Absolutely IMPOSSIBLE to contact HMRC by phone... correct?

frank777

purdyoaten wrote: »

The HMRC music line number is 0300 200 3310. This means that it is now cheaper to listen to music for 30 mins before you are cut off.

I got no music , just connected straight away. Maybe times have changed - mine was a 01 number at the time. I guess I was lucky, my tax affairs are now in order so not an issue for me now.

Looks like they have tightened up on the loophole and now play music with the new 03 number.

agrinnall

Pennywise wrote: »

But you can blame *some* staff if there are 6 people ringing because their tax affairs aren't right because, previously, other staff have made mistakes. Sadly, that's the reality. A lot of the phone calls and letters that HMRC receive wouldn't have been necessary if previous calls and letters had been dealt with properly and had mistakes not been made by HMRC staff.

You can also blame HMRC management who set up crazy illogical systems that add to their workload because of sheer inefficiency. For example, they are painfully slow at setting up internet-based services meaning accountants and taxpayers have to phone up or send in paper forms (both requiring human intervention) for very simple administrative matters that could easily be dealt with by an online form. Or how it was virtually impossible for years to see an account online for an employers PAYE or a business VAT record whereas online-viewable accounts were available for self assessment and corporation tax! Or how they've taken years to set up a simple online request for the issue of a SA302 form to prove income - something else that people had to phone up for when a simple online request form could have saved probably tens of thousands of telephone requests. It's not rocket science, just complete inefficiency from a management that clearly have never been at the sharp end.

Throwing more (inexperienced/unqualified) staff at an inefficient organisation will never solve these problems. All it ever does is paper over the cracks.

But by the same token the issues at this time of year are significantly the fault of the millions of people who could have done SA at an earlier point in the last 9 months but didn't. It would be nice if a large proportion of them learned from the experience and file early next year, but I doubt if they will.

mgdavid

Agree completely, as we've already suggested in posts 3,5 and 8. If people want to rant and vent it would be better to use the board specially set up for that purpose (the one with vent in the title).

TheCyclingProgrammer

A good example of HMRC's lack of joined-up thinking caused me some trouble years ago when I moved house.

I thought I'd updated my address with HMRC but it turns out my online account correspondence address, my personal taxpayer record (i.e. self assessment), my company's corporation tax record, my *employer* record (i.e. PAYE) AND my VAT record ALL needed to have the address updated independently.

It caused me trouble as there was an issue with one of my VAT payments and I didn't find out before HMRC had passed it on to debt collection. It all got resolved in the end but it was still a nightmare.

50Twuncle

I understand that HMRC are going to offer Email for correspondence some time (in the next decade or two) ......

Snozzle

I must have been lucky. Although I did have to wait c 40 minutes for HMRC to answer my call (I continued completing my tax return online) when I did get through I was told a 'technical expert' would call me back within 7 days - by Monday coming. They asked what time would suit for a call back (morning, afternoon, evening).

Instead I got a call a couple of days ago at the time I asked for - I was out when they first called but a lovely lady called at the time my parents said I would be home and couldn't have been more helpful. Answered all the questions I had built up since my initial phone call without a fuss allowing me to press 'submit'! So all done in one call and return done for another year.

cestlavie

on hold for over an hour and then -aaaaaargh - cut off!

meldrewoflewes

Months later, nothing changed.
All I wanted to know was "do I need to do a tax return this year?" as I normally get one every year sharpish in April - my modest circumstances haven't changed.
After negotiating the new identity verification system - another joke if you don't have passport and/or driving licence, I thought I would try the webchat as it said agents are available to chat.
Got through - waiting time 175 minutes, reduced to 154 minutes after holding for 10 minutes. Gave up at that point.
Tried the main number. The voice reply system rejected my simple questions. As it went on, the recorded voice got more and more garbled, like a mobile phone at the bottom of a swimming pool. Eventually, it said "we are very busy, goodbye" and cut the line off.
Next day, looked at webchat "service unavailable due to technical problems"
This is a service in meltdown, but the odds are stacked against you. Don't do a tax return and immediately get a penalty and interest. Taxpayers guilty until proved inocent. I have spent years of my life dealing with this miserable organisation.
If they can send out a letter, or better still an e-mail asking or demanding a tax return, why not one saying that this year you don't need to? On their criteria, I should be doing one (paid £92 additional tax last year), so why is it so difficult to get a simple answer?
Useless, time-wasting, untouchable, vindictive organisation pushing the boundaries of negative service until hopefully it self-implodes.

booksurr

meldrewoflewes wrote: »

Months later, nothing changed.
All I wanted to know was "do I need to do a tax return this year?"

simple answer - unless you have received a letter (yes an old fashioned letter) from HMRC telling you NOT to submit a tax return then you must carry on doing so until you have successfully contacted HMRC and positively closed your self assessment account with them. Clearly you already know that or you would not be trying to contact them - chicken and egg situation: no notice to file received but no confirmation of closed account received, you have my sympathy.

bossymoo

I see this is an old thread, however I called HMRC on Friday, about 10am. Call answered within a few minutes and got the info I needed from the first person to pick up.

I also wanted to know about a tax return - he directed me to download a reclaim form rather than wait until end of tax year, although he didn't mention (as I found out from that download page) that I can do this online through a government gateway account.

Job done from start to finish with 5 min on phone and poss 15min online.