Call centres will be closed on Sundays

HMRC are to reduce the number of days in which their call centres are open, in an effort to improve the department’s provision of help and advice.

From 29 November, phone lines will not be staffed on Sunday: a change that the Revenue said will allow it to ‘redeploy staff to the peak periods throughout the rest of the week, driving down waiting times and providing a more effective service for all’.

The opening hours for most lines will 8am to 8pm, Monday to Friday, and 8am to 4pm on Saturday.

The taxman’s cuts to enquiry centres’ opening hours has come in for considerable criticism this year, with the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group calling the changes a ‘backward step’ and the National Audit Office noting that the number of calls answered by HMRC operatives was well below industry standards.

Issue: 4280 / Categories: News , Admin