HM Revenue & Customs could chase traders and residents who take advantage of the hordes of individuals attending summer events by offering goods and services from their private residential property, warns PFK.

Thousands of pounds can be earned by home owners who rent their homes out during events such as Wimbledon and the British Grand Prix, as well as offering off-road parking spaces in gardens and golf courses that may be within the vicinity.

Matt Coward, director of private client tax services at PFK said: ‘HMRC wants its share of the events economy. In past years, HMRC officers and trading standards teams have visited the area to check up on traders and residents making money from the tournament’.

He added: ‘With tax revenues falling, I would expect HMRC to make an extra effort this year to make sure that all profits from the Wimbledon fortnight are properly taxed.’

HMRC has heightened its information gathering powers by having links with organisers of the big events and letting agencies so that traders and temporary landlords can be checked up on – making it easier to catch out those who try to cheat the system.

Coward commented: ‘Not all events are likely to be as recession-proof as Wimbledon. But anyone who is having a tough time and is tempted not to declare the income they receive, should be aware that HMRC’s new system of tax penalties took effect from April this year.’

He warned: ‘If you cheat and you are caught out, it is now likely to cost you far more than it would have in past years’.