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I thought it was good to talk

23rd Aug 2010
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Or at least that's what BT used to say.

But once again I have had to deal with a client who was fed up with HMR&C delays in producing a tax repayment and decided to chase it up himself.

Why was it a problem? Because my assistant who had been tasked with chasing up the refund reported that he had tried to contact the tax office by phone and been unable to get through, so he had written to them. Then the client decides he'll phone them too and gets straight through - without any trouble - on three separate occasions!

So I'm left trying to reassure the client that, yes, we have tried to get HMRC on the phone but were unable to do so, and yes there is a refund due from the loss carry back but they always make a meal of them. Luckily the tax office did confess to the client that the loss claim had been "missed" by their staff and that it would be actioned immediately.

So we're off the hook with the client, but my team need another reminder that we need to try harder to speak directly to people. Are some of them just too afraid to pick up the phone? I begin to wonder.

 - Don't tell me you've tried to phone the client and there's no reply. Many are self-employed and work away from home, so why are you phoning the home number during the day? We have mobile numbers for most of our clients, so call their mobile. Failing that, tell me and I'll text them from my business mobile.

 - It is worth persevering with HMRC phone lines. If you have trouble getting through, give the details to one of the admin team and they can try periodically through the day. Make sure you use the special agents' line (that is, the line specially designated for agents to use, not the red phone reserved for special agents!), and if you can't get through for some time check the number or try another one. Tax office numbers seem to change quite often, so an adjacent office or department might be able to put you through or give you an alternative number.

Just don't tell me you can't get through after one quick attempt.

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By MarionMorrison
24th Aug 2010 09:40

Contact Phobia

This is something I grumble about all the time (and tease my colleagues about).  People are scared of direct human contact.  I don't know why - maybe it's the unpredictability of having a direct conversation, but there's no doubt that modern methods of communication have helped this contact phobia to flourish.  If you can say something by text or email, you aren't directly one-on-one with that person.

You see it regularly in discussion topics in these pages.  People who complain that they've written to old agents, the Revenue, recalcitrant clients and they don't get a response.  Then pick up the bloody phone!!

It isn't just within the trade though - it's a societal thing.  Whether it's dumping a boy/girlfriend by text or emailing about a job when you have the chance of ringing and speaking directly to them.  I watch people have 20-text conversations which could be short-circuited in 20 seconds if it was a conversation instead of a series of mini-monologues.

If anyone wants to ring me about this....

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