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Written Question
Debts: VAT
Tuesday 8th September 2020

Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether changes to the treatment of VAT on enforcement fees on judgement debt can be implemented without secondary legislation.

Answered by Alex Chalk - Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice

The draft guidance on the treatment of VAT on High Court Enforcement fees reflects the current law, both in the 2014 Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014 and at common law.

The 2014 Regulations made changes to the fees provisions in the HCEO Regulations 2004. Both the 2004 HCEO Regulations and 2014 Regulations allow for fees to be charged to the debtor. The 2014 Regulations were not intended to change the previously understood position at common law in relation to the recoverability of enforcement costs properly incurred including VAT where the creditor cannot account for it with HMRC, for example because they are not VAT registered.

Some of the authorities in support of the proposition that a debtor may be pursued for a creditor’s enforcement costs and as to the continuing relevance of the common law to this area are Montague v Davies, Benachi & Co [1911] 2 K.B. 595 and Business Finance Ltd v Bellagio Hospitality WB Ltd [2019] EWHC 1920 (QB). Disbursements are dealt with separately under the regulations.

As the draft guidance reflects the current law we do not envision additional costs being passed on to the debtor which are not included in the 2014 Regulations.

The Government proposes to publish the guidance on the treatment of VAT on High Court Enforcement fees as soon as possible.


Written Question
Debts: VAT
Tuesday 8th September 2020

Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, which area of common law will allow for the implementation of the draft guidance on VAT on High Court Enforcement Officer Fees in its current form.

Answered by Alex Chalk - Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice

The draft guidance on the treatment of VAT on High Court Enforcement fees reflects the current law, both in the 2014 Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014 and at common law.

The 2014 Regulations made changes to the fees provisions in the HCEO Regulations 2004. Both the 2004 HCEO Regulations and 2014 Regulations allow for fees to be charged to the debtor. The 2014 Regulations were not intended to change the previously understood position at common law in relation to the recoverability of enforcement costs properly incurred including VAT where the creditor cannot account for it with HMRC, for example because they are not VAT registered.

Some of the authorities in support of the proposition that a debtor may be pursued for a creditor’s enforcement costs and as to the continuing relevance of the common law to this area are Montague v Davies, Benachi & Co [1911] 2 K.B. 595 and Business Finance Ltd v Bellagio Hospitality WB Ltd [2019] EWHC 1920 (QB). Disbursements are dealt with separately under the regulations.

As the draft guidance reflects the current law we do not envision additional costs being passed on to the debtor which are not included in the 2014 Regulations.

The Government proposes to publish the guidance on the treatment of VAT on High Court Enforcement fees as soon as possible.


Written Question
Debts: VAT
Tuesday 8th September 2020

Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the potential effect of charging debtors VAT on enforcement fees on other additional costs being passed onto the debtor not detailed in the Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014.

Answered by Alex Chalk - Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice

The draft guidance on the treatment of VAT on High Court Enforcement fees reflects the current law, both in the 2014 Taking Control of Goods (Fees) Regulations 2014 and at common law.

The 2014 Regulations made changes to the fees provisions in the HCEO Regulations 2004. Both the 2004 HCEO Regulations and 2014 Regulations allow for fees to be charged to the debtor. The 2014 Regulations were not intended to change the previously understood position at common law in relation to the recoverability of enforcement costs properly incurred including VAT where the creditor cannot account for it with HMRC, for example because they are not VAT registered.

Some of the authorities in support of the proposition that a debtor may be pursued for a creditor’s enforcement costs and as to the continuing relevance of the common law to this area are Montague v Davies, Benachi & Co [1911] 2 K.B. 595 and Business Finance Ltd v Bellagio Hospitality WB Ltd [2019] EWHC 1920 (QB). Disbursements are dealt with separately under the regulations.

As the draft guidance reflects the current law we do not envision additional costs being passed on to the debtor which are not included in the 2014 Regulations.

The Government proposes to publish the guidance on the treatment of VAT on High Court Enforcement fees as soon as possible.


Written Question
Personal Injury: Compensation
Monday 5th March 2018

Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment he has made of the effect of changes to the personal injury discount rate on average motor insurance premiums.

Answered by Rory Stewart

The Government has not made an estimate of the overall impact on the insurance industry of the change to the discount rate in March 2017. However, in September 2017, PwC stated insurers had passed on roughly half of the expected costs resulting from the change in the rate with premiums for policies rising by about £75 on average and about £250 for young drivers.


Written Question
Personal Injury: Compensation
Thursday 1st March 2018

Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent representations he has received on the effect of the personal injury discount rate on the affordability of motor insurance.

Answered by Rory Stewart

On 7 September 2017, the Ministry of Justice published and invited comments on draft legislation that would, if enacted, change the way in which the discount rate is set.

Following publication of the draft legislation, representations have been received from a range of stakeholder groups, including a number from insurance companies which included comments on the effects of the change to the discount rate in March 2017 on motor insurance premiums.


Written Question
Personal Injury: Compensation
Thursday 1st March 2018

Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, when he plans to bring forward legislative proposals to reform the personal injury discount rate.

Answered by Rory Stewart

On 30 November the Justice Select Committee published its report ‘Pre-legislative scrutiny: draft personal injury discount rate clause’, in response to the Government’s draft legislation.

The Government will publish its response to the Committee’s report and stakeholder comments received on the draft legislation together with details of how it intends to proceed as soon as possible after it has reached conclusions on the way forward.


Written Question
Dangerous Driving: Young People
Monday 16th October 2017

Asked by: Stephen Crabb (Conservative - Preseli Pembrokeshire)

Question to the Ministry of Justice:

To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of drivers under the age of 18 that cause death or serious injury through dangerous driving being convicted as adults instead of minors.

Answered by Phillip Lee

An offender cannot be treated as an adult if they are under the age of 18 on the date of conviction. These offenders will receive a disposal under the youth sentencing framework.

Where an offender turns 18 between the commission of the offence and the date of conviction they will then receive an adult sentence, although when setting the length and requirements of the sentence the court should take as its starting point the sentence likely to have been imposed on the date at which the offence was committed.