A UK wine wholesaler has gone into liquidation after losing a tax tribunal battle with HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) over suppressed sales. New Claire Wine Ltd was officially wound up on May 19, 2026, following a virtual meeting where Giles McCarthy of Netchwood Finance Ltd was appointed liquidator.
The company's collapse came after a court upheld a higher penalty imposed by HMRC for deliberately understating sales. The tax authority identified severe stock discrepancies, with over 9,700 cases of wine bought off the books, missing purchase invoices, and unrecorded sales.
HMRC made a combined tax claim of £427,310, covering VAT, corporation tax, and director's loan account liabilities. The London-based company also faced fines for deliberate errors in tax returns.
New Claire Wine's directors had challenged a January 2024 First-Tier Tribunal decision that found the company had understated sales in its corporation tax and VAT returns. However, the challenge was unsuccessful.
The liquidation follows a broader trend of rising insolvencies in the UK alcoholic beverage sector. Earlier in May, MWH Wine Merchants Limited also entered liquidation, with Thomas Edward Guthrie and John William Rimmer of BRI Business Recovery appointed to oversee the winding up.
