HMRC reveal their top 10 bizarre excuses and expense claims

British taxpayers regularly come up with bizarre excuses for missing HM Revenue & Customs deadlines, such as a curse having been put on them or a pet eating their mail.

They also put in questionable expenses claims, such as a music subscription for work.

HMRC has now highlighted a decade of strange excuses and imaginative expenses.

The top 10 in this period were:

1. Caravan rental for the Easter weekend
2. I was up a mountain in Wales, and couldn’t find a post box or get an internet signal
3. My dog ate the post…again
4. Claiming £4.50 for sausage and chips meal expenses every day for 250 days
5. My hamster ate my post
6. I’ve been cruising round the world in my yacht, and only picking up post when I’m on dry land
7. A music subscription so I can listen to music while I work
8. Pet food for a very small “guard dog” – a Shih Tzu
9. A DJ was too busy with a party lifestyle – spinning the deck in a bowls club
10. My mother-in-law is a witch and put a curse on me

Needless to say, all the excuses and expenses listed above were unsuccessful.

Angela MacDonald, HMRC director general of customer services, said: “Each year, we try to make it as easy and simple as possible for our customers to complete their tax returns and the majority make the effort to do their return right and on time.

“But we still come across some unusual excuses and expenses.

“We always offer help to those who have a genuine excuse for not submitting their return on time. It is unfair to the majority of honest taxpayers when others make bogus claims.

“If you think you might miss a deadline, get in touch with us now - the earlier we’re contacted, the more we can help.”

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