PAC reports HMRC customer service is at an all-time low
6 March 2024| CATEGORIES: customer service, HMRC| TAGS: customer service, HMRC, PAC report
A Public Accounts Committee (PAC) report into HMRC performance in 2022-23 has concluded that the level of customer service at HMRC “has reached an all-time low”.
The PAC expresses its disappointment as service levels continued a five-year decline. The Committee received an unprecedented number of written submissions about HMRC’s performance, demonstrating the extent of taxpayers’ dissatisfaction over the quality of services and the impact on businesses.
Customer service issues
In 2022-23, 62.7% of callers waited more than 10 minutes to speak to an adviser, up from 46.3% in 2021-22. Demand for HMRC’s phone and post services is increasing by more than 10% a year, driven by increases in the number of people paying tax, due to fiscal drag, and the complexity of their tax affairs.
HMRC says it does not have the resources to meet this demand at expected service standards. Callers are advised they must use digital services where they are available. HMRC is also closing helplines and redirecting callers to online guidance. HMRC insists it has good-quality digital services for customers to manage their taxes however this was not the experience shared by the taxpayers and their agents who provided written evidence to the Committee.
Other findings
The PAC also reported that:
- whilst tax revenues are at a record high at £814bn in 2022-23, HMRC still fell £2bn short of its £36bn target for compliance yield (the additional revenue that would otherwise have been lost were it not for HMRC’s intervention) and expects to do so again in future years;
- there was a significant reduction in criminal prosecutions by HMRC, from 691 in 2019-20 to 240 in 2022-23. HMRC says that it is increasingly selective in using its criminal investigation powers and seeking prosecution (in part due to backlogs in the criminal justice system), but the PAC is concerned that if fewer criminals are prosecuted this sends the wrong message;
- it is concerned that HMRC’s approach to tackling IR35 is deterring legitimate economic activity, and that a lack of confidence in how to apply the rules, together with HMRC’s tough approach when taxpayers make mistakes, is unnecessarily putting companies off using contractors.
The full report is available here.