Cash please..

Graphite

That he usually wants a bank transfer suggests that this request was a one-off. Perhaps whoever fixed his van as an emergency job, maybe a local garage rather than an AA/RAC call out, would only do the job quickly for cash and he said he’d pay them the next day? Maybe he negotiated a better price for cash? Who knows?

Maybe the job came to more than the limit that one can take from an ATM. If he’s local and the nearest ATM is 3 miles away for you then it will be similar for him.

There could be any number of reasons why he asked for cash not necessarily connected to tax evasion.

I can assure people that when people are suspected of tax evasion, HMRC employs techniques which easily reveal whether someone is doing a cash jobs which haven’t been declared.

The fact is that a lot of older people do keep a lot of cash in the house in sums that would far exceed the costs of a boiler service and a tap replacement, say £200.

He probably has other clients who do pay him in cash. Whatever the reason for him needing cash, he was probably taking a punt that you might be able to pay him that way this time but you were perfectly within your rights to say no.

Agreed - and I wouldnt necessarily have regarded it as odd.

I've got a plumber turning up here today re a tap. I've checked out what she's likely to say/how much they're likely to charge when she looks at it and have got a couple of hundred £s to spare to cover worst case analysis by her.

argymargy

I don't like being asked for cash, as it always makes me think someone is avoiding their taxes. I don't keep more than £10 in the house so it's always a faff to go & get some. If a tradesman is reliable and trustworthy I will give them cash but I think you were right to stick to your guns in this instance.

So what if they are. Have you any idea the taxes workmen pay, they will often do it a bit cheaper for cash as well. I’ll bet if your accountant ( if you ever needed one) said there was a loophole so your tax bill would be cheaper you’d jump at it. Maybe if they lowered the threshold to 20% instead of 12% like Reform are promising more people would pay more tax. It’s not tax dodge it’s avoiding the government bleeding small businesses dry.

crazyH

I pay all tradesmen in cash, only because I know that’s what they want.

Same, keeps the from getting bled dry from the tax man. Keeps prices down.

Jealous much. Keeps prices down paying cash. I’ll bet if ( but I doubt it) you had an accountant and he said there was a loophole to save you money you’d jump at it.

All the people saying about ‘dodging’ tax, so what, I’m sick and tired of this government bleeding small businesses dry. If you’ve never had a business you have no idea. I had a 60 seater cafe my vat bill was 5k every 3 months, I never made much until I got a clever accountant. If I can save someone being ripped off by the powers that be so be it.

I pay in cash if I get a discount. Other than that, I pay by card or bank transfer. I don’t really keep much cash indoors.

Ferry23.
I am with you! Others have missed the point. (Sometimes I think we at GN are just too quick to tell our own story or give an opinion instead of actually reading the OP dilemma or question.) It was late in the day and you didn't have cash or know how much it would be.

Hope he came, did the job and everything sorted?

Menopauselbitch

argymargy

I don't like being asked for cash, as it always makes me think someone is avoiding their taxes. I don't keep more than £10 in the house so it's always a faff to go & get some. If a tradesman is reliable and trustworthy I will give them cash but I think you were right to stick to your guns in this instance.

So what if they are. Have you any idea the taxes workmen pay, they will often do it a bit cheaper for cash as well. I’ll bet if your accountant ( if you ever needed one) said there was a loophole so your tax bill would be cheaper you’d jump at it. Maybe if they lowered the threshold to 20% instead of 12% like Reform are promising more people would pay more tax. It’s not tax dodge it’s avoiding the government bleeding small businesses dry.

I pay all my taxes and am happy to do so. When working I paid more in taxes than the national average wage and was happy to do so. Taxes are progressive, so that the more people earn the more they pay - I agree with this completely. People always want lower taxes then constantly moan about getting poor public services. People want to run small businesses so they can get rich - that's absolutely fine by me but just pay your taxes.

I do - and have always - paid all my taxes throughout my working life. I do not, however, see it as my place to police whether others do the same. If I pay someone to provide a service, it's up to them to pay their tax - not me. I've done my part - if they're not paying the correct amount of tax, HMRC can chase them up.

I would never agree to cash payment at short notice even if I had it in the house. I don't want people to think I have lots of cash around the house no matter what I actually have there.

I've paid electricians and handymen with cash in the past. If it's not too expensive I'm happy to do it so long as I have enough notice to get the cash. Most payments are BACs now anyway but I might use a credit card if it's expensive.