Martin Lewis issues tax code warning after employer error leaves man with £5,000 bill

People should check their tax code ‘at least once a year’ or risk ‘nightmare’ scenario, warns MoneySavingExpert founder

Martin Lewis has urged people to ensure that their tax code is correct, warning that “millions of them are wrong” every year.

The MoneySavingExpert founder stressed that it is individuals’ own responsibility to check they are paying the right amount of tax – and risk being told to pay thousands to HMRC if they are found to have underpaid.

During an appearance on ITV’s This Morning, a viewer named Richard wrote in to ask the journalist for advice after an error by his employer left him owing £5,000.

In a message read out by presenter Holly Willoughby, Richard said: “HMRC told me I owe over £5,000 in tax because they had not finalised several years of tax calculations and my employer did not have me on the correct tax code.

“HMRC said it's my responsibility to check my tax code. I thought as a contracted employee I would be safe and monitored by my employer and HMRC. I've no savings, what can I do?”

Mr Lewis grimaced as the message was read out, before replying that he was “very sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but HMRC are right”.

The tax code employees are sent each year “dictates how much tax needs to be taken off by the employer when you are paid”, he explained, adding: “Millions of them are wrong, and it is your responsibility – not HMRC, not your employers – to ensure it is right.

“Which is a very difficult thing because it’s really complicated.”

Martin Lewis warned that millions of tax codes are wrong each year as he appeared on This Morning (screengrab)

Nevertheless, he warned that “everybody should be checking that their tax code is right”, adding: “There are free calculators online that will give you a rough indication. It’s quite difficult to do to see whether it looks likely to be right or not.

“If it isn’t right, it’s a nightmare if you’ve underpaid – they want the money back – and if you’ve overpaid you can get a refund”.

Returning to Richard’s circumstances, Mr Lewis said: “Unless there's some proper administrative error – such as your employer got the right tax code, but then taxed you wrongly – then it is your responsibility.

“If you can’t afford to pay it, HMRC should let you talk to them, defer the payments over a longer period. But messing with the tax office is the one thing that you can’t do. You may want to go and get an accountant to see if there’s anything that can be done here.”

He added: “Talk to the payroll office in your firm otherwise to see if they can offer any help, speak to HMRC and see what they can do, but you’re probably going to have to pay this.”