Invoice raised by Unregistered business (CRO)

Hballage

Registered User
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5
Can anyone shed some light on this issue?

We have a contract with a sole trader (builder). We have serious concerns with his work and relationships have broken down. He has raised an invoice under the name of an unregistered business (not the sole traders name) which seems contrary to the Registration of Business Names Act. However the VAT no. on the invoice belongs to the sole trader (we did a search). The invoice also asks that a cheque for the amount of the invoiced sum be made out to the sole trader's name.

We have engaged a solicitor to deal with the other concerns we have, but would like to know if the invoice has any legal standing as we have no contract with the unregistered entity that raised the invoice.

Thanks for any input.
 
I'm not sure what you mean. Obviously the builder has a right to raise an invoice which we fully accept. The invoice we received is not in the builder's name, which is what is signed in the contract but an unregistered business entity we have never heard of. It is this nature of the invoice that we are curious about. Thanks.
 
If you want him to issue a replacement invoice, this time omitting the business name, I'm sure he will oblige.
 
Thanks T McGibney. Our problem is that we have potentially breached our contract by not paying the original invoice. If there is no legal force behind the invoice as it was issued then we may have a reprieve.
 
Thanks T McGibney. Our problem is that we have potentially breached our contract by not paying the original invoice. If there is no legal force behind the invoice as it was issued then we may have a reprieve.

Goodness - that's a very convoluted thought process!

I think that this is what this is all about:

"We have serious concerns with his work and relationships have broken down."

You may very well have concerns with his work - but what does he say about that? is there any merit in him seeking payment for his work? Will he say that you only complained about the work when you received the invoice?

Two sides to every story.............

mf
 
Hi mf1, yes, indeed it is all about the quality of the work. Undoubtedly he does have his own opinions on this. And there is always 2 sides to every story. I'm not really in a position to give you his though.

Unfortunatly we are heading for court. That process is slow and full of cost and anxiety. For our own peace of mind I thought I might ask a question about the validity of an invoice.

If the invoice as issued is a valid document we will deal with it.
If it's not, well, there is some relief for us there.

Thanks
 
Once it contains the name, address and correct & valid VAT number of the person issuing it, it generally is valid. The apparent non-registration of a business name is imho a red herring and can be fixed by the trader if necessary by the lodging of an RBN1 form & €20 fee.
 
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