New HMRC figures show that stamp duty rules designed to clamp down on buy-to-let landlords have landed ordinary homebuyers with unexpected tax bills totalling over £160m which have then had to be refunded, according to mutual insurer Royal London.

Higher rates of stamp duty land tax (SDLT) were introduced in April 2016 for those purchasing properties in addition to their main residence. The higher rates are three percentage points above current SDLT rates.

While the tax was introduced to cool down the buy-to-let market, there is potential for people who aim to sell their current main residence and purchase a new one to fall foul of the tax. For instance if someone purchasing a new property found that the sale of the home they wish to leave has fallen through they would find themselves having to pay the higher rates of tax because they effectively own two properties.

Rather than charge people thousands of pounds and then expect them to claim a refund when their house sale eventually goes through, Royal London said that the extra tax should only be payable if people are genuinely multiple-property owners. For example, if two properties are still owned a year after the transaction, a second home stamp duty charge could be levied.

Royal London personal finance specialist Helen Morrissey said: “HMRC’s approach to higher rate second home stamp duty risks causing severe financial hardship for home buyers. House sales can fall through for all kinds of reasons and the last thing families need is to receive a bill totalling thousands of pounds because they have inadvertently found themselves owning two properties for a short space of time.

“Our analysis showed that someone buying an average priced property in London could find themselves paying a bill totalling £28,000 when they were expecting to pay approximately £14,000. In the North West it can add up to more than £5,000 when you might have expected to pay only a few hundred pounds. The fact you can get a refund at some point in the future is cold comfort to having to find the money to pay the bill - how many people have ready access to such sums?

“We need a more common sense approach. It would be far better for the higher rate of stamp duty payment to fall due on the first anniversary of the completion of the purchase. By this point any delays in the sale of a home could be resolved meaning home owners won’t have the stress of finding the extra money. There would also be a massive decrease in the number of refunds HMRC would need to pay out.”

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