Deceased Fathers tax bill

[Len1964]

I have just started dealing with my late fathers estate
and have come across a large debt to the inland revenue
they even took him to court in March despite bein informed he had died
all I get from them is he owes it so pay it. Apparently I have to file his last 6 years tax returns before it is settled. I have I idea where to even start with his returns as I never worried about his business matters and don't want to get it wrong
so far they say he owes 64k plus 1k court costs
how do I force them to give me a breakdown of his debt ?
and is it all payable ?

[bluebottle]

Re: Deceased Fathers tax bill

If your late father has failed to submit Tax Returns to HMRC, they will either have estimated what he owes or, as they do sometimes and get caught, pluck a figure out of thin air and use that. I had that done to me with VAT when I was taken seriously-ill 16 years ago. My sister, who was handling my affairs for me at the time, rang up their office at Poole and, giving credit where it is due, they put an immediate stop on any action and, once the doctors declared me fit enough to deal with it, I rang the Poole office. Surprisingly, they admitted the letter they sent should never have been sent and withdrew it immediately. They also admitted I owed nothing at all as everything had been up-to-date when I was taken ill.

I feel it would be worth seeking advice and assistance from an accountant as they will know what can and cannot be claimed against tax. They may also be able to negotiate with HMRC as to what is actually owing, if any tax is, in fact, owed.

Hope this helps.