An accountant working with the optical profession said practitioners should not panic about unexpected demands from the taxman as they could be the ones owed money.
Marc Bennett of AEL Partners has reported an increased number of estimated assessments being raised by Customs, as the Treasury chases tax more aggressively during the recession.
'Customs shoot first and ask questions later,' he told Optician.
But practitioners receiving estimates may well have overpaid on VAT, Bennett said, through a misunderstanding of methods such as calculating taxable and exempt supplies on optical products.
'One of the biggest returns on investment will be the review of a VAT method. People don't understand how it works but I don't have to understand how refraction works to get a pair of glasses.
'You can have two practices doing the same thing but, if they have different VAT methods, one could be tens of thousands better off each year.'
Bennett also said windfalls were possible from previous tax years, questioning why investing in VAT repayment was a less accepted way of making profit than paying for new equipment, a better product mix or increased marketing. AEL handles VAT repayment claims for 760 practices through its optical division, which has recovered £8m in VAT repayments for its optical clients since starting up in the 1990s.
'There are millions of pounds waiting to be reclaimed because people have overpaid,' added Bennett.
He recommended practitioners hired a specialist to deal with VAT matters in the same way that an optometrist may need to refer a patient to the ophthalmologist.
'Sometimes you need a second opinion from someone who is expert in doing certain things,' Bennett added.