BUSINESS
HMRC URGES EMPLOYERS TO GET PAYE PAPERWORK SORTED
Employers are being urged to get their PAYE paperwork in order, after more than 500 returns incorrectly claimed to employ “A N Other” in 2009/10. Every year, employers send PAYE data
to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), which gives details of employees’ tax and national insurance contributions. Howev- er, it is not always accurate. Tis can cause problems for the employee, for example, incorrect amounts being deducted from their pay. It can also use up valuable em- ployer and HMRC time and money put- ting the error right. As well as 507 A N Others, employer re-
turns for 2009/10 revealed the following incorrect information: • 128 staff entered as Mr, Ms or Mrs “Dummy”
• 572 people whose surnames only included the letter X, ranging from Mr X to Mrs XXXXXX
• 75 staff with the surname “Casual”, 11 “Cleaners”, 9 “Workers” and 6 “Students”
• 824 employees with the surname “Unknown” and
• 40 people were apparently 200 years old or more after incorrect dates of birth were submitted.
Jim Harra, HMRC’s Director of Custom-
er Operations, said: “Most employers get their PAYE returns
right. Te few who don’t can cause prob- lems for their employees, for example,
“make life easier”
FPB WELCOMES PLANS TO REFORM ENERGY MARKET
Proposals to provide better protection for small businesses from energy companies could be undermined because of the lack of a dedicated watchdog, the Forum of Private Business (FPB) has warned.
Following its research showing that 94% of small businesses surveyed have seen energy bills rise over the past year - the biggest cost increases they have expe- rienced - the Forum is welcoming Of- gem’s proposals to reform the energy market. However, the watchdog Consumer Fo-
cus is being disbanded in 2013 and some of its powers will be passed to the Citi- zens’ Advice Bureau (CAB). It follows the demise of its predecessor Energywatch in 2008 and the removal its dedicated small business complaints hotline. Te Forum is concerned that, unless new Ofgem powers prove adequate, the CAB could prove even less effective at policing any reforms. “We can only hope that, if established,
Ofgem’s proposed accreditation scheme for codes of practice would work effec- tively, and financial penalties would be a big enough deterrent – but there is a risk that the small business energy market will not be adequately policed,” said the
Forum’s senior policy adviser Alex Jack- man. “Ofgem clearly recognises our mem-
bers’ concerns – that the behaviour of energy companies towards their small business customers is all too often unfair and unjust, so these proposed reforms are certainly welcome, particularly address- ing misselling and extending the protec- tions against rollover contracts enjoyed by micro businesses to all SMEs. “But we are concerned that the immi-
nent demise of Consumer Focus, follow- ing the closure of its predecessor Energy- watch, could leave small firms without a dedicated watchdog.” Many business owners have been hit
by mis-selling at the hands of energy bro- kers and are reporting contractual issues, including the practice of ‘rolling’ expir- ing contracts over to often more expen- sive deals with little or no prior warning, blocking them from switching suppliers to secure better deals. Ofgem’s proposals focus on placing
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WWW.KEYZINE.CO.UK
new standards of conduct into suppli- ers’ licences with financial penalties for breaches and, to better protect business- es from unfair sales practices, introducing an official accreditation scheme for codes of practice governing energy brokers and secure powers to take enforcement action directly against brokers for misleading marketing. Te energy regulator is reviewing
whether suppliers are complaint with li- cence conditions designed to ensure sup- pliers cannot unjustly prevent businesses from switching to another provider, fol- lowing a survey in March which found considerable evidence of this. Ofgem, which is expected to publish
a consultation on its proposals shortly, is also seeking to extend existing licence conditions protecting micro businesses – including requiring suppliers to pro- vide clear and transparent contract terms and conditions up front and regulate how contracts can be rolled over – to larger SMEs.
incorrect deductions of tax. Around 80 per cent of errors in employee data are due to an incorrect name, date of birth or national insurance number – straightfor- ward information that can be collected and checked quite easily. “So, whether you are employing ‘Mr or
Mrs J Smith’ – or even ‘Mr or Mrs A N Oth- er’, please use the full and official name on your PAYE paperwork. First names are very important, especially for common surnames. “We really want employers to check
that they are sending us the right details for all their employees, to make life easier for them, HMRC and their employees.” For more information on getting your
employer data right, visit http://www.
hmrc.gov.uk/rti/employerfaqs.htm#7
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