Clearview National December 2016 - Issue 181 | Page 8

INDUSTRYNEWS

Glazier
Jailed
The former owner
of a Gloucestershire
double glazing business
who evaded more than
£165,000 in VAT and
Income Tax has been
jailed for 18 months.
»»AN INVESTIGATION BY HM
Revenue and Customs (HMRC) revealed
that for seven years John Choppin, 39,
failed to register for or pay VAT, evading
£87,191.
He lied on Self-Assessment returns
to wipe out any Income Tax or National
Insurance liability, when he should have
paid £49,680 to HMRC. He also failed to
complete his tax returns for the 2011 to
2014 tax years, leaving a debt of £28,721.

‘It is simply not
acceptable to steal
from the tax system
and, ultimately, honest
UK taxpayers and
business competitors’
Colin Spinks, Assistant Director, Fraud
Investigation Service, HMRC, said: “John
Choppin evaded payment of Income Tax
and VAT through a combination of lies
and the blatant disregard of UK tax law.
It is simply not acceptable to steal from
the tax system and, ultimately, honest UK
taxpayers and business competitors.
On 30 September at Gloucester
Crown Court John Choppin pleaded
guilty to the fraudulent evasion of VAT
and three counts of Income Tax fraud.
He was jailed for 18 months at the same
court on 3 November 2016.
To report a suspected VAT and
Income Tax fraud visit https://www.
gov.uk/report-vat-fraud

8 » DEC 2016 » CL EARVI E W- UK . C O M

Attention installers –
Win share of £10,000!
»»INSTALLERS ARE ALREADY SIGNING
up to FENSA’s Master Fitter Challenge 2017
– the most prestigious skills competition in
the glazing industry. So don’t miss out on
your chance to win!
For the fourth year FENSA is sponsoring
the FIT Show’s Master Fitter Challenge –
being held at the NEC, Birmingham in May
2017. 1st Prize is £5,000, 2nd Prize £,3000
and 3rd Prize £2,000.
The finalists will be distilled from an entry
list following a filtering process carried out by
co-sponsor the Glass Qualifications Authority
and associated industry expert judges. The
process includes a site visit for those reaching
the second stage so entrants have to be at
their best, in real world conditions.
The competition is free to enter and
open to individuals or teams of two.
Entrants must have a minimum two years
of industry experience in the installation of

domestic windows and doors. They must
be MTC compliant through the FENSA
MTC Card (or equivalent) or hold relevant
qualifications.
To enter (or for further information) go
to http://www.fitshow.co.uk/master-fitterchallenge

Improving market intelligence
»»FRAMEXPRESS, ONE OF THE
leading PVCu fabricators of windows, doors,
conservatories and composite doors, has joined
forces with Insight Data to boost its market
intelligence.
The national fabricator has chosen
Salestracker, the sales and marketing software
that combines CRM, real-time prospect data

and market intelligence on the UK glass and
glazing industry.
Stuart Green, Managing Director of
FrameXpress, commented: “The market
intelligence provided by Salestracker is simply
outstanding. I can see information such as
products, frames per week, premises, market
sectors, key contacts and financial information.
The real-time data technology means the
information is constantly updated so I can see
any changes that are happening within the
market, helping me to tailor marketing and
sales strategies.”
Jade Greenhow, Operations Manager at
Insight Data, commented: ” Salestracker has the
power to help companies form comprehensive
and effective sales and marketing strategies.
The detailed intelligence is second-to-none and
with all the information updated in real time
it allows companies to be on the ball when it
comes to changes within the market, keeping
them one step ahead.”
For Salestracker or a free demonstration
call 01934 808293.