Significant difference – a gratuity in a restaurant v paying tradesmen cash (no docs)

Paying a gratuity in a restaurant is covered by HMRC and ideally all gratuities are taxable.

In fact many restaurants ask that the gratuity if being paid by the customer be added at the end of the Debit/Credit Card authorisation.
All gratuities are supposedly then shared out equally amongst eligible members of staff.

If the payment of the gratuity is made in cash directly to the person providing the service the person receiving the gratuity must by HMRC law declare the total in their HMRC returns or by notifying the HMRC by letter.

Many employers have been known to advise the HMRC that staff receive gratuities and that they as employer do not have an organised method of tracking the gratuities individual staff members receive. The employer usually will be advised by HMRC to notify all employees of the necessity to declare the gratuities they receive in annual form to HMRC in concurrence with Personal Income Tax returns or by letter.

The payment of gratuities is relatively low in restaurants(unless like some billionaires the gratuity amounts to £1000s in exclusive clubs and restaurants) in comparison to the topic of this thread, of payments in cash to tradesmen unsupported by necessary documentation which usually collectively amounts to a lot more in comparison to gratuities in an average restaurant.

Both gratuities and payment to tradesmen are fully covered on the HMRC web site and are covered by legislation.

Surely this isn’t about Income Tax or VAT thresholds …

Surely this isn’t about Income Tax or VAT thresholds … The payment method by cash is not illegal if supported by the documents in the post when I opened this thread.

As a sole trader there are Income Tax returns to be filed and VAT returns (if providing services that are VAT chargeable to the client/customer) to be filed.

The VAT threshold isn’t significant but the VAT Input Output equation or calculation definitely is.
This can be reasoned out with HMRC by keeping good accounts or accurate/honest book keeping.

A sole trader can become eligible for a VAT refund from HMRC in many cases if the VAT outgoings are higher than the legitimate VAT income on paid invoices

It is easy to call the HMRC various names and yes it may seem that in our opinions many deserving and essential national resources are becoming drastically under funded and it is a spate of politicians from all parties that are responsible for the poor decisions.

We must respect that the dwindling world economy and economic recessionary effect is putting additional burdens on the UK government.

It may unless commercial interests go ‘hush hush’ and buy customer silence

It may unless commercial interests (ie Delta, Gate Gourmet, etc) go ‘hush hush’ and buy customer silence.

Could there be a sensible explanation (although not comforting to passengers/consumers)?

To produce Turkey Sandwiches (whether minced/mashed or sliced) there must be a commercial process.

Double edged or double ended needles as described in the media reports are rare to find in the domestic market (hence if it is deliberate sabotage it must be a high spender behind it).

It may be possible that a machine processing the turkey meat lost some of its ‘bits’ (for want of a better word – ie the double edge sharp needle like in cutters/slicers/mashers/shredders) and since minor in comparison to a major component failure did not cause the machine to trigger an alarm or shut down (depending how sophisticated the machines are at Gate Gourmet – Holland).

Maybe the machine was discovered later or only after the Delta flights reported the passenger/s near injuries.

I take no sides in this incident except to say that in the food chain in developed countries (ideally all countries) every aspect should be thought of especially when supplying airline meals since getting to a hospital A&E isn’t a few minutes by ‘Blue Light’ when one is a few thousand feet up and few hundred miles from land. (No please don’t start on how long that can take by conventional ambulance in UK while on ‘tera firma’)

Ralph is absolutely correct when he says not everything should become a law suit but that is de facto in the US.