A significant decline in HMRC service standards has led businesses to question its efficiency.
- Over 10,000 respondents express dissatisfaction with HMRC’s declining service standards.
- Long wait times for phone support and poor webchat and helpline advice are major concerns.
- Despite improvements in accessing information, complex processes remain a challenge post-Brexit.
- Calls for reform are mounting as outdated IT systems and resource constraints plague HMRC.
UK businesses are increasingly frustrated with HMRC as service standards drop, with a record number of over 10,000 businesses, surveyed by HMRC’s Administrative Burdens Advisory Board, calling their experience ‘poor’. This dissatisfaction is primarily due to inefficiencies that are adversely affecting the tax collection process, with accountants and business advisers highlighting the erosion of trust in the system.
The most significant grievances arise from prolonged wait times for phone support and poor-quality advice from webchat and helpline services. This frustration is compounded by the struggles businesses face when navigating post-Brexit import and export forms, leading many to view increased bureaucracy as an inevitable cost of operating in the UK.
Dame Teresa Graham, chair of the Administrative Burdens Advisory Board, highlighted that both the Treasury and HMRC are aware of these issues and are prioritising the improvement of helpline services and the development of more user-friendly online resources. Meanwhile, businesses are urging the government to address the heavy legislative burden of taxation rather than introducing new taxes in upcoming budgets.
Further complicating matters, HMRC’s outdated IT infrastructure and limited resources hinder the implementation of necessary digital improvements. The survey data shows that 84% of respondents were businesses and the rest tax agents, both groups growing increasingly frustrated with the declining standards at HMRC.
Reform is essential to restore trust and efficiency in HMRC’s services.
