Have you faced a delay or mistake in your tax affairs at the hands of HMRC? Email L.evans@dailymail.co.uk See more This is Money on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy LUCY EVANS, MONEY REPORTER Updated: 09:05 BST, 15 June 2026
Taxpayers have suffered a fresh customer service nightmare at HM Revenue and Customs as complaints have surged.The tax office received 12,670 complaints in the 2024-25 financial year about cases where there was both a mistake and a delay – a 66 per cent rise on the 7,620 made the previous year, a Freedom of Information request has shown.The rapid climb in grievances suggests a ‘sustained decline in HMRC’s customer service’, according to an expert at accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young, which obtained the data.HMRC insists the rise is solely down to an issue with child benefit payments and that current wait times are ten minutes, with customer satisfaction high.The tax office has faced a deluge of criticism in the past few years over its customer service. It was previously criticised after long phone line wait times that ran to as much as one hour close to the January tax deadline put taxpayers at risk of penalties for late payments. Customers have previously faced phone calls as long as one hour to speak to a tax officialNeela Chauhan, partner at the UHY Hacker Young, says: ‘When people cannot get through to HMRC on their telephone lines, small problems quickly escalate.’The taxman has been pushing for households to use online accounts, but many prefer to speak to an adviser on the phone, as they feel the question will not otherwise be answered.Chauhan calculates that taxpayers spent a collective 558 years calling HMRC last year.Customers are not only experiencing delays on phone lines, but on rebates too. Droves of customers have been waiting for refunds, leaving them out of pocket for months.The Government has given the department the resources to hire 5,500 new tax investigators and 2,400 new ‘officers’ in a bid to chase tax debt.But this has come at the expense of strengthening its customer service staff, Ms Chauhan claims.She says: ‘HMRC is clearly prioritising enforcement over support. While tackling the tax gap is important, it cannot come at the expense of basic customer service. 'Taxpayers are finding it harder than ever to get help, even as the tax system becomes more complex.'An HMRC spokesman said although the figures are the latest available for a full tax year, they are ‘old’ and do not reflect the current situation.They added: ‘The up-to-date picture is that complaints are down, quality of service is up, average phone wait times are just over 10 minutes and customer satisfaction stands at 80 per cent.’HMRC says that the rise in complaints can be explained by an issue with child benefit payments, for which the tax office asked customers to claim redress via the complaints process.It adds that without this issue, it would have seen a fall in complaints when compared with the previous year.Help with financial advice and planning Financial planning can help you grow your wealth, sort your pension, or make sure your finances are as tax efficient as possible.Key reasons that many seek financial planning involve investing for retirement and inheritance tax planning.Services such as Unbiased can match you with a financial professional according to your needs:> Find a local financial adviser* Products featured are independently selected by This is Money's specialist journalists. If you open an account using links which have an asterisk, This is Money will earn an affiliate commission. We do not allow this to affect our editorial independence.
