Income and Corporation Taxes Act 1988

784 Leased assets subject to hire-purchase agreements

(1) In the application of section 781 to a lease which constitutes a hire-purchase agreement, for the reference in subsection (2) of that section to the amount of the capital sum there shall, where that capital sum was obtained in respect of the lessee’s interest in the lease constituting the hire-purchase agreement, be substituted references to the amount of the capital sum (adjusted, if necessary, under subsection (5) of that section) after deducting any capital expenditure which was incurred by the person obtaining the capital sum in providing the lessee’s interest.

(2) In subsection (1) above “capital expenditure which was incurred by the person obtaining the capital sum in providing the lessee’s interest” means—

(a) so much of any payment made under the lease by the person obtaining the capital sum (or, where the capital sum was obtained by the personal representatives of a deceased person, so made by that deceased person) as is not a payment in respect of which a deduction is allowable by way of tax relief which is one of the kinds listed in subsection (4) of section 781, plus

(b) where the lessee’s interest was assigned to the person obtaining the capital sum, any capital payment made by that person as consideration for the assignment.

(3) If the amount to be deducted in pursuance of subsection (1) above exceeds the amount of the capital sum from which it is to be deducted, no charge shall arise under section 781(1) in respect of the capital sum.

(4) If the capital sum represents the consideration for part only of the lessee’s interest in the lease which constitutes a hire-purchase agreement, the amount to be deducted under subsection (1) above shall be such proportion of the capital expenditure which is still unallowed as is reasonable having regard to the degree to which the capital expenditure has contributed to the value of what is disposed of in return for the capital sum.

(5) If more than one capital sum is, or is to be regarded as, obtained by the same person in respect of the lessee’s interest in the lease which constitutes a hire-purchase agreement, then, so far as in respect of one of those capital sums any deduction is made in respect of capital expenditure in pursuance of subsection (1) above that capital expenditure shall be left out of account in applying subsections (1) and (3) above to any other such capital sum; and the order in which this subsection is applied shall be the order in which the capital sums are obtained.

(6) In this section—

• “hire-purchase agreement” means an agreement, other than a conditional sale agreement, under which—

  (a)

  goods are bailed or, in Scotland, hired in return for periodical payments by the person to whom they are bailed or hired, and

  (b)

  the property in the goods will pass to that person if the terms of the agreement are complied with and one or more of the following occurs—

  (i)

  the exercise of an option to purchase by that person;

  (ii)

  the doing of any other specified act by any party to the agreement;

  (iii)

  the happening of any other specified event; and

• “conditional sale agreement” means an agreement for the sale of goods under which the purchase price or part of it is payable by instalments, and the property in the goods is to remain in the seller (notwithstanding that the buyer is to be in possession of the goods) until such conditions as to the payment of instalments or otherwise as may be specified in the agreement are fulfilled.