Beamfeature Limited v Her Majesty's Revenue & Customs

Facts

The appellant, Beamfeature Limited, is an importer and distributor of household goods. The product in dispute is described in Beamfeature's sales literature as a patch work quilt: a woven bed covering approximately 240cm by 260cm, with a top layer of 100% cotton, a backing of 80% polyester and 20% cotton, and a filling of 100% polyester consisting of a layer of wadding a few millimetres thick held in place by stitching, packaged in a clear plastic bag for retail sale. In February 2001 a similar, if not identical, product had been granted a binding tariff information at Beamfeature's request under tariff code 9404 90 90 00. In July 2005, following the implementation of Commission Regulation (EC) No 1020/03, the Commissioners invited Beamfeature to provide a sample so that the binding tariff information could be reconsidered. Beamfeature supplied a sample and applied again for classification under code 9404 90 90 00, but on 29 July 2005 a new binding tariff information was issued under code 6304 19 10 90, effectively revoking the 2001 ruling. That decision was upheld on the obligatory review by letter of 5 September 2005, and Beamfeature appealed. The dispute mattered because goods within heading 6304 attract duty of 12 per cent, whereas heading 9404 attracts 3.7 per cent.