Message-Id: 
From: Jonathan Bryce 
Subject: Re: Insurers fear tax rule could send jobs to India
Newsgroups: uk.business.accountancy uk.finance
Date: Sat, 01 Oct 2005 19:31:46 +0100

Fred wrote:

> I've read this article linked from the house price crash website:
> 
> http://business.scotsman.com/index.cfm?id=2014522005
> 
> but it doesn't say what is actually changing.  Surely insurance companies
> are VAT registered so they can claim back any VAT paid to their suppliers?
> What am I missing here?

No.  Insurance companies are not VAT registered, because insurance is not a
taxable supply.  It is subject to insurance premium tax rather than VAT.

Even if they are VAT registered by virtue of making other taxable supplies,
they wouldn't be able to claim VAT on any expenses relating to insurance.