Radio presenter loses IR35 case
The Court of Appeal has dismissed a sports radio presenter’s argument that IR35 didn’t apply to his engagements with TalkSPORT. What’s the full story?
The presenter engaged with TalkSPORT via a limited company. HMRC raised assessments totally £143,000 for income tax and NI, on the basis that the was caught by IR35. The First Tier Tribunal sided with the presenter, but this was overturned at the Upper Tribunal, and now the Court of Appeal has also dismissed his appeal.
The Court found that there was mutuality of obligation because Kickabout Productions Limited required TalkSPORT to offer the presenter airtime for at least 222 days per year. The contract also gave TalkSPORT the right to suspend the presenter, which is consistent with a contract of employment. The Court also confirmed that an absence of workers’ rights in the contract did not carry much weight in determining the employment status because, if there was an employment relationship, he would enjoy the rights conferred by law on employees.
This case again shows us the importance of analysing the details of each specific case before assuming the employment status of a particular engagement.
Related Topics
-
VAT reduced on advance payment if customer cancels?
A subscriber to our newsletter wrote to us with a query. The business supplies a three-stage training course to students that fully pay (non-refundable) in advance for all three stages. If the students drop out before the end, can our subscriber partly reduce the VAT paid to HMRC on their return?
-
HMRC scrutinising directors’ loans
HMRC has begun a new compliance campaign targeting company directors who owed their companies money. What’s the full story, and how should you respond?
-
New two-tier mileage rates for electric vehicles
The amount that employers can reimburse staff for business travel in company cars changes from 1 September 2025. What are the new rates, and why is this update different to previous ones?
This website uses both its own and third-party cookies to analyze our services and navigation on our website in order to improve its contents (analytical purposes: measure visits and sources of web traffic). The legal basis is the consent of the user, except in the case of basic cookies, which are essential to navigate this website.