awaiting a distraint visit from hmrc

inthedoodoo

hi everyone

I am new here and as the name suggests i am in the doodoo, i have an outstanding self assessment tax bill of over £6000, it may as well be £600000. i have no prospect of paying it and have been told that the tax man will visit me and take my posessions for auction under distraint. I have few possesions (a £400 car being my main asset) and live in a shared, furnished, rented house. The tv and other electrical items belong to my housemate. What will they take?? can they take my housemates stuff?? Will they make me bankrupt. I'm scared about the visit and what else can they do will i go to prison?? Any advice or anyone been in the same position.. thank you.

thevinternet

Hiya, first thing I'd say is talk to your housemates and let them know the score. They may react badly, but not as badly as if a HMRC officer appears out of the blue.

Have you spoken to the tax office and told them the score? If you point out that you haven't many possessions, then it may not be worth his while coming round. Also is there any chance that the tax calculation was wrong...have you earned less this year than last year for example?

Could you offer to pay something back every month, even just a fiver?

Also check out the taxaid website:
http://www.taxaid.org.uk/tax_debt.cfm?secnav=1

Vxxx

inthedoodoo

Thanks thevinternet, I thought I would have to wait ages for a reply, your right, its time to sit down and tell my housemate that there maybe a knock at the door shortly, does he have to let them in even if I'm out?? I think i may feel better just talking about it thats why I came on here. Thanks for the link (and the links from that) I've just read them, it seems I do not have much chance of going to prison, but they can make me bankrupt. I'm not disputing the amount I owe I will try talking to the tax people, I'm an idiot and had my head in the sand for too long.

thevinternet

Don't worry too much - there's lots of people on here who've been in the same situation as you. In fact, a notice of distraint was what prompted what we refer to on here as a Light Bulb Moment for me - basically a big wake up call that my spending couldn't continue!! I was lucky in that I managed to get a loan to cover the taxes I owed, so there was no frightening knock at the door, but I'd suggest sorting it out with the tax man first rather than resorting to what I did, as money is now really ridiculously tight for me.

I'm pretty sure that you don't have to let them in if he comes round, so you could just ignore him and communicate by phone and mail instead. If you can, it might be worth parking your car a few streets down too.

Incidentally, although I had to pay a few thousand out, since I wasn't earning as much last year as the year before, I'm getting a big rebate coming my way now, so they can get it wrong. Make sure that they have their figures right.

If you can come up with a definitive list of all your incomings and outgoings, maybe when you phone in to the tax office, you can prove to them that you can only afford to pay x amount a month.

I also suggest posting on the cutting taxes section of the forum, as there may be more people on there who can help - I'm pretty sure there's a former tax inspector who posts there pretty regularly. I'm sure they know more about this than me, I can only share my own experiences with you I'm afraid.

Best of luck my friend,
V xxx

inthedoodoo

Thank you again thevinternet... first things first is to talk to my housemate, from what I can tell from the links you posted before and some other stuff I've now found he can only take what is mine not just anything in the house, proving what is or is n't mine may be difficult though.

Then I will need to talk to the tax office, even if just to point out that I do n't have any assets... A definitive list of my outgoings may be hard but something I need to do anyway, to start getting some control back I have no idea where my money goes as I never seem to have accumulated any material things and have n't been on holiday in a decade.

Distraint is not going to come anywhere near recovering what I owe... If I can't come to some sort of arrangement then from what I have now read its county court and then bankruptcy in the high court.

Maybe my light bulb moment has come a bit too late.

Thanks for sharing your experiences V

thevinternet

All I can say is, it's never too late for a LBM....even if you do have to go bankrupt, you'll find plenty of people who've done that on here and have come through the other side. Keep posting and I'm sure you'll get the support you need - and let us all know how you get on in the next few days.

V xx

inthedoodoo

Thank you V I will do.. Now I've finally got my head out of the sand I've spoken to a few people, family and friends, and got some support (not ridicule), not necessarily financial but at least I do n't feel alone now... coming on here was my first admission of where I was at.

So thanks for replying to my posts and your support. I feel motivated now to take some practical steps. Strange that when your in the doodoo how easy it is to let things drift... You do need a LBM..lol...

cheers.

thevinternet

Good for you for telling folks. :T

I think the general consensus on here is to be honest with family and friends, so you've done the right thing. Personally nobody knows how badly I'm in debt :rolleyes:, although my boyf knows I have CC debts etc.

Anyway, if I'm on the right track with very little support, then imagine how well you will get on with everyone wishing you the best and supporting you. You'll be fine doodoo; the only way is up from here on in.

inthedoodoo

Thanks V to be honest I think that the whole thing about being honest is about being honest with yourself... head in the sand and all that, I do not know how or why I just let things drift to this point.. it was easier than facing up to it all I think .. but now I am (facing up to it all) .. the distraint visit may come soon but I think I am going to go against your advice and borrow the money to pay off hmrc and then just draw a line ..... then find a way to get out of this mess.. I need to get organised :rolleyes: .

V I am sure that you have got the support of the vast majority of us on here, you have got my support anyway ... thanks for supporting me mate when I needed it most...... at My LBM.. lol.

debt23

HI,

This struck a chord with me, as im in debt to the tax man myself, for around about the same sum!

All I can say - as everyone else has - is dont panic!

First off, a warning - the tax office has some serious powers when it comes to dealing with the recovery of taxes owed, so never ignore them!

But - if you speak to them you will find out they are not as bad as you may think!

Just like any creditor, you can come to an agreement with them to repay the money owed as a monthly sum - I think I pay around £50 a month myself.

I think because they have so much 'power' the tax office knows it will win in the end, so i found this tended to make them easier to deal with. When my problems with them started, I needed time to sort my affairs out, and they were quite happy to wait as long as i kept them updated.

Dont hang around, speak to them straight away - youll find things are no where near as dark as you think!

All the best

Debt23

thevinternet

Hey doodoo, I know that most people on here would tell you not to get a loan to cover it, but then again that's exactly what I did and it's worked for me. Debt23 is right in that they have more powers than a loan company would have over you, so I saw it (rightly or wrongly) as a way of making the debt 'safer', and so far I'm paying off the loan installments on time, although I did have to get another part-time job to make it all work!

You just have to be really really disciplined from here on in and learn your lesson...a third away each month in a savings account, ready for mr taxman!! lol. And no missing those loan payments!

Thanks for the kind words, but no sweat...that's what this site is all about really, supporting one another and sticking two fingers up to Mr Taxman!!