The vast majority of homeowners do not ask to see the VAT credentials of the tradesmen they hire, according to a survey.
UK consumers admitted to home services market place plentific.com that 79% of them never checked to see if the trades they were planning to use were registered for VAT.
Whilst tradesmen do not need to be VAT registered if they earn less than £83,000 a year, many claim to be so they can charge customers higher prices, the report claimed.
The youngest homeowners – those aged between 18-34 – are the most likely (41%) to ask to see evidence of the trade professional’s VAT credentials. Londoners are the most cautious, with 37% of homeowners requesting information, while people from Nottingham (12%) were the least likely to ask.
