Seeking a receipt for payment made to car restoration garage

Classic_cars

I paid a total of £36400 ( online bank transfers ) to a classic car restoration garage for work done on my classic car but for over a year they have refused to give me a receipt for this money paid. 
The person who now owns the restoration workshop refuses to reply to my emails or contact me.
 He took over ownership of the business while my car was being restored and the staff say they are only workers and cannot issue me a receipt.
It was the senior member of staff, previous owner, who assured me a full inventory of work carried out and receipts for payments would be given.
I badly need this receipt as proof of the extensive work having been done on my car as I now want to sell it.
What are my rights here in N.Ireland regarding this issue ?
Thank you in advance.

user1977

There's no general requirement to give a receipt. You've got your bank statements showing the payments being made. Don't you have any evidence of what work was being done e.g. a quote?

Classic_cars

When asked for a receipt after the work was done I was told it would be emailed to me but instead of a receipt I got an invoice emailed to me detailing all the work done which was a true account.
As I said  it is my intention to sell the rod and when I say I spent the money on it one would expect to see receipts for same.
I recon they don't want to issue the receipt for tax reasons.
Would like to have some sort of leverage to make them issue me my receipt. Should be done anyway on principle.

MattMattMattUK

Classic_cars said:

When asked for a receipt after the work was done I was told it would be emailed to me but instead of a receipt I got an invoice emailed to me detailing all the work done which was a true account.
As I said  it is my intention to sell the rod and when I say I spent the money on it one would expect to see receipts for same.
I recon they don't want to issue the receipt for tax reasons.
Would like to have some sort of leverage to make them issue me my receipt. Should be done anyway on principle.

You have an invoice which details all the work completed, you have paid the invoice, there is no need for, nor any legal basis for "a receipt", it would also have no impact on their tax bill (VAT, CT etc.)

user1977

It's pretty standard (at least in my line of work) that all you get is an invoice, and then you pay it. No need for a receipt. What you've got sounds fine to me - is anybody claiming it isn't?

Sandtree

The only thing you can demand is a VAT invoice and then thats only if the merchant is VAT registered.  Whilst it may be common to give a receipt or an invoice marked as paid or such there is no legal obligation to do so.

Why are you so desperate to have a receipt?

MattMattMattUK

Sandtree said:

The only thing you can demand is a VAT invoice and then thats only if the merchant is VAT registered.  Whilst it may be common to give a receipt or an invoice marked as paid or such there is no legal obligation to do so.

Why are you so desperate to have a receipt?

You can only demand a VAT invoice if both parties are VAT registered, not just one of them.

If you sell a customer a product or a service, you need to give them an invoice (bill) by law if both you and the customer are registered for VAT (a business to business transaction).
https://www.gov.uk/invoicing-and-taking-payment-from-customers

Classic_cars

As I said, I acknowledge the invoice is detailed and correct and good do have but I expected to get a receipt upon request as has always been the case with me. Especially on this occasion with the amount involved. Maybe I'm just old fashioned and I suppose principles are not now what they used to be when I was younger, now in my 70's.
Thanks for all your contributions.

MattMattMattUK

Classic_cars said:

As I said, I acknowledge the invoice is detailed and correct and good do have but I expected to get a receipt upon request as has always been the case with me. Especially on this occasion with the amount involved. Maybe I'm just old fashioned and I suppose principles are not now what they used to be when I was younger, now in my 70's.
Thanks for all your contributions.

How is providing an invoice, a legally correct document, but not providing "a receipt" which I an entirely meaningless piece of paper in these circumstances in any way an example of a decline in society's principles? 

pbartlett

Without any receipt of payment or maybe the invoice being stamped as paid, there is no proof that you have actually paid them so if I were you I would hang on to printed copies of your bank statements just in case there's any query in the distant future

Sandtree

pbartlett said:

Without any receipt of payment or maybe the invoice being stamped as paid, there is no proof that you have actually paid them so if I were you I would hang on to printed copies of your bank statements just in case there's any query in the distant future

Only if you paid them in cash but the OP states it was a substantial sum and therefore is unlikely to have been cash. Cheque, bank transfer, card payment, PayPal etc will all show payment made to the vendor