Tax Avoidance Schemes, Factory Exposed

An inside view of a large seller of ‘aggressive’ tax avoidance schemes has been exposed by a whistleblower.

Welbeck Group targeted wealthy professionals in the City by promoting tax avoidance schemes that could help them reduce their income tax bills. The company, which went into administration, offered prospective clients access to schemes such as Icebreaker and Liberty which were ultimately outlawed by tax tribunals

The company operated a call centre out of a City head office to cold call high earning professionals, with staff and bosses earning commissions on the tax avoidance schemes that were sold. The more invested into the schemes, the more commission for Welbeck and its employees.

The schemes were marketed as propositions which allowed investors to offset the tax on income against the money they invested. The schemes were originally permitted by the government to encourage investment in the arts, for example, films, music and books, whereby investments could secure the rights to the creations.

However, in some circumstances, investors were encouraged to borrow additional money for investments through loans. The investors would then artificially inflate the amount they declared to HMRC for tax avoidance purposes.

Tax avoidance schemes have been widely reported in the press over the last 12 months, and in the most notable cases, celebrities have been named and shamed for making investments and avoiding paying tax.

We receive many enquiries from individuals who have invested in tax avoidance schemes such as Ingenious, Liberty and Icebreaker.

If you have made investments into these schemes or have dealt with Welbeck Group, we can assist.

To discuss your circumstances in complete confidence with a member of our tax investigations and disclosures team, you can call us on 0113 387 5670 or fill out an Enquiry Form with your telephone number and we’ll get back to you straight away.