Spending on HMRC's phone lines keep increasing, but so do the delays
Anyone who has tried to get through to HM Revenue and Customs will know that it is often a long and arduous experience, but a report today has revealed that people filing tax returns, checking National Insurance records, or just making a child benefit query, spent seven million hours on hold.
Overall, HMRC call handlers spent 4.7 million hours answering queries and questions in the past year - meaning that customers spent 50 per cent longer waiting to speak to someone, than they spent getting their question answered. But many do not know that they might not even need to call HMRC if they have a query.
Gareth Davies, head of the NAO, said: “HMRC’s telephone and correspondence services have been below its target service levels for too long. “HMRC must allow more time for these services to bed in and understand the difference they make before adjusting staffing levels.”
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