taking the benefit of a credit due to another trader, even if they are associated, unless they are in the same VAT group.

And this tribunal directs that this appeal is dismissed and that (by reason of its failure to attend) the Appellant shall pay the Respondents’ costs of the hearing to be assessed by a tribunal chairman sitting alone if they are not agreed.

COLIN BISHOPP
CHAIRMAN
Release Date: 28 November 2007

© CROWN COPYRIGHT 2007