How is the wrongdoing penalty different to existing Excise penalties?
The wrongdoing penalty does not replace the existing Excise penalties. We will use the new penalties alongside existing penalties and sanctions like the forfeiture of goods and vehicles, criminal prosecution or revoking tax registration. And the list of goods subject to Excise duty – alcohol, oil and tobacco products – hasn’t changed. The existing penalties (brought in by the 1984 Finance Act) are fixed fines of £250 for each offence. The wrongdoing penalty is a percentage of the tax that is due. The percentage varies depending on the behaviour that resulted in the loss of tax – the more serious the behaviour the higher the maximum penalty can be. If a person helps HMRC to establish what the tax should be HMRC will reduce the penalty percentage. This makes it more flexible, and it is weighted to discourage deliberate tax evasion. Another difference is that the wrongdoing penalty can be applied to a company or person who sells red diesel knowing that the person buying it will use it for
