Rosanna Jayne Gordon v Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs

Facts

Mrs. Rosanna Jayne Gordon took the tenancy of the Samson & Lion public house from 5 November 1998 and registered for VAT from that date, having never previously run a business. The premises were derelict and, after extensive refurbishment organised by her accountant Mr. Alan Barrett, the pub began trading in March 1999. Mrs. Gordon relied entirely on Mr. Barrett, who completed her VAT returns; the first return for period 02/99 reclaimed input tax on the refurbishment and produced a repayment of £18,497. In early 2000 the assessing officer, Mrs. Helen Dawn Nolan, carried out a credibility check at Mr. Barrett's offices, finding no record of how the return figures had been compiled, discrepancies in purchase invoices and no invoices for the refurbishment work. Mr. Barrett failed to provide the further information he had promised, and an assessment of £28,652 covering periods 02/99 to 02/00 was calculated on 7 November 2000 and issued on 9 November. A reconsideration was requested and the assessment upheld; correspondence ceased in August 2001. The Commissioners took no effective enforcement step until 2008, when a statutory demand and bankruptcy petition followed. Mrs. Gordon appealed out of time with permission granted by direction dated 28 June 2010.