F1 champion Scheckter loses £3.8m tax relief battle

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 28 Oct, 09:29 · Archive

Former Formula One world champion Jody Scheckter has lost a tax tribunal appeal over £3.8 million in farming losses at his Hampshire estate.

Former Formula One world champion Jody Scheckter has lost a multimillion-pound tax battle over the Hampshire farming business he backed with almost £55 million of his own money. The 1979 F1 champion challenged HM Revenue and Customs after it refused to allow him to offset almost £3.8 million of his share of the business's losses against other income and capital gains.

The First-tier Tribunal dismissed his appeal after ruling that the farming trade run by Laverstoke Park Produce LLP did not meet the conditions for him to claim the tax relief. Scheckter set up the partnership in September 2001 and held a 99 per cent stake. The dispute centred on Laverstoke Park Farm in Hampshire, where Scheckter set out to build a leading organic and biodynamic food business after moving to the UK in 1996.

The scale of Scheckter's investment was significant. He put just under £55 million into the partnership between October 2003 and March 2013, according to the tribunal judgment.

Judges accepted that Scheckter genuinely wanted the business to make money and said there could be "absolutely no doubt" that he intended to make a profit. However, the tribunal ruled that the farming trade, when looked at on its own, had not been run on a commercial basis.

One of the key issues in the case was the Laverstoke Park brand, which belonged to the partnership but was also used by Laverstoke Abattoirs Limited, later renamed Laverstoke Park Farms Limited. This dual use of the brand appeared to influence the tribunal's decision that the trade did not qualify for the tax relief Scheckter sought.

F1 champion Scheckter loses £3.8m tax relief battle — Image: Andover Advertiser

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How it is being reported

F1 champion loses £3.8m tax relief battle over Hampshire farming businessFormer F1 champion Jody Scheckter loses £3.8m HMRC tax appeal over Hampshire farm losses as tribunal rules Laverstoke Park trade non-commercial.Andover Advertiser · 28 Oct, 09:02
Formula 1 world champion loses £55 million tax battle over Hampshire estateFormer F1 champion Jody Scheckter loses £3.8m HMRC tax appeal over Hampshire farm losses; tribunal rules Laverstoke Park trade non-commercial on September 3Basingstoke Gazette · 28 Oct, 09:01
Formula 1 world champion loses £55 million tax battle over Hampshire estateFormer F1 champion Jody Scheckter loses £3.8m HMRC tax appeal over Hampshire farm Laverstoke Park, after tribunal rules farming losses were not eligible.Southern Daily Echo · 27 Oct, 14:50

In this story: Jody Scheckter · HM Revenue and Customs · Laverstoke Park Produce LLP · Hampshire · Laverstoke Park Farms Limited

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