Rank Set To Receive £36.3m VAT Repayment

A UK tribunal has ruled that VAT applied to certain types of interval Bingo played in Mecca Bingo clubs was unlawful. As such, the HMRC will need to repay the £36.3m paid by Rank in VAT. The HMRC has until 10th July to appeal, and if they were to do so this would mean that Rank would not benefit in this financial year although the ruling appears to be reasonably air tight.

A number of integral bingo games attract VAT neutrality, and the hearing found that the HMRC had failed to apply this neutrality in the case of Mecca Bingo games. As such, the tribunal also found that Rank should receive all of the VAT they incorrectly paid for these interval bingo games.

Interval bingo games are those cash and prize games that are played between the main sessions of bingo. Rank had originally submitted their repayment claim way back in 2006 and the case has only just been heard by the tribunal. Rank pointed out that their was precedent for their case during the 2005 case of Finanzamt v Linneweber.

The ruling is obviously a major step forward for Rank to reclaim a substantial amount of money and the tribunal found that the HMRC has been in contravention of European Fiscal neutrality.

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