Airbnb owners are being targeted in a tax probe surge following a boom in holiday let investment. HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) launched nearly 2,000 holiday let enquiries in 2023-24 – up from 375 the prior year and just 95 the year before that, according to official data. The figures, obtained by The Telegraph in a freedom of information request, show there was a 20-fold increase in investigations between 2021-22 and 2023-24. The tax office said it was investigating holiday home investors suspected of failing to declare income following a post-pandemic boom in staycations, while experts warned taxpayers could be caught out by coronavirus easements on tax rules which no longer apply. It comes after the Government announced a £300m tax raid on short-term rentals, with Chancellor Jeremy Hunt unveiling the abolition of the Furnished Holiday Lettings regime (FHL) in the Budget. It is part of a wider bid to disincentivise out-of-towners purchasing second homes in holiday hotspots, a rising trend which has been blamed on pricing locals out of the property market. There are around 70,000 holiday homes in the UK, according to the latest Census data. In some areas of England and Wales, more than one in 10...