My hobby is selling cars, sold car and buyer wants more than a refund

Jumblebumble

George_Michael said:

Potbellypig said:

To be fair, I'm not sure that the first thing the buyer will be thinking is ''has this man I'm buying a car from put in his latest self assessment?''

You're probably right but if after they have bought the car, found it to different to how it was advertised then returned it for a refund and found themselves out of pocket through no fault of their own, they may well start thinking about what their next steps might be and one of these steps may involve HMRC.
As the OP has been selling "1 or 2 cars a month", then if the taxman did get involved (unlikely but still possible), the tax involved may turn out to be a fair amount.

Equally well the OP could be selling at a loss and then HMRC  might  owe them money if they have been on self assessment and overpaid the previous year.
All of this is idle speculation

Gavin83

Potbellypig said:

Gavin83 said:

Have you declared your profits to HMRC? Did you pay eBay fees for the sale? I’d obviously be far more concerned about the first than the second but the buyer could put you in a very difficult position and it’ll end up potentially costing you far more than the car. I’d suggest keeping the buyer on side and offering him what he’s asking for.

I also think the suggestion of giving it up is a good one. You clearly don’t want to run this as a business, despite it being so. 

To be fair, I'm not sure that the first thing the buyer will be thinking is ''has this man I'm buying a car from put in his latest self assessment?''

No, but if the OP refuses to go along with what they want they may well start wondering how they can cause maximum disruption. This could include negative feedback, reporting to eBay and reporting to HMRC. Only the OP knows how much of an issue that’ll be.

Gavin83

Jumblebumble said:

George_Michael said:

Potbellypig said:

To be fair, I'm not sure that the first thing the buyer will be thinking is ''has this man I'm buying a car from put in his latest self assessment?''

You're probably right but if after they have bought the car, found it to different to how it was advertised then returned it for a refund and found themselves out of pocket through no fault of their own, they may well start thinking about what their next steps might be and one of these steps may involve HMRC.
As the OP has been selling "1 or 2 cars a month", then if the taxman did get involved (unlikely but still possible), the tax involved may turn out to be a fair amount.

Equally well the OP could be selling at a loss and then HMRC  might  owe them money if they have been on self assessment and overpaid the previous year.
All of this is idle speculation

Given they’ve described themselves as a hobby seller I’m willing to bet they aren’t paying tax as they don’t see it as a business and consider it some extra money on the side. However the OP would need to confirm.

I doubt they’re running at a loss. If they were why would they bother? It’s not like it’s their sole business that they need to make a success of to pay the mortgage. It would be very easy for a “hobby” seller to just quit.