“There's many a slip 'twixt the cup and the lip” (very old and very wise proverb)
You sell your property for a good price and, with the deal in the bag, you start daydreaming about how to spend the proceeds. Then – disaster of disasters – you realise that in the excitement of the sale you forgot all about VAT.
It’s an easy mistake to make, and a recent High Court case shows just how costly it can be.