News

‘I received 6,000 letters from HRMC – all Chinese companies registering for VAT’

Published

3 years ago

May 20, 2023

A WEST WALES landlord has been overwhelmed with an astonishing number of letters from HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) after more than 11,000 overseas Chinese companies used his address to register for VAT.

Dylan Davies, an estate agent from Ceredigion who owns a flat in Cardiff, expressed his frustration at receiving over 6,000 letters to his apartment since September of last year.

Tax officials have stated that they have found “no evidence of any fraud” in this peculiar situation. Mr. Davies, 65, recounted his initial surprise when he discovered a cascade of brown envelopes tumbling out of his letterbox. “Back in September, I was there one day and opened the letterbox and all these brown envelopes fell out.

“I counted about 580 that one time,” he told Herald.Wales.

When his attempts to contact HMRC failed to yield a response, he turned to the Welsh BBC consumer show X-Ray, which subsequently aired his story.

“That woke up everybody then. All of a sudden I heard from HMRC,” he said. “By that time [the end of 2022], I think I had about 3,000 letters. Now I’ve had over 6,000 letters…I had a letter from HMRC in March that they would be looking into it. They apologized…they made sure that no more post would arrive at my address – but they’re still arriving. I had 20 there last week.”

Among the deluge of letters were demands from debt collection agencies. “[X-Ray] opened a small amount of those, and the debt was over half a million…that was only a small portion of the letters I’ve had.” Mr. Davies admitted that the ordeal had been a “very, very worrying time” before X-Ray intervened.

“I was just knocking my head against the wall. I just wanted somebody to recognize I had this issue…just to show that I was innocent in all this. But I couldn’t get any responses,” he explained. He added, “I was having visions of bailiffs coming and charging the door down one night and taking everything you’ve got in the house.”

Mr. Davies also expressed concern about the potential impact on his own business due to the incident. “It was the worry of what word would get about – like whether I’m involved in VAT fraud…if I woke up in the middle of the night, I wouldn’t go back to sleep because it just worries you.”

According to Mr. Davies, his solicitor had sent two letters to HMRC prior to the BBC show, but they did not receive a response. During a recent appearance before the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee, HMRC CEO Jim Harra apologized for the delay in responding to Mr. Davies’ solicitor. He explained that the letter had been delivered to an old HMRC address and took some time to be redirected, before being “mishandled” within the department.

By the time HMRC finally addressed the issue, Mr. Davies had already gone public with his story. Mr. Harra expressed gratitude for Mr. Davies contacting the department and apologized for the lack of prompt action following their initial contact. He described the incident as “very odd” and “very curious,” but reassured the committee that HMRC was confident that no fraud had been committed against them as a result.

“We have been seriously investigating it, but at this point, we cannot find any indication of wholesale fraud as a result of it. Whether it was an unsophisticated attempt to do so, which didn’t work, it’s difficult to tell,” Mr. Harra stated.

He further explained that the businesses in question were overseas firms selling goods to the UK through online marketplaces

like eBay or Amazon. A change in the law in January 2021 mandated that online marketplaces collect VAT from foreign businesses and remit it to HMRC.

Mr. Harra noted that HMRC was aware of the risk of overseas businesses impersonating UK entities to avoid accounting for VAT through the online marketplace. However, additional checks carried out by these platforms prevent such deception. “Simply registering at a UK correspondence address does not pass those tests. So that in itself could not con an online marketplace into thinking that they are a UK business. And sure enough, when we have looked into businesses on this long list, we’ve found that for the vast majority of their sales via online marketplaces to UK customers, VAT has been accounted for by the online marketplace [since 2021],” explained Mr. Harra.

Out of the 11,000 businesses registered at Mr. Davies’ address, over 2,356 owe a tax debt to HMRC, but these debts pre-date the 2021 online marketplace rule, making the companies primarily responsible for payment. However, there is currently no requirement for proof of residence at a UK address when registering for VAT.

“We have no address with which to correspond with these 2,300 businesses until we have resolved the addresses issue,” Mr. Harra informed the committee. HMRC conducts additional checks, including requesting evidence of business establishment at the provided address, for applications or changes in registration that meet certain risk criteria.

According to Mr. Harra, it would be highly unusual for fraudsters to use an address not under their control. When asked if HMRC systems flag instances where a large volume of letters is sent to a single address, he clarified that it is quite common for a significant number of foreign businesses to register at a single serviced office correspondence address in the UK, where their tax agent can handle the extensive correspondence on behalf of overseas clients.

Ben Lake, the Plaid Cymru MP for Ceredigion, expressed concern about HMRC’s systems in light of a residential address in Wales unexpectedly receiving over 11,000 letters and businesses changing their address to that property. He sought reassurance that his constituent would not face any formal demands or enforcement action from HMRC due to the mix-up.

Mr. Harra stated that HMRC took action in March to prevent further correspondence to Mr. Davies’ address. However, when Mr. Lake pointed out that his constituent had continued to receive letters since then, the tax boss admitted that their existing systems were imperfect and promised to explore implementing additional alerts.

Mr. Harra affirmed that HMRC is still conducting investigations into the incident, acknowledging the tremendous inconvenience and distress it has caused Mr. Davies. The department is also reviewing its procedures to prevent a recurrence of similar incidents in the future.

