- AJ Bell Freedom of Information request shows HMRC average wait time has quadrupled in a decade from 4 minutes to over 16 minutes
- The National Audit Office (NAO) has published a review on HMRC’s customer service performance
- Taxpayers spent 7 million hours (or 798 years) on hold in 2022-23, more than double wait times three years earlier
- Ministers have pledged £51 million to shore up support
“HMRC has faced plenty of scrutiny in recent weeks and today it was the turn of the National Audit Office (NAO) to confirm that taxpayers are spending record amounts of time on hold,” says AJ Bell pensions and savings expert, Charlene Young.
“The NAO’s report reveals that taxpayers spent an astonishing 798 years on hold to HMRC in the 2022-23 tax year, and the situation will surely become even more strained as frozen thresholds and cuts to dividend and capital gains tax allowances drag more people into the taxman’s clutches.
“HMRC’s burgeoning waiting room is down to both the growing number of taxpayers needing help navigating the UK’s labyrinthine tax system and longer hold times waiting to speak to someone. A freedom of information request by AJ Bell shows that the average wait time to talk to someone at the tax office has quadrupled in a decade, from 4 minutes in 2012-13, to well over 16 minutes in 2022-23 (see chart).
“Waiting times have absolutely soared in the last few years. In 2019-20 the typical wait time was 6-7 minutes, but the average hold time taxpayers have to endure has rocketed since then. Of course, many will have waited far longer if they had to contact the taxman at peak times.
“HMRC’s own performance statistics showed a record number of calls last tax year, despite phone lines having been shut over the summer months. There was also a significant uptick in use of its webchat and digital services.
“The good news is the shakedown of HMRC bosses by the Treasury Select Committee appears to have worked, with ministers stumping up £51 million to keep telephone lines open and reduce call waiting times.
“But with customer service spending at £881 million back in 2022-23, will this 6% boost in budgets be enough to help HMRC back on its feet when frozen allowances and thresholds are pushing millions more people into paying tax on their savings and investments, and navigating the world of self-assessment for the first time?”
How wait times have surged
Source: AJ Bell FOI request, HMRC
Frozen thresholds and reduced allowances
A combination of frozen thresholds and reduced allowances is pushing more people into paying tax on income, savings interest and investment returns:
Source: OBR, March 2024 Economic and Fiscal Outlook
