HM Revenue & Customs comes under fire from government after poor service to UK taxpayers
Posted by: Roi
on Aug 01, 2011 
HM Revenue & Customs has come under fire in the past week, after a group of MP’s claimed their basis services were flawed.
The Treasury Select Committee last week released a report accusing HMRC of “endemic delays”, pointing out overstretched staff and unanswered calls from the public.
They also stated that an increasing focus on online communication and tax submission may alienate those with unreliable internet connections.
The report, which was commissioned to investigate allegations of poor performance, stated: “HMRC's delivery of services to the general public has fallen to unacceptable levels in several areas.
"There is considerable dissatisfaction among the public and tax professionals with the service provided by the department."
Mike Clasper, the chairman of HMRC, apologised at the end of last week, for poor performance and huge delays. Complaints specifically detailed the fact that customers could not get through for over the phone advice, and letters were left unanswered.
Mr Clasper admitted: "We are not happy with our performance in 2010." He told BBC Radio Five live that the service they provided to taxpayers in 2010 wasn’t good enough.
"In 2011 we've been working very very hard to improve things. We're handling the calls immediately much more frequently than we did in 2010, and as far as individual customers are concerned you know the post levels have dropped in half.
We would like to know what do you think of HMRC’s services - have you ever had a particularly bad experience?
Also, do you think there is enough advice and help out there for taxpayers, or should HMRC be releasing more details? You can let us know on Twitter or leave a message on our Facebook Wall.