Community

Craig Flannery appointed as new Chief Fire Officer

Published

4 hours ago

December 19, 2025

Tom Sinclair

MID AND WEST WALES FIRE SERVICE LEADERSHIP CHANGE

MID and West Wales Fire and Rescue Service has announced the appointment of Craig Flannery as its new Chief Fire Officer, with effect from Monday, December 15, 2025.

Mr Flannery has served with the Service for more than twenty years, progressing through a wide range of middle management and senior leadership roles across both operational and non-operational departments.

During his career, he has been closely involved in strengthening operational delivery, risk management and organisational development. His work has included leading innovation in learning and development, overseeing the Service’s On-Call Improvement Programme, and driving investment in key enabling functions such as workforce development and information and communication technology.

The appointment followed a rigorous, multi-stage recruitment process led by Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Authority. Candidates were assessed through structured interviews, strategic leadership exercises and scenario-based assessments designed to test operational judgement, organisational vision and the ability to lead a modern fire and rescue service.

External professional assessors were also engaged to provide independent scrutiny, ensuring the process met high standards of fairness, transparency and challenge.

Mr Flannery emerged as the strongest candidate, demonstrating clear strategic leadership capability, detailed organisational knowledge and a strong commitment to community safety and service improvement.

Councillor John Davies, Chair of Mid and West Wales Fire and Rescue Authority, said: “Craig brings a deep understanding of our Service and a clear vision for its future. His appointment will strengthen our ability to innovate, support our workforce and deliver high-quality protection for the communities we serve.

“As we navigate a rapidly changing landscape, Craig’s experience in driving innovation and organisational development will be invaluable in helping us adapt and transform for the future.”

Commenting on his appointment, Mr Flannery said: “It is a privilege to lead this outstanding Service. I am committed to supporting our people, strengthening partnerships and building on the strong foundations already in place.

“As the challenges facing fire and rescue services continue to evolve, we must modernise and innovate, ensuring we have the skills, technology and capability needed to meet the needs of our communities. I look forward to working with colleagues and partners across Mid and West Wales to deliver a resilient, progressive Service that keeps people safe and places our staff at the heart of everything we do.”

Health

Resident doctors in Wales vote to accept new contract

Published

10 hours ago

December 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

RESIDENT doctors across Wales have voted to accept a new contract, with 83% of those who took part in a referendum backing the agreement, according to BMA Cymru Wales.

The contract includes a four per cent additional investment in the resident doctor workforce and introduces a range of reforms aimed at improving training conditions, wellbeing and long-term workforce sustainability within NHS Wales. The BMA says the deal also supports progress towards pay restoration, which remains a central issue for doctors.

Key changes include new safeguards to limit the most fatiguing working patterns, measures intended to address medical unemployment and career progression concerns, and reforms to study budgets and study leave to improve access to training opportunities.

Negotiations between the BMA’s Welsh Resident Doctors Committee, NHS Wales Employers and the Welsh Government concluded earlier this year. Following a consultation period, a referendum of resident doctors and final-year medical students in Wales was held, resulting in a clear majority in favour of the proposals.

Welsh Resident Doctors Committee chair Dr Oba Babs Osibodu said the agreement marked a significant step forward for doctors working in Wales.

He said: “We’re proud to have negotiated this contract, which offers our colleagues and the future generation of doctors safer terms of service, fairer pay, and better prospects so that they can grow and develop their careers in Wales.

“This contract will help to retain the doctors already in training, and also attract more doctors to work in Wales, where they can offer their expertise and benefit patients.”

Dr Osibodu added that the BMA remains committed to achieving full pay restoration and acknowledged that challenges remain for some doctors.

“Whilst this contract sets the foundations for a brighter future for resident doctors in Wales, we recognise that there are still doctors who are struggling to develop their careers and secure permanent work,” he said. “We need to work with the Welsh Government and NHS employers to address training bottlenecks and underemployment.”

The Welsh Government has previously said it recognises the pressures facing resident doctors and the importance of improving recruitment and retention across NHS Wales, while also highlighting the need to balance pay agreements with wider NHS funding pressures and patient demand.

The new contract is expected to be phased in from August 2026. It will initially apply to doctors in foundation programmes, those in specialty training with unbanded rotas, and new starters, before being rolled out to all resident doctors across Wales.

Crime

Swansea man jailed for online child sex offence dies in prison

Published

10 hours ago

December 18, 2025

Tom Sinclair

A SWANSEA man who was jailed earlier this year for attempting to engage in sexual communication with a child has died while in custody.

Gareth Davies, aged 59, of the Maritime Quarter, was serving an 18-month prison sentence after being convicted in May of sending sexually explicit messages to what he believed was a 14-year-old girl. The account was in fact a decoy used as part of an online safeguarding operation.

The court heard that Davies began communicating with the decoy between November and December 2024 and persistently pursued the individual, later attempting to arrange a face-to-face meeting. He was arrested after being confronted by the decoy operators.

Davies had pleaded not guilty but was convicted following a trial. At the time of sentencing, police described the messages as extremely concerning and said his imprisonment was necessary to protect children.

It has now been confirmed that Davies died at HMP Parc on Wednesday (Nov 27) while serving his sentence.

The Prisons and Probation Ombudsman has launched an independent investigation into the death, which is standard procedure in all cases where someone dies in custody. No cause of death has been released at this stage.

A coroner will determine the circumstances in due course.