Carousel fraud could hit £5bn
The Guardian newspaper calculates new hit from missing trader frauds
Carousel fraud could be worth £5bn this year, according to calculations by
The Guardian newspaper.
The paper today reports that the scale of the frauds has increased, and,
using trade estimates, has estimated that the value of the frauds could have
tripled. HMRC says that the frauds are currently worth between £1.1bn and
£1.9bn.
The frauds are the taxman’s number one fraud priority, and though it accepts
activity has increased, has also instituted a number of measures to combat the
problem.
It says HMRC has passed estimates to the ONS suggesting a tripling of the
problem since 2004, and quotes a Treasury official saying: ‘There is no doubt
the sums involved are rising very rapidly.’