QUIRKY WORLD ... From messy houses to argumentative spouses, the taxman’s top 10 excuses

ENGLAND: HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) has revealed the worst excuses it has heard over the past year from people filing late tax returns — including hungry animals devouring tax forms.

The “worst tax return excuses” list, which was released ahead of the deadline for filing tax returns online at the end of January, contains claims which were used in unsuccessful appeals against penalties imposed for late returns, HMRC said.

They ranged from a husband running over a laptop to someone claiming that a rat chomped its way through their tax papers while they were being kept in a shed.