AIBU to refuse to pay cash in hand?

I am afraid it is the world we live in. Cash in hand.

The numbers of self employed people have apparently rocketed. Which will reduce tax receipts. Which impact on us all.

And self employed people will ( if they have good sense) ensure they factor in absences like holidays in quotes over the course of time.

It is a culture shift from a time when many were employees. And the tax office could rely on PAYE.

By refusing to pay cash you are being upstanding but limiting your options of people who will do work for you.

You're actually inconveniencing her. She has to bank that cash. Its considerably easier for businesses to trade cash-free, (which is why we are increasingly seeing businesses refusing cash). It's a myth that it's more expensive for businesses to take cards.

I don't think I am

She pays a transaction fee on each card transaction so to my kind ends up with less cash

She quite likes the cash I give her (btw we are talking £20-25) as she uses it for parking or for her daughters school lunches (primary school) or teenage babysitter

It is absolutely none of your business how people manage their money. People who are trying to climb out of an overdraft might want cash in hand, consider that before you assume someone is avoiding paying taxes etc which again, is none of your business.

It IS fair for you to pay them in a way that conveniences you. If they suddenly ask you to change that, you have a right to say no. That's it.

Their business, not yours. What they do with their finances is up to them, it's not going to come back on you!
Many people work for cash for various reasons, although mainly for tax avoidance reasons. However if it saves me a few quid, then I'm not arguing. Got a guy at my house right now, fixing my car- he's knocked the price down by £210 because I'm paying cash. It's an expensive job in the first place, so I'm not questioning it....

I have no issues paying cash in hand and have had close friends do so for all range of things for me.

Recently someone grazed my car whilst I was in the supermarket and fucked off without leaving a note. So do I put this through my insurance and suffer an increase on my insurance premium, or do I get my close friend to repair it cash in hand, as if the incident never occurred?

No, an ISA is not considered tax avoidance - here’s what HMRC says:

Tax avoidance is bending the rules of the tax system to gain a tax advantage that Parliament never intended. It often involves contrived, artificial transactions that serve little or no purpose other than to produce a tax advantage.

Tax avoidance is not the same as tax planning. Tax planning involves using tax reliefs for the purpose for which they were intended. For example, claiming tax relief on capital investment, saving in a tax-exempt ISA or saving for retirement by making contributions to a pension scheme are all legitimate forms of tax planning. While such actions may reduce the total amount of tax paid, they are not tax avoidance, because they involve using tax reliefs in the way that Parliament intended when it passed the relevant legislation.

www.gov.uk/hmrc-internal-manuals/avoidance-handling-process/ahp1300

Oh I see, agreed. Apologies.

but we can move to a non-cash economy quite easily by running an internal accounting system at things like car boot sales / school fairs with tallying up and paying by card at the exit. I think that’s the way things will move in the future as cash is so heavily associated with so many crimes.

Well I know that. Was a reply to the cash being " essential" only for stuff like county lines etc. Cash is used for perfect legal stuff also

If you think Amazon are tax evaders please do contact HMRC. By the way they aren’t.

My mechanic prefers cash. I get an invoice and guarantee for the work. What's the issue?

But it’s not an FU to the government, it’s a FU to all of us.

Um, thanks plumbers I guess.

Generally if someone wants cash you won't get an invoice. That may not matter for garden work (other than tree surgery) but for building work it can be more important to show that work has been done and to the correct standards.

Ok how many people are likely to be setting up bank transfers an the front desk of the takeaway ? Especially if it's not one they use regularly

I’ll happily pay cash if it means a good discount. Doing us both a favour 😊 can’t get upset about one individual making a couple of extra £100 on top of all they do declare when companies like Amazon screw is out of millions of tax contributions

Who says she has to bank it? She can pay other people in cash also. It's worrying that some people on here want to almost encourage a cashless society. I
I find it amazing at how many 7 year olds can understand cash these days. Simply as lack of opportunity to handle it

I had a couple of workmen who said it’s £££ price but if you pay in cash it’s £££. That’s most definitely a tax dodge.

The cash exchanged will only be subject to income tax if the person selling the goods is looking to turn a profit / run it as a business. If I do a car boot to declutter that’s fine. If I do a car boot to sell stuff that I have bought for resale or produced for sale myself that’s taxable.

Strange for example a local takeaway to me much prefer cash. It's all added up and put through the books . The reason cash is preferred it due to excessive card machine charges. Why should the card companies gain more when they actually aren't doing the physical work of cooking, packing etc?

And car bootsales lol

But a hell of a lot of them are dodgy tax evaders! I wouldn’t touch a tradie asking for a large amount of cash with a barge pole. If they aren’t prepared to pay their tax how do you know their qualifications are legitimate either?

i always do an immediate bank transfer after receiving an invoice.

Do you put the cash payments through your accounts?

Yes they will be avoiding tax or getting undeserved benefits.

No well run trade (plumber, builder, joiner etc.) will offer a discount for cash. It's not about bank charges - bank transfers are free. It's about not putting a transaction through the books, potentially not issuing an invoice, avoiding tax. Which means the rest of us pick up the tax tab.
It's a personal choice, I guess, and I choose not to give my money to those businesses.

When people ask to be paid cash in hand, I say I will if they provide with a valid invoice / receipt.

I'm a tax advisor and do not want to be seen as being complicit in any form of tax evasion.

I would never pay someone in cash. It is not fair for people to not pay their fair share, especially when it comes to child support so the state has to pay again.