"Ed Sirett" wrote in message
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On Fri, 17 Aug 2007 19:18:44 +0100, tim..... wrote:

"Tony Bryer" wrote in message
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On Fri, 17 Aug 2007 15:27:15 +0100 Broadback wrote :
It is simply another form of taxation, the HIPs are subject to VAT.

True but if it's a sale subject to IHT or CGT HMG gets 17.5% of the
pack price but then loses 40% of the with-VAT price, e.g. pack price
£500+, they get £87.50 VAT, lose £235 in inheritance tax.

Is the 'pack' subject to VAT? Most of the items in it are
things that you already have to buy which are either VAT
excempt or have VAT included.

I can't see that paying someone 50 quid to put it all together
generates another VAT charge (except on that 50 quid).

Personally, I can see this pack as a tax. It doesn't generate
a significant amount of VAT that wasn't already being collected
and there is no compulsion to pay someone to put it together
for you. You can do it yourself - and why would the contributors
to this group do otherwise :-)

Even if the local authority search and land registry searches are VAT
exempt the energy assessors fees are and the overall package assembly
charge will be.

I can see that there is a (small) amount of extra tax collected.

But my point is that, I believe that the introduction of these
packs has not been done to create revenue.

It's been done because someone genuinely believes that they
will be helpful. You will recall (or perhaps not) that (for reasons
which I never understood) Estate Agents where in favour of
such a the scheme when the Government were initially consulting
on "how to avoid gazumping", perhaps because they thought
the alternatives were worse. They only became negative to the
scheme after the initial trials.

tim