Self-assessment 'late penalty' call — they had my NI number

Got a call yesterday claiming I'd missed my self-assessment deadline and was accruing a £100/day penalty. The 'officer' read out my NI number to prove they were genuine, then asked for my card details to 'pay the penalty now and stop the meter'.

The NI-number detail was unsettling — that's not public data. Turns out it was in an old MyFitnessPal breach apparently. The whole script collapsed when I asked for a written notice and the caller refused.

Self-assessment penalties are notified in writing and visible in your gov.uk account. HMRC does not collect them by phone. See our HMRC scam call UK guide.