West Country Vending Services Limited v Commissioners for Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs
Decision date: 19 March 2010
Neutral citation: [2010] UKFTT 124 (TC)
Overall AI summary confidence: high
Short overview
This short overview is intended to summarise the case, issues and outcome so far as they are supported by the judgment.
AI confidence in this short overview: high
This appeal concerned whether sales of food from vending machines located on customers' premises are "for consumption on the premises" and therefore standard-rated for VAT, and whether the supplier's subjective intention controls that characterization. The tribunal held that where a machine is located in a canteen supplies are made in the canteen and can be for consumption on the premises, the supplier's indifference is not decisive and objective facts (including the customer's intention and the nature of the location) govern. The appellant's repayment claim was dismissed.
Ratio decidendi
This summary is intended to identify the ratio decidendi, meaning the legal reasons for deciding and the binding part of the decision.
AI confidence in this ratio decidendi summary: high
The governing ratio is that the place where food is supplied is determined by a common-sense assessment of the physical premises (for example, a canteen) rather than by treating the vending machine or its immediate floor-space as the place of supply, and that whether food is "for consumption on the premises" is determined by objective facts and the purchaser's intention rather than by the supplier's subjective intention.
Obiter dicta
This summary is intended to identify obiter dicta, meaning observations made by the way that were not necessary to deciding the case and are not binding.
AI confidence in this obiter dicta summary: medium
The tribunal observed (obiter) that a supplier need not have legal interest or control of wider premises for a supply to be treated as made there; that HMRC guidance requiring an area to be designated for consumption (not merely a few chairs in a corridor) is sensible; and that, for historic allocation between on‑ and off‑premises consumption, a pragmatic sampling exercise is often appropriate because in practice a high proportion of vending‑machine sales will be for consumption off the premises.