HMRC deliberately cutting off calls?
The Public Accounts Committee (PAC) has severely criticised HMRC's customer service, forcing it to make a public statement. What's the full story?
HMRC is in the firing line of the PAC again this week. Previously, the public watchdog has criticised HMRC for cutting services, such as its tax and VAT helplines. Now, it has ramped up its narrative - with an accusation that HMRC is running a “deliberately poor” phone service in an effort to force taxpayers to use its online solutions instead. The scathing allegation comes in the wake of a report by a committee of MPs found that nearly 44,000 people were disconnected (and not called back) whilst being on hold for more than an hour in the 2023/24 tax year.
There is certainly no denying that HMRC is keen to make taxpayers aware of its online help options, such as its online chat bot. However, these are unlikely to be of use for anything but the simplest of questions. We're aware of one person who tried to use it to resolve a capital allowances query and was directed to information about child benefit!
Jim Harra, chief executive, denied that HMRC was using such a tactic, pointing to falling call wait times as evidence of improved customer service over the last year.
Related Topics
-
HMRC speeds up National Insurance refunds
HMRC has confirmed that it is using a new automated process to speed up National Insurance refunds. Where its records suggest that someone may have overpaid, HMRC will write to them asking them to check their employment and contribution details before any refund is processed. Could you be due money back?
-
Should you voluntarily payroll benefits in kind?
The window to sign up to voluntarily payroll non-mandatory benefits in kind for 2027/28 will open in November. Is it worth volunteering to pay HMRC earlier than required or should you wait until it becomes mandatory in 2028/29?
-
Wise tax statement errors could affect 4,000 customers
Around 4,000 UK customers of financial services provider Wise have been told that tax statements issued between 2021 and 2025 contained incorrect figures. The errors could have resulted in taxpayers paying too much or too little income tax and capital gains tax (CGT). What should affected customers check?
This website uses both its own and third-party cookies to analyze our services and navigation on our website in order to improve its contents (analytical purposes: measure visits and sources of web traffic). The legal basis is the consent of the user, except in the case of basic cookies, which are essential to navigate this website.