Fellow accountants - disagree with client over tax?

[flippedflop]

I have a client and we are disagreeing about the deductibility of some expenses prior to the letting out of a property. He has said they were incurred to get the property habitable. Okay, generally sounds like capital to me. We are going through it tomorrow. I just wanted to ask if he turns around and says well, actually they are all just repairs and I want to claim it all as repairs.

What do I do? Do I say, well sorry, I can't prepare your return on this basis given what you have previously said to me. Further, he owns the company that carried out the renovations, so not entirely sure I can rely on the backup that may be provided. The repairs account for around 60% of the total income. Or do I get something in writing from him to say that they are all repairs etc?

thanks

what sort of repairs?
clients / friends of mine spent a fair bit before they rented out their flat
new cooker - theirs had broken knobs
paint, carpets, curtains, single beds, wardrobes with doors that worked
BUT
without spending that money it would have rented for around half what it did.

with your client, how long before he moved out was the work done - as in did he benefit from the renovations or were they genuinely for the tenancy?
him owning the renovations company is less of an issue - so long of course as he correctly declares that income in the company (silly sod is in a zero sum game!)

Hi, I'm happy with the fact that the bulk of the repairs are capital in nature. Its £20k on a £70k property and by their own admission was required to bring it up to a fit state. My question is more around what do you do when a client and you disagree?

Do I say okay, put what you like in but I will put it in writing that I have advised you otherwise. He is just being a bit cagey with information and I'm feeling a bit bullied into stopping asking questions. I'm not sure at what point I walk away from it, which I'm prepared to do. what would you do?

ps - the issue with him owning the repair company is that he could effectively write whatever he wanted on the invoice but it doesn't make it so does it!

Follow your intstitute's ethical guidelines, presumably they have a helpline.

But first check your facts - unless he is extending the property I would be surprised if there was much capital expenditure here. PIM2020 is a good start.