HMRC delaying refunds?
Has anyone noticed an improvement in time taken to make tax refunds?
I filed online 24 August and SAR showed almost £800 refund due. A notice was issued 25 August to state refund was being prepared and 27 August I received cleared funds.
In view of loads of negative comments about HMRC, I think it only fair to point out that they can do it!
New government
I think it's down to the new government. The "security checks" seemed mainly to be a waste of time.
They also seem a lot tougher with the time to pay. I notice they don't that the government messed up so we will give you as long to pay as the government is getting.
Never had a problem
Not everything was sent to Bristol, even before the election. Electronic returns with a repayment, claimed and including bank details were more often than not dealt with almost by return IME
refunds
For the last umpteen years we have had most SA refunds come through PDQ. However Ltd Co offsets in CIS are a totally different ball game. We are still waitng for a couple of 2007 refunds, a few 2008 and 2009. No refunds yet received for 2010. Reason being, most SA refunds are automatically sent out, Ltd Co are on a different computer.
Tax Refunds - Individuals
My client had her refund (just under £9,000) posted on HMRC's Website as being "passed" on 23.08.10 (one day after filing OnLine). However as she had not seen it go into her Bank Account (TR5 details were entered), I offered to follow it up.
So, on Friday afternoon (03.09.10) I telephoned (reluctantly) a Tax Office. It's a good job that I put the call on "speaker-phone" as I managed to work another case while the interminable wait was eventually answered. I didn't have the "Agent's Priority Number" at the time - but I do now.
The nice lady informed me that "all refunds are security checked. Sometimes it takes one minute, other times a bit longer. Some are. Some take human input. Others it seems are computer checked."
I was advised to "give it 7 days, and if you haven't received it, 'phone again".
That doesn't seem too unreasonable to me, but certainly the date machined on the TaxMan's Website is misleading.
Lies, lies and more lies
"I was advised to "give it 7 days, and if you haven't received it, 'phone again". That doesn't seem too unreasonable to me,"
That's why they say it. It's an easy way to get you off the phone.
"but certainly the date machined on the TaxMan's Website is misleading."
What's lies when you are HMRC? Why can't they wait until they make the payment before saying it has been paid?
HMRC are in a mess
Although in this case security checks will be the reason, any sensible organisation would not record the refund as being paid when it clearly has not been paid.
I am dealing with a case of a client who I submitted two years tax returns and the payments totalling £28k have been made. I looked up the client information on the HMRC website and it said that no tax years are available. When I phoned up they explained that they'd received a letter from the client three years ago saying the company was dormant - which was true. I asked what had happened to the two years tax returns submitted online since then and the two payments? They said that quite often online submissions don't flow onto the tax office records. This is a pretty basic problem in an organisation that wants taxpayers to file and pay online!
The present situation is that HMRC have recorded the tax returns but not the payments and have sent out a demand for the £28k. I don't know what HMRC have done with the money. There must be a massive "unallocated payments" account somewhere or maybe "online" it all balances but the tax office only has part of the picture. I don't know yet what the client will think now he has got a demand for £28k that he has already paid.
HMRC are in a mess and they don't seem to have the quality of management to get themselves out of the mess.
Who did you bribe ?????????
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