‘Revenue held me to ransom over VRT’
Man living in North has car seized while working in the South
A MAN forced by Revenue Commissioners to pay VRT on his car despite living in the North has told of his ‘frightening and hugely expensive’ experience’ after his car was seized, which he warned ‘could happen to anyone’.
Andrew Cassidy, 39, was living with his parents in his home town of Derry but working over the border in Letterkenny, Co. Donegal, when his Renault Megane was seized by Revenue officials in October 2018.
The officials told him they observed the car on more than 15 occasions at an address in Letterkenny, which turned out to be that of Cassidy’s partner where he sometimes stayed overnight.
He said he protested about the Revenue’s actions but eventually had to give the car up under ‘a lot of duress’. And three years later, Mr Cassidy is still locked into a battle with the Revenue.
In subsequent phone calls, one official told Mr Cassidy they had his car and that the best thing he could do in order to get it back was to pay the VRT.
He was also told to pay an additional 10% penalty of the value of the car for not having paid it in the first place.
Otherwise, the officer warned, he faced a court battle, which could take up to five years and by which time the car would be worth a fraction of its value when it was seized. The car was worth €20,000 at the time.
Mr Cassidy told the Irish Mail on Sunday: ‘I couldn’t believe what I was hearing, basically they were holding me to ransom. I was forced to pay the VRT even though I didn’t live in the Republic.
‘The Revenue couldn’t provide me with any proof I lived in Ireland and I could provide proof I lived in Northern Ireland.’
‘One of the strangest things and there are many strange things about this was that when they sent me correspondence, they sent it to my home in Derry, proving that they knew I was living there.’
Mr Cassidy agreed to pay the VRT rather than face a lengthy court battle, despite the fact he had no obligation to.
He arranged to meet Revenue officers in Letterkenny on March 4, 2019, when he handed over €1,000 as a penalty and €3,342 to cover the VRT on the vehicle.
Mr Cassidy said this week: ‘This day will live long in my memory for me due to how strange it was.
‘I managed to sort VRT on a car with no proof of address and no official forms filled out.
‘Instead, I was asked to meet in a car park, asked to hand over a cheque before the car was even there, which I refused until I saw the car. I was informed that if I don’t hand over the cheque I’ll not even get to see the car. The way I was spoken to was shocking.
‘Also the fact that Revenue Commissioners were originally demanding €2,000 but were then in a position to haggle with me over the price before we settled at €1,000 shows that these figures were simply made up.’
Mr Cassidy spoke out after the Irish Mail on Sunday last week reported that Revenue bosses are refusing to clarify if they have done anything to rectify cases in which tax officials misused their powers when they seized foreignregistered vehicles and issued large fines to the owners.
The cases involve the improper use of Vehicle Registrations Tax (VRT) laws by Revenue officers, which were highlighted in a Tax Appeals Commission (TAC) ruling.
In the 2021 ruling, TAC Commissioner Marie-Claire Maney, admonished Revenue officers for behaving in an ‘illogical’ and ‘misguided ’manner when they applied VRT residency rules.
As a result, an unknown number of people may have had their vehicles unjustly seized or been illegally subjected to significant fines and VRT bills.
By law, any vehicle belonging to an Irish resident that has been in the State for more than 30 days is subject to VRT.
At roadside checks, Revenue officers are allowed to seize vehicles or they may issue fines if they believe a driver is in breach of this law.
Central to Revenue’s power to seize vehicles, is ‘a normal residence test’, which officials are supposed to apply when deciding if a foreign-registered vehicle should be subject to VRT.
But Mr Cassidy said that in his case this did not happen.
Contacted by the MoS, Revenue said it was ‘actively working on a response and we will revert when we are in a position to do so’.
However, no response was received at the time of going to press last night.
‘I could provide proof I lived in Northern Ireland’
‘I was asked to meet in a car park with a cheque’