article: The Tories have accepted hundreds of thousands of pounds from a businessman whose company duped thousands of families in a mis-selling scandal. Multi-millionaire Richard Harpin has given the Tories £375,000 since 2008 – including £50,000 in the first week of the election campaign, official records show. The revelation will raise fresh questions for David Cameron over his links to millionaire donors. Multi-millionaire Richard Harpin has given the Tories £375,000 since 2008 – including £50,000 in the first week of the election campaign . Mr Harpin is the chief executive of HomeServe – the maintenance firm which styles itself as the UK's 'fifth emergency service'. But the firm was handed a record £30million fine last year for selling families expensive home insurance cover using misleading information and hard sell tactics. The fine came on top of some £40million it is paying in refunds to thousands of wronged customers who took out the policies. Industry regulator the Financial Conduct Authority found customers were misled or bullied into taking out policies they did not need or did not cover all the problems claimed. The company – which claims it offers peace of mind to consumers who are worried about losing their boiler or water supply in the dead of winter – has three million customers in the UK, holding 7.5million policies. Tory donor Mr Harpin founded the company in 1993. The firm today employs over 2,500 people in the UK and nearly 4,000 globally and is the biggest employer in Walsall. HomeServe said the investigation was closed over a year ago, in February 2014, and related to mis-selling in the period prior to October 2011. A spokesperson said: 'Richard Harpin has been a supporter of the Conservative party for a number of years and his political donations are made in a personal capacity.' But Labour said the donation showed the Tories were out to support their wealthy friends. Jon Ashworth, Labour's Shadow Cabinet Office Minister, said: 'We all know that the Tories put the interests of their big money donors before those of hardworking families.' The Tories under David Cameron have  accepted hundreds of thousands of pounds from a businessman whose company duped thousands of families in a mis-selling scandal . A Tory spokesman said: 'All donations to the Conservative Party are properly and transparently declared to the Electoral Commission, published by them, and comply fully with Electoral Commission rules. 'Any suggestion of impropriety by the party is malicious and defamatory and will be treated as such.' The revelation comes just two days after the Tories were forced to return a donation of £50,000 from a wealthy hotelier who the American authorities once wanted to extradite to face tax fraud charges. Beatrice Tollman, founder of a luxury hotel chain, made her most recent donation of £20,000 to the Tories earlier this month to boost the party's General Election campaign coffers. But it emerged that she has previously been charged with conspiracy to evade millions of dollars in tax before the charges were dismissed by a judge. However on the same day in 2008 her husband Stanley Tollman pleaded guilty to tax evasion. Mr Tollman repaid more than 100 million US dollars to America after the couple spent five years fighting off attempts to extradite Mrs Tollman from the UK over claims the South African couple had millions stashed in the Channel Islands. The Tollman's son, Brett, pleaded guilty to tax evasion in 2003 and was sentenced to more than two years in prison, as well as a $3.5 million penalty. A Conservative spokesman said: 'We were not aware of this issue but in light of these findings we will be returning donations from the Tollmans. Donations from the Tollmans were fully declared and in strict accordance with electoral law.' Since 2011, Mrs Tollman has donated more than £50,000 to the Conservatives.
highlights: EXCLUSIVE: Richard Harpin has given the Tories £375,000 since 2008 .
  Mr Harpin is the chief executive of maintenance firm HomeServe .
  Company was fined a record £30million last year for mis-selling insurance .
  Customers were misled or bullied into buying policies they did not need .
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