Darren Upton - Mistress update

[MaryPoppins]

A reporter from The Mail called me this evening, if they run another story then they will be back in touch, depends if more comes up they said. They have some odds and ends but not enough for another run YET.

Sorry to see you were impacted. What a knobber. (him, not you)

[Bagpuss]

Sorry to see you were impacted. What a knobber. (him, not you)

Thanks, I've had a year to come to terms with it, and he didn't wipe me out like he did to some, business is booming and my family are happy and healthy, in short life is good. I'm more angry I trusted the barsteward. Also not happy that HMRC had the money but passed it onto him with few checks then after I inform them what has happened they chase me rather than him. I think I may take that further as it's a fault of the online submission system, even HMRC admitted that to me.

See below from accounting web

"The tax money theft is particularly interesting as he did it by submitting zero corporation tax returns so HMRC didn't know money was due, and then he got his clients to pay their tax money to him by giving them his bank account sort code and account number instead of HMRCs. In some cases, where the client paid directly, HMRC account showed money paid but not due and he asked HMRC to refund it directly to him. Client's ended up out of pocket because HMRC went after client for the tax money so they had to pay it twice.

Surely this is something that HMRC need to look at if they insist on moving forward with agent self serve and more online development all of which leaves the door wide open for dodgy agents."


As an aside this is quite funny, someone emailed me this from a yorkshire Newcastle united fan site

"Darren Upton
Also joined up at the last meeting. Darren came within a whisker of filling the temporarily vacant treasurers post, until the assembled mob all agreed that he just looked too shifty and couldn’t be trusted as he was a new face. Darren hails from Sowerby Bridge."

[AtW]

I would just like to add that despite Miss Fraenzel's claims NON of the staff at Upton & Co had a clue who she was, she turned up at the offices a few times and that was it`..... and the sex in the office part is purely to sell papers, you couldn't see Darren's desk for all the paper work and that was the case for the entire time i worked there.

I can't say anything about it however as somebody who used Darren's services I'd like to say the following:

1) During this debacle details of which I had no clue about Tina answered my questions and sent back paper work as I've asked her quickly
2) Staff at Upton also was good

In my view they are as victims as everybody else - I am sorry I can't do any more about it but I thought saying a few words as ex-client of Upton Accountants was worthwhile.

Also I'd add that I had a few phone conversations with Darren himself few years ago and at no time could I have possibly thought such tulip can happen.