Ok, so I’ve been working for Reliance for the past 3 months. Back in April, I done a days work for another agency, who paid via an umbrella, and apart from that 1 days work, I have had nothing else from them. At the beginning of August, said umbrella told HMRC they were my main employer, and screwed my tax code, from 944L to 362T, with Reliance as a 2nd employer with the same tax code. So I contacted HMRC and set the record straight, and everything was put back to how it was before, Reliance as main employer, tax code back to 944L, this was confirmed to me on 11th August, and had taken effect on 9th August. All has been fine with wages, until this week. Reliance pay wages on a Monday, and this week (19/08/13) I hadn’t been paid, so I rang Reliance, who told me that ALL my wages (3 days - £270) had been taken as tax by HMRC. So I contact Hmrc, who say they’re unaware of this, I do not owe any tax, and in any case, if I did, the maximum they can take in tax is 50%, so I would still have some pay. Reliance are saying they weren’t aware the tax code had changed, and had used the 362T code, and are sticking to their story of it all going in tax. They may, reluctantly, re-run the payroll but I’m not holding my breath, although that is the advice offered by HMRC.
So, what can I do? HMRC are telling me one thing, and Reliance are saying something else, and I’m stuck in the middle with no pay, direct debits bouncing, and rent to pay. Can anyone advise what my next move should be? I’m not too sure Reliance are looking to resolve this, they haven’t proved to be the best agency to work for so far, flat refusal to pay holiday etc, hence I am in the process of moving employer. It seems as if everything Reliance have said, HMRC has told me the opposite, and I know who I believe. The only way HMRC can see that anything like that would happen, would be if I had been taxed accumatively, and even then, they advised that on that amount, I’d still only be looking at £40 ish tax deductions. All I want is the pay I’ve earned but I seem to be just going round in circles.
SuffolkLad:
Can anyone advise what my next move should be?
Move !
Dieseldoforme:
SuffolkLad:
Can anyone advise what my next move should be?Move !
Thats what I’m doing, going back to an agency I used to work for. It doesn’t solve this pay problem though, and I can’t afford to just drop it.
Dieseldoforme:
SuffolkLad:
Can anyone advise what my next move should be?Move !
+1.
And then get it in writing from HMRC what they have said, then file a small claims action against Reliance.
Ken.
They’re crooks who’ve stolen your wages.
Engage a solititor without further ado, informing them that their fees are to be taken from any fines levied from the defendants, should they lose their defence, which they will because you’ve got HMRC on your side already telling you stuff like “You don’t deduct 100% of someone’s wages in tax, and then don’t even supply a payslip to that effect…”
Remember that HMRC have been defrauded too, because of the lie that this money has been “taken in tax” when HMRC have told you this is not the case. Most likely it’s in some other segregated account under the control of Reliance, to pay their own tax bill at the end of the year. Stealing a staff member’s tax deductions to pay your own company tax is “smash and grab” on paper. Theft pure and simple.
Reliance are probably doing this to punish you for “cheating on them”. Doesn’t matter. There’s no exclusivity agreement in your agency zero hour contract - because they’d have to put you on a numbered hours contract to make it stick! 
If the particular office ripping you off here is run as some kind of franchise, then the larger firm won’t be the ones in court. Most likely, you’ll hear “Consultant ■■■ is no longer with the business” which Franchises like to think renders them immune from prosecution under fraud, theft, and false accounting laws. Methinks “Reliance office yyy” will no longer exist by the time HMRC are finished. 
If it goes ■■■■-up in an attempt to avoid prosecution, you still get logged as “Preferential creditor”, although the payout might take a painfully long time coming from the adminstrators winding it all up. 
Just tell them to sort it or you’re Oscar Mike.
I recently had a similar issue.
Was working for 2 agencies at the same time about this time last year, both were aware of it as were HMRC, the correct tax code had been generated and that was what was showing on my payslips.
About 5 weeks ago I got a letter saying that I owed several hundred pounds in unpaid tax and that it would be taken out of my wages over the next 12 months.
Contacted HMRC who said that one of the agencies hadn’t been using the updated tax code, so I sent them a copy of the payslips, they concurred that although the payslip showed the correct tax code that wasn’t actually what had been used so I still owed the tax and that as it was the agencies mistake I was to try and recoup that myself direct with them and it’s nothing to do with HMRC who will still take the extra tax as advised.
Still trying to get the money out of the agency today, they are saying they used the correct code as shown on my payslips and I have to get HMRC to prove that they didn’t - which HMRC won’t cooperate with as they can’t apparently share documents relating to a companies tax accounts.
Good luck mate and I hope you get it sorted.
Alex
Could it be that it has not had time to go though yet it as only been 9 days. Agencies pay a in arrears usually on a Friday so which week did they pay you for on Monday, if it was for week ending 18th then you have a fast paying agency but if it’s not put right this week them you do have problems
The pay would have been for the week ending the 9th, and payroll is processed on either the 13th or 14th.