DIY reclaim payment delayed

[KSol]

My client submitted a DIY reclaim for VAT and the payment back from HMRC was considerably delayed. Is it possible to make a claim under s79 - repayment supplement - or can this only be done for s33 claims (local authorities, museums etc)?
DIY department were particularly poor in all levels of correspondence and communication with my client, starting with massive delays in actually starting to look at the claim, to eventually sending a remittance advise for the repayment with the incorrect bank details on! I am desperate to see if there is any form of compensation (legislatively) for my client to make up for the stress caused by the entire procedure. The process from submission to payment took over 6 months with only one letter requesting further information along the way, which was responded to within a week (as the query was relatively simple).
I have looked at Statutory Interest already, but was wondering if there was anything further I should consider.
Thank you for any pointers or guidance in this matter.

[les35]

I would certainly make a claim. Whether it is under s78 (statutory interest) or s79 (repayment supplement) is unclear. Ask for HMRC to choose!

[KSol]

Thanks very much for your response.
Statutory interest will work out to be very small (well, in relation the stress/inefficiency!) per my calculations, so I was more thinking of the repayment supplement (s79) route. As VAT is not my speciality, I have had a look at the legislation of s79 and I think there may be a couple of obstacles for my client and perhaps wonder if I am reading too much into the legislation....

Per s79(1)(a) (In any case where)... a person is entitled to a VAT credit, or
Does this mean that you need to be a taxable person (i.e. VAT registered) in order to be entitled to a VAT credit? I was looking at s25(3) for this.
Therefore by inference it wouldn't apply to DIY VAT reclaim, as the individual is not a taxable person?

Secondly, per s79(6) - definition of a "requisite return or claim" means
a) in relation to a payment, the return for the period concerned which is required to be furnished with regulations under this Act, AND
b) in relation to a refund, the claim for that refund which is required in accordance with Commissions determination under s33, or s33A, 33B or 33C
It is this AND above that is worrying me, s33 would obviously not apply in my clients' case!

Then per the Our Communications Ltd FTT case it was decided that s79 applies to all claims for repayments of VAT whether claimed on a VAT return or otherwise. This would seem to imply that s79 WOULD apply in relation to DIY VAT reclaims.

As you can see, I might be reading too much into the legislation perhaps....
I have agreed to pursue any claim pro-bono, as the client is in no position to go through any more in relation to this particular VAT reclaim!
Thanks again for any pointers or advise.

[les35]

s79 refers to a person, so is not restricted to a taxable person.
I agree with your comments in relation to s79(6). A DIY claim is not within s33.
This is an interesting anomaly, leaving a private person making a claim under s35 severely out of pocket where the repayment is delayed.
Worthy of being known more widely.

[davebrownvat]

Or if all else fails, make an official complaint to HMRC - and propose an ex gratia payment. If the complaint route didn't work, go for a complaint to the Adjudicator's Office.