PAYE21150 - Employer records: maintain employer record: lost or destroyed records

Notification that records are lost / destroyed

Employers deduction records may be lost or destroyed for example because of fire or theft.

You may be notified of this in any of the following ways

• By the employer
• Another office or section

The PAYE section must be notified of the circumstances as they arise so that they can arrange for the following if required

• The issue of duplicate notices of coding
• The completion of duplicate deduction working sheets

It must be established whether the employer / contractor has enough information to reconstruct duplicate records.

The employer record can be reconstructed

In this event the PAYE section will issue duplicate documentation. The employer unit will then make a note on the computer record by entering the ‘RECONSTRUCT’ year related indicator. See ‘Employer indicators’ (PAYE21075) for further information. This will indicate the scheme is to be reviewed on receipt of the employer annual return.

Records cannot be reconstructed

Where the employer does not have sufficient information to reconstruct their records and there are employees a report must be made to the Debt Management Office. The Debt Management Office will try to reconstruct the record with the employer. Where it is not possible to obtain accurate details the Debt Management Office may use estimated details or inform you that an amount has been treated as a Permanent Overpayment.