Page 9 | Would you report someone for working a second job cash in hand

dammit88 · 2026-03-28T19:05:45+00:00

…. And not paying tax? Earning around £100-200 extra per week on top of their normal pays job. has anyone ever done this? Did anything happen?

Schoolchoicesucks · 31/03/2026 23:00

No I wouldn't. I do know someone doing this and haven't.

soundsys · 31/03/2026 23:01

No

socialdilemmawhattodo · 01/04/2026 21:56

AgeingBanana · 29/03/2026 09:53

No, it’s none of my business.

If someone was going to get hurt as a result (they were doing something harmful, or they were working in unsafe conditions) then I would report it.

But I think this is a probable outcome. If an "employer" is paying cash in hand what else are they not doing correctly? That isnt fair on anyone. Health and Safety is a big issue in so many industries. I worry about particularly young men, struggling to find work, low qualifications, who will take any job to earn some cash.Not a good outcome for them.

In my county they used to do (no more) a stop at a large layby for cars/Vans MOT, Tax,etc. Normally once they found 1 breach - there were many more. That is the issue - if someone breaks the law in a small way - do they break in others?

socialdilemmawhattodo · 01/04/2026 22:08

MrsColinRobinson · 29/03/2026 10:04

Behave! Big business avoiding tax impacts greatly. Individuals trying to earn a little extra when things are tight and the tax system is unforgiving for those who can't afford accountants to fiddle their contribution are a drop in the ocean.

Your attitude is just spiteful. So yeah, vindictive is correct.

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Who do you think should pay for the school state system, NHS, elderly care, defence, etc? We all need to pay. So cash in hand to avoid taxes is not OK, or child maintenance.

jasflowers · 02/04/2026 07:02

Q2C4 · 30/03/2026 20:30

The key difference being that Vodafone was in dispute with HMRC over the application of the Controlled Foreign Companies legislation. Vodafone was not hiding money from HMRC and did not commit tax evasion.

HMRC officials and the company strongly disputed the £6bn-£7bn figure, calling it an "urban myth" and stating that the liability was never that high. Vodafone paid a settlement of £1.25bn, thereby meeting their tax liabilities in full.

Vodafone’s accounts are subject to external audit and public scrutiny. They, like all large companies, are required to publish their tax strategy - Vodafone’s can be found here: https://www.vodafone.com/research-articles/vodafone-tax-principles-and-strategy

This is in contrast to the black economy where money is not declared at all and no tax is paid thereon, which is a criminal offence. Perpetrators can only get away with it due to lack of public scrutiny.

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Which is why i never said "Evasion" instead "Avoidance"

Chris Dawson of The Range, gave his wife several 100 million to avoid £15m in tax... all legal... but earn £100, evading £20 in tax and that is so very wrong.....

The system is set up so the wealthy have vehicles to avoid tax but your ordinary joe, on PAYE has none.

But my point is, the very wealthy, when using tax avoidance measures, will not use the money saved in this country.
The cash in hand worker will, almost certainly, be spending that money in their locality.

I would rather someone do some cash in hand work, than claim benefits and sit on their arses.

But i would report if someone was claiming AND working cash in hand regularly.

MrsColinRobinson · 02/04/2026 08:04

socialdilemmawhattodo · 01/04/2026 22:08

Who do you think should pay for the school state system, NHS, elderly care, defence, etc? We all need to pay. So cash in hand to avoid taxes is not OK, or child maintenance.

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I pay for it all via my taxes, as does OP in her main job.

We pay considerably more proportionately via PAYE than higher earners outside of this who pay themselves dividends.

I'd love to know if the posters so who would happily report OP, who may be able to give her kids a little treat for Easter with a small bit of extra cash, are filling a self assessment each year and declaring every little bit of income, including interest earned from savings.

Q2C4 · 02/04/2026 08:08

jasflowers · 02/04/2026 07:02

Which is why i never said "Evasion" instead "Avoidance"

Chris Dawson of The Range, gave his wife several 100 million to avoid £15m in tax... all legal... but earn £100, evading £20 in tax and that is so very wrong.....

The system is set up so the wealthy have vehicles to avoid tax but your ordinary joe, on PAYE has none.

But my point is, the very wealthy, when using tax avoidance measures, will not use the money saved in this country.
The cash in hand worker will, almost certainly, be spending that money in their locality.

I would rather someone do some cash in hand work, than claim benefits and sit on their arses.

But i would report if someone was claiming AND working cash in hand regularly.

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Spousal transfers are, as you say, legal. There is another thread on here making the point that any assets gained during the course of a marriage are joint anyway. Perhaps Chris made the transfer to his wife in recompense for her giving up own career! He had better hope they don’t get divorced….

He could alternatively have legally ceased to be UK tax resident but he hasn’t, presumably therefore he is dorbfing significant time and therefore money in the UK.

However, even despite use of legal tax planning mechanisms Chris Dawson and his wife are regularly on the list of the top 100 UK tax payers, last year’s entry showing they paid £14.7m. They are reported to have paid £147.5m in UK tax between 2018 and 2024.

Let’s not pretend that those earning money cash in hand are all (hard up parents taking in ironing) working for otherwise law abiding people either - it’s usually linked to / an gateway to other illegal activities.