Apostle Accounting, based in Stowmarket, Suffolk, is under investigation over a tax rebate scheme that left hundreds of people out of pocket, trade title AccountingWEB and the BBC report.

The firm is currently insolvent and is in the hands of liquidators.

Its owner has been “excluded” by one of the professional bodies of which she is a member, the Institute of Certified Bookkeepers (ICB).

According to the latest liquidator’s report, the ICB is listed as a creditor and is owed more than £40k.

The body confirmed that this was a fine for a lack of compliance with the anti-money laundering rules. The fine was first reported in AccountingWEB.

ICB president Garry Carter has emphasised that the penalty was not for money laundering itself but “for not keeping adequate records”.

Speaking today [23 May 2024] to Recruiter, Carter was unable to confirm whether IR35 or Loan Charge issues were related to the tax rebate.

Four addresses linked to Apostle Accounting have been raided by police earlier this month.

Hundreds of former Apostle Accounting clients have been sent repayment demands from HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC), the BBC reports, in some cases running to tens of thousands of pounds.

This is because they claimed tax rebates via the company to which they were not entitled. In previous statements, Apostle had consistently denied any wrongdoing.

According to figures compiled by one former client, at least 800 people have received letters from HMRC demanding a total of £3.3m. 

A criminal inquiry into Apostle is also currently under way. Last week, it was revealed four addresses linked to the company had been raided by the East Region Special Operations Unit (ERSOU) and Suffolk Police.

ERSOU said their investigation followed reports of potential fraud and were “working to establish if any offences have been committed”.

In an email to former Apostle clients who had provided witness statements to the police inquiry – known as Operation Roquette – ERSOU said it had seized a “significant quantity” of material.

Apostle Accounting’s liquidator, Leeds-based D F Wilson, said it was unable to comment.

According to AccountingWEB, over £300k in liabilities are owed to a number of creditors by Apostle Accounting, which went into liquidation in October last year.

The £300k owed in liabilities came to light after the liquidator filed a statement of affairs at Companies House.

The firm came under scrutiny after being the subject of a BBC Rip-Off Britain report in October last year, AccountingWEB said, which uncovered allegations of the firm making bogus work expense refund claims.

The police revealed that around 300 potential victims had been previously contacted by ERSOU officers in relation to the search operation.

The police probes come only days after the firm’s statement of affairs as of 3 April was filed on Companies House on 9 May, revealing some large liabilities in excess of assets, AccountingWEB said. 

The firm, founded by Zoe Goodchild in 2012 and controlled with her former partner Martin Goodchild, went into voluntary liquidation on 10 October 2023.

Shortly after the firm’s accounts to 31 October and a declaration of solvency was filed on 27 October, showing assets “comfortably” in excess of liabilities, AccountingWEB said.

However, the Statement of Affairs, filed by the liquidator, showed a slightly different picture with the liabilities now showing in excess of assets, AccountingWEB said.

These liabilities included £202,753.84 owed to HMRC, £26,042 to Santander and £40,207 owed to the ICB. The estimated amount owed to the five creditors listed comes to £315,408.65.

The sanction is unrelated to the police investigation and relates to a failure to adhere to the anti-money laundering regulations due to a lack of due diligence on a lot of clients. The disciplinary came about before news emerged of the BBC Rip-Off Britain investigation into Apostle Accounting.

The ICB stressed that £40k is an unusually high fine. 

Goodchild has been excluded from ICB and her licence in the name of Apostle was revoked. Apostle Accounting has since gone into liquidation, and she is operating another accountancy firm, AccountingWEB said.

Hundreds of taxpayers have been left to pay penalties totalling an estimated £1.8m as a result of the Suffolk-based firm allegedly submitting incorrect self-assessment repayment claims for employment expenses.

Lee Osborne, a former client of Apostle Accounting, who shared his story with BBC’s Rip-Off Britain, claimed that he had to pay back £21k to HMRC, including the £8k deducted by Goodchild’s firm, compared to the £14k he originally received.

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