Andrew Parnham t/a Parnham Transport & Anor v The Commissioners for HMRC

Facts

The appellants, Mr Andrew Parnham (trading as Parnham Transport) and Mr Mark Wild (trading as Mark Wild Haulage), were subcontracted by SDM European Transport Limited to carry consignments of alcohol from the UK to an Aldi warehouse in Belgium between 27 September and 16 November 2006. HMRC alleged that the duty-suspended movements had not been completed and that the goods were therefore liable to excise duty in the UK. It raised penalty assessments against SDM, the appellants and four other lorry drivers. The appellants' appeals were stayed behind SDM's appeal. That appeal ended in 2016, after the Upper Tribunal had found that the relevant consignments never arrived. HMRC's attempt in 2018 to strike out the appellants' appeals failed. The First-tier Tribunal later refused both the appellants' application to bar HMRC and HMRC's application to strike out for abuse of process. On 28 November 2023 the Upper Tribunal dismissed both parties' appeals and urged swift progress to a substantive hearing. After a hearing on 25 September 2025, Judge Snelders directed the appellants to send a list of documents to HMRC and the Tribunal within 28 days. They did not comply. They also did not answer a Tribunal letter of 21 April 2026. On 20 May 2026 the Tribunal issued an unless direction with a deadline of 5pm on 3 June 2026. At 16:07 that day the appellants' solicitors emailed their list of documents to the Tribunal only. The email was not copied to HMRC, which contended that the appeals stood struck out.