A tax advisor's guide to dealing with the HMRC - Isaac Dilley offers tips on navigating a broken tax system

03 September 2024 • HMRC

No one likes having the phone hung up on them, especially not after spending an hour on hold. However, for a growing number of UK taxpayers, this is a regular occurrence.

To remain compliant, there are times when taxpayers, or their representatives, must engage directly with HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC). Unfortunately, over the past few years HMRC’s customer service has been slipping and taxpayers have been suffering as a result.

According to the National Audit Office’s (NAO) report on HMRC’s customer service, callers spent a collective 798 years waiting to speak to an advisor in the 2022/23 tax year, an increase of more than 100% since the 2019/20 tax year. The NAO also reports that HMRC estimates 72% of calls received in the 2023/24 tax year were ‘failure demand’ calls, which means they relate to either a perceived failure in HMRC’s systems, a customer error, or a call to progress-chase an issue.

The fundamental problem is that tax issues arise more quickly than HMRC can deal with them. But when HMRC announced in March 2024 that it planned to close certain helplines over the summer to deal with its ever-growing backlog, the response from stakeholders was severe enough to cause HMRC to reverse its decision a day later. With no clear path forward, the best taxpayers can do for themselves, and for HMRC, is to learn how to resolve their issues as efficiently as possible.

Write a letter to HMRC

HMRC is quick to point out that they have been expanding their digital services at a breakneck pace in recent years and you may find there are facilities in place to deal with your issue without spending upwards of a half hour on hold. In my experience, where HMRC’s digital services are implemented properly, they are efficient and relatively painless.

However, many queries are simply too complicated to be dealt with through an online form. For these complex queries I would recommend opening the correspondence in writing. Writing to HMRC has a few benefits over calling a helpline, not least being that HMRC cannot hang up on a letter to keep their average hold times down. Letters are also frequently answered with letters, which helps to create a paper trail and reduce confusion in future correspondence.

To give your letter the best chance of being successful, you should ensure it has all the following:

• The correct address for the department you are trying to contact
  These departments do not often exchange information, and sending a letter to the wrong address can lead to significant delays in resolving your issue.
• The information required to get through security
  Your letter should include a UniqueTaxpayer Reference (UTR) or National Insurance number for individuals, a UTR for a company, a VAT number for VAT queries, etc. HMRC takes taxpayer security seriously, and if they have reason to believe you do not have the requisite authority to act for a taxpayer, they will ignore your letter. For this reason, your letter should also include a signature.
• An actionable request.
  If your letter does not compel HMRC to do something, they will probably do nothing.Their backlog is simply too unmanageable for them to reply to letters which do not require a response. So, even if your letter is merely to progress-chase, do ask HMRC to confirm their timeframe in writing.

Beyond ensuring that your letter contains all the above, it is also worthwhile sending it by recorded delivery. Post gets lost, and if the department you are contacting does not have a phone line, this may be the only way to verify your letter has reached its intended destination.

Then follow up

Once you have sent your letter to HMRC, you will need to consider how, and when, to follow up. If the department you are contacting has a phone line, we recommend calling after a few business days to confirm receipt of your letter and a timeframe to action your request. Depending on which department you are contacting, you may also have to find a way through HMRC’s automated system to get to a human representative. HMRC will probably try to steer you towards their digital services, so if you don’t think your query can be resolved online, you will need to remain steadfast and ask to speak to an advisor. You may still have to spend some time listening to HMRC on-hold music, but you should eventually be connected to a representative.

This is where it helps to have a paper trail! Not all HMRC representatives have the same permissions, nor do they have the same knowledge base, but they can probably view your account and tell you how it is progressing. If you don’t think the person you are speaking to can help you, ask to be transferred to a technical officer. Regardless of whether you manage to accomplish what you set out to, do make sure you request that notes of your call are added to the relevant account. This creates a record of all your call attempts, so that when you eventually do get through to someone who can resolve your problem, evidence of how much time you have spent chasing will help put pressure on HMRC to deal with your issue quickly.

Conclusion

While many taxpayers understandably feel strongly about having to engage with an ineffective tax system, it is important to remember that the person on the other end of your phone call / letter is entitled to the same courtesies and respect as anyone else. However, if you feel that HMRC’s handling of your case has reached the point of negligence, the government has put forward its own guidance on how to make a complaint. Alternatively, at Warrener Stewart we pride ourselves on an extensive and lengthy history of positive outcomes when representing our clients with HMRC, so should you require our assistance, please contact us on 020 7731 6163, email or use the enquiry form on the ‘Contact Us’ section of our website.