BN66 - Court of Appeal and beyond

[SantaClaus]

No I have not divulged real names in the past, that is utter twaddle. I was called by a special branch detective and was asked to hand over information regarding individuals who had made threats that they perceived as being of a serious nature. I declined their request and was told that they would seek a court order if necessary. If they had gone that far then the server could have been taken offline etc so I found a happy medium of trawling though posts made by all the users they requested, pointing out that quite a few had not made any comments. This cut the list down to five or so posters who the police wanted to contact so I asked them if they wanted to call the detective on his phone number.

I did not pass any details to the police but did pass the police phone number to the forum posters who the police still wanted to speak to.

I explained to the individuals that the detective simply wanted to speak to them and if they didn't then they may have sought a court order to make us hand details over and IP info could have led them to people's work places which could have been a bit embarrassing... All individuals called the police and that was the end of it - bar the memories of some posters on here getting a bit flaky and dishing out this alternative version where I am seen as some sort of HMRC stooge

I am the only person with access to the database, I know my rights under data protection laws and would not hand over any details willy nilly. I feel I resolved a potentially nasty situation for myself and for the posters on here as quickly and painlessly as possible.

As you said though do be careful what you say, not just here but in emails and on the phone - who knows who could be eavesdropping...

Not accusing you of being a grass at all and I thank you for attempting to diffuse the situation at the time, but just reminding people that the bit in bold is a serious possibility.

so mentioning you are going to do something illegal or in a grey area of legality under a username that you thought was anonymous, could have serious consequences in the future.

Remember , we are talking about families who are about to be bankrupted here.

[prozak]

Hi Prozac

There are a huge number of factors to consider before settling trusts for IHT purposes so you do really need an expert. Some things to consider are the 20% settlement tax during lifetime above the 325K but better than 40% upon death especially as it is calculated on the value at settlement not on passing so for property that is likely to appreciate over 10 -20 years this can be a big difference but there is a 10 year tax charge to be aware of. There are 18-25 trusts for dependants which are treated differently. The quickest rough rule of thumb is to look at the likely tax charge difference between settlement and death ( no-one obviously know when they will die but ) and the costs to set up and maintain the trust until the possible death and weigh them up. It is very complex but if you have or are likely to have assets of 500K + you should take some advice to see if they are suitable for you. This might help -

Why Make a Trust?

Thanks.

[administrator]

Not accusing you of being a grass at all and I thank you for attempting to diffuse the situation at the time, but just reminding people that the bit in bold is a serious possibility.

so mentioning you are going to do something illegal or in a grey area of legality under a username that you thought was anonymous, could have serious consequences in the future.

Remember , we are talking about families who are about to be bankrupted here.

I do totally agree. I have just answered a PM from a user here asking about the security of private messages. If a court order was sought and won then I would guess that these details could be requested. Remember that with PMs they are stored in the database and remain there until the recipient deletes it - a copy may also be stored in your own Sent Items. So if you want to discuss anything that you don't want to be found out then the only safe thing to do is meet on a street corner and whisper to each other. I would say resort to email but these can probably be intercepted easier than most other communication mechanisms. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions or concerns.

[DonkeyRhubarb]

So if you want to discuss anything that you don't want to be found out then the only safe thing to do is meet on a street corner and whisper to each other.

I hear Clapham Common is a good place for clandestine meetings.

[SantaClaus]

I hear Clapham Common is a good place for clandestine meetings.

Someone once told me Hampstead Heath ponds was a good place. I think it was either George Michael or Mr B........

[SantaClaus]

Serious question here...

What happens to our tax bills if there is a complete meltdown of the global financial system, i.e. if all the major banks fail?

I know it sounds like fantasy land at the moment, but the day could be coming closer:

BBC Does It Again: "In The Absence Of A Credible Plan We Will Have A Global Financial Meltdown In Two To Three Weeks" - IMF Advisor | ZeroHedge

[screwthis]

Serious question here...

What happens to our tax bills if there is a complete meltdown of the global financial system, i.e. if all the major banks fail?

I know it sounds like fantasy land at the moment, but the day could be coming closer:

BBC Does It Again: "In The Absence Of A Credible Plan We Will Have A Global Financial Meltdown In Two To Three Weeks" - IMF Advisor | ZeroHedge

I would have thought that the debt won't go away. It will be the same situation as now, i.e. if you can't afford to pay because you lose money in a crash or bank failure that the govt. can't/won't insure then you will go bankrupt.
unless of course the meltdown is so severe that no one is interested in fiat currency in which case they probably won't be in a job and will have better things to concentrate on (like survival) than sending round baliffs.

However, if we avoid absolute meltdown and QE continues, the ensuing inflation combined with low interest rates could mean that the amount you pay would be a LOT less. Of course this only really helps you if you have assets that inflate at the same time otherwise you just become poorer in the process.

[BrilloPad]

In light of recent comments, just a gentle reminder this is an open forum read by HMRC.

They can read?

[SantaClaus]

I would have thought that the debt won't go away. It will be the same situation as now, i.e. if you can't afford to pay because you lose money in a crash or bank failure that the govt. can't/won't insure then you will go bankrupt.
unless of course the meltdown is so severe that no one is interested in fiat currency in which case they probably won't be in a job and will have better things to concentrate on (like survival) than sending round baliffs.

However, if we avoid absolute meltdown and QE continues, the ensuing inflation combined with low interest rates could mean that the amount you pay would be a LOT less. Of course this only really helps you if you have assets that inflate at the same time otherwise you just become poorer in the process.

I was thinking of option 2, sever meltdown, fiat currency and people resorting to growing their own vegetables and burning wood to stay warm. Sounds unlikely I know.

Depreciation of sterling is a good point, if you hold other assets such as gold, the debt may become very small.
I would imagine that property wouldnt have the same effect and would fall in line with everything else.

[SantaClaus]

They can read?

Only if the text is ambiguous.