Radio presenter Neil Prendeville and Lifeline ambulance service among tax defaulters

Cork radio presenter Neil Prendeville and David Hall's ambulance company, Lifeline, are included in the latest list of tax defaulters.

Mr Prendeville, who is also a newspaper contributor, paid a total of €541,636 after a revenue investigation following an underdeclaration of income tax. He was ordered to pay €327,663 in tax with the remainder in interest and penalties.

Mr Prendeville’s solicitor John Boylan, of BDM solicitors, said an error was made by a firm of accountants which previously handled the broadcaster's affairs.

The ambulance company of well-known mortgage campaigner David Hall, Lifeline Ambulance service, paid a total of €416,965 after a revenue audit found the company under declared PAYE, PRSI and USC.

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Mr Hall said the payment related to a period between 2008 and 2015 when staff were paid mileage in error when they used company cars. Mr Hall said he returned to run the company in 2015 after it made a “significant loss” and the Revenue issue was settled that year after a voluntary disclosure. He had stepped away in 2010 to focus on “helping those in mortgage arrears”.

Mr Hall noted that the figures given by him to Revenue were the figures accepted by the tax collector. He also noted that he has alway been totally compliant where his personal tax affairs are concerned.

The biggest settlement in this round involved Sherwood Investment Limited, a company which previously owned Fitzpatrick's pub and restaurant in Co Louth. The settlement, of €10.9 million, was largely unpaid by the end of 2019 with €10.4 million still owing.

Another defaulter in the food sphere was Dublin New Food Limited, the company behind the Umi Falafel restaurant, which paid a total of €40,318 after a revenue audit case.

A number of companies which have since fallen into liquidation owed money to the State’s tax collected by the end of last year. The largest defaulter in liquidation was Galtee Fuels Limited in Co Limerick, a wholesaler of solid fuels, which made a €2.1 million settlement with Revenue. Only a fraction of that had been paid by the end of 2019.

DG Asset Management Ire Limited, a security services provider which traded as Delta Security Group, owed €230,813 and had still to pay €138,187 by the end of December.

Financial and business consultants were also found to have defaulted in the period. Aidan Marcus Kelly, a financial consultant with an address in Tralee, Co Kerry, was forced to pay €36,269 having under declared income tax.

Meanwhile, Niall Tuohy, a business and management consultant based in Letterkenny, Co Donegal, made a settlement of €337,181 with Revenue having not declared income tax and under declared VAT. The majority of that was still owing at the end of last year.

Other settlements

There was one PAYE employee on this list, which includes settlements made between the start of October and the end of December. Margaret Saccone, with an address at Mount Oval, Rochestown, Co Cork, under declared income tax and had to pay €268,323.

A plethora of landlords made this list as well. Traolach Ó Buachalla, with an address in Castleblayney, Co Monaghan, made a settlement of €419,080 after under declaring income tax.

Other names on the list included haulier Jason Taylor, trading as TLS Ireland, who made a settlement of €656,689 with Revenue, €581,015 of which remained unpaid at the end of the period.

In total, Revenue made 45 settlements arising from a careless or deliberate default of more than €19.7 million in the period. There were 14 cases for which the settlement was not fully paid as of December 31st amounting to €15.2 million.

Some 19 cases were for amounts exceeding €100,000, while five exceeded €500,000.

During the three-month period, Revenue said there were a total of 719 Revenue audit and investigations, together with 22,432 risk management interventions settled, resulting in a yield of €169.30 million in tax, interest, and penalties.