Officials wield great power over people’s lives and it is fundamental to a democratic society that, where they reach unreasonable decisions, they are held to account. The First-tier Tribunal (FTT) did just that in coming to the aid of a grandmother whose car was seized after she was accused of tobacco smuggling.
The car was stopped by a customs officer as it passed through the UK Control Zone in Coquelles, France. On board were discovered 19.96 kilos of hand-rolling tobacco and almost 2,000 cigarettes. Both the goods and the car were seized. Following a review, an officer acting on behalf of the Director of Border Revenue (DBR) refused to restore the vehicle to its owner.
In upholding the woman’s challenge to that outcome, the FTT noted the substantial quantity of tobacco involved. Despite her protestations to the contrary, the goods were deemed not to be for personal use. However, the FTT accepted her evidence that there had been no intention to sell the goods for profit once they had been brought into Britain.
In ruling the reviewing officer’s decision unreasonable, the FTT found that the woman had answered the customs officer’s questions frankly and that no attempt had been made to conceal the goods from view. She had also been unaware of the amount of rolling tobacco on board, it having been bought by other members of her family who were also in the car. The DBR was directed to perform a fresh review of the woman’s request for restoration of her vehicle in the light of the FTT’s ruling.