The Inland revenue
Discussion
Just got off the phone to the local tax office about a rebate i am due (and have been for some time)
They can only tell me a rebate is due (yes, i know that
) not any more details, because i would have to call my local tax office
but you are my local tax office,
oh no, thats in Wales..
eh?
Well, since you've been working in Wales, its been moved..
eh?
I work in Surrey
Oh.. ah, yes, i see that was a mistake.. but they still moved all your details to Wales..
Why?
Thats the way it works, you were in Manchester a few years ago..
I was?
Yes, when you worked for Manchester United..
I did?
Yes.. ah, i see.. that was a mistake as well and was rectified..
anything else i can help you with..
Arrrggggggghhhh
They can only tell me a rebate is due (yes, i know that
) not any more details, because i would have to call my local tax office but you are my local tax office,
oh no, thats in Wales..
eh?
Well, since you've been working in Wales, its been moved..
eh?
I work in Surrey
Oh.. ah, yes, i see that was a mistake.. but they still moved all your details to Wales..
Why?
Thats the way it works, you were in Manchester a few years ago..
I was?
Yes, when you worked for Manchester United..
I did?
Yes.. ah, i see.. that was a mistake as well and was rectified..
anything else i can help you with..
Arrrggggggghhhh
vixpy1 said:
Thats the way it works, you were in Manchester a few years ago..
I was?
Yes, when you worked for Manchester United..
I did?
Yes.. ah, i see.. that was a mistake as well and was rectified..
Natural assumption. Glance at your records and see a young chap in Manchester earning £20 million pa and they naturally assume you're a footballer.
DAZ
The Inland Revenue kept sending me a note saying that I owe them £0 
and that if I didn't pay ASAP they'd start billing me interest. I phoned them up and they said "just ignore them". However, I said "if your system is that bad, how can the populous be assured that the Tax you calculate is corret". "It always is", she replied. So, every month I got the 'reminder' for month after month after month. Then it struck me, my tax is paying for wasted the postage! Anyway, it stopped when I wrote out a cheque to the value of nought Pounds and nought Pence, filled in the form and asked for a receipt! I've heard nothing since! Bunch of idiots!
and that if I didn't pay ASAP they'd start billing me interest. I phoned them up and they said "just ignore them". However, I said "if your system is that bad, how can the populous be assured that the Tax you calculate is corret". "It always is", she replied. So, every month I got the 'reminder' for month after month after month. Then it struck me, my tax is paying for wasted the postage! Anyway, it stopped when I wrote out a cheque to the value of nought Pounds and nought Pence, filled in the form and asked for a receipt! I've heard nothing since! Bunch of idiots!
A few years ago, I completed a tax return and somehow ended up owing them £800 which I paid but as I'm paid by the Governmemt never really understood it and naturally expected a similar demand the following year. It didn't come but they said they owed me £250 instead. Yay! I got the cheque and went out and blew it on something I didn't need and the following week they asked for it back. Bunch of incompetent persons.
Couldn't agree more. I am just home from posting a letter to the IR. It goes:
I refer to previous correspondence regarding my 2003/04 tax return. In particular, I refer to your letter of 25 November 2005 in which you claim to have been unable to find my previous correspondence to you, so you are unable to comment on the points I raised. How exceedingly inconvenient, especially for a government office which relies so heavily on accurate and complete records.
Anyway, it is clear that the competence or otherwise of the Inland Revenue is irrelevant – I therefore cannot be bothered to forward you copies of all of the previous correspondence, particularly as you state that the attachment to my letter of 7 November “was not attached”. It was: what you mean is you have lost that, too. I also cannot be bothered to explain why I thought that the outstanding sum for 2001/02 had already been collected, or how unhelpful your earlier responses had been in clarifying that – your letter of 25 November is the first to contain a proper explanation. Neither can I be bothered to argue that I am well aware that interest is not a penalty as such – but it is still unfair that interest accrues while your office does nothing to help, but simply assumes itself to be infallible.
But let bygones be bygones: my point in writing is that I received a statement of account today, dated 14 December. It shows that I still owe a sum of £54.06, being the balance of the surcharge dated 24 June. I have no option but to accept that, albeit grudgingly.
It then shows that I received a repayment of £16.01. As I explained in my letter of 7 November, I have never cashed that cheque, so you still owe me that money, which should be subtracted from the £54.06 that I owe you, to give a new balance as at 14 December of £38.05 that I owe you. With me so far? Good.
You asked in your letter of 25 November that I return the cheque if it is to be credited back to my account. Despite your propensity for losing attachments, I ATTACH THE CHEQUE as requested. Found it? Good. I hope that you do not mind that I may have gone overboard with the stapler this time. I trust that means that you will now credit that money back to my account.
Now then, this is where it gets a bit complicated. You see, your checking of “obvious errors” that you make so much about in your letter, didn’t pick this next one up, probably because it’s in your favour and not mine. The Statement of Account points out a further payment of £70.92 “becoming due” on 31 January. Where does that figure come from? There is no explanation. I presume it comes from Box C9.5 of my Tax Return which I submitted in September. If you look again at the Tax Return you’ll see that Box C8.1 calculates a Tax and NIC due for 2004/05 of £16.86, and then the box underneath shows a sum of “unpaid tax for previous years” of £54.06, giving the total of £70.92 in Box C9.5.
Now I put that £54.06 in there (the same £54.06 as referred to in the first part of the Statement) so that it would be included in the amount I owe you – a total of £70.92. What you have done is add it on again, so that, if I paid the amount shown in the Statement of Account, I would be paying it twice. Maybe not so infallible after all?
In summary then, what I actually owe now is £38.05, as calculated above (taking account of the refund of the £16.01 cheque). What I will owe by 31 January will be £38.05 + £16.86 which is £54.91.
I shall forward a cheque for that amount immediately upon receipt of a corrected Statement of Account and Bank Giro Credit, so that everybody’s (but mainly your) records will be correct and complete and there will be no confusion. Isn’t that helpful? It would be even more helpful if you could display some degree of urgency so that I can pay this before 31 January so that I do not incur another surcharge.
I look forward to hearing from you.
I refer to previous correspondence regarding my 2003/04 tax return. In particular, I refer to your letter of 25 November 2005 in which you claim to have been unable to find my previous correspondence to you, so you are unable to comment on the points I raised. How exceedingly inconvenient, especially for a government office which relies so heavily on accurate and complete records.
Anyway, it is clear that the competence or otherwise of the Inland Revenue is irrelevant – I therefore cannot be bothered to forward you copies of all of the previous correspondence, particularly as you state that the attachment to my letter of 7 November “was not attached”. It was: what you mean is you have lost that, too. I also cannot be bothered to explain why I thought that the outstanding sum for 2001/02 had already been collected, or how unhelpful your earlier responses had been in clarifying that – your letter of 25 November is the first to contain a proper explanation. Neither can I be bothered to argue that I am well aware that interest is not a penalty as such – but it is still unfair that interest accrues while your office does nothing to help, but simply assumes itself to be infallible.
But let bygones be bygones: my point in writing is that I received a statement of account today, dated 14 December. It shows that I still owe a sum of £54.06, being the balance of the surcharge dated 24 June. I have no option but to accept that, albeit grudgingly.
It then shows that I received a repayment of £16.01. As I explained in my letter of 7 November, I have never cashed that cheque, so you still owe me that money, which should be subtracted from the £54.06 that I owe you, to give a new balance as at 14 December of £38.05 that I owe you. With me so far? Good.
You asked in your letter of 25 November that I return the cheque if it is to be credited back to my account. Despite your propensity for losing attachments, I ATTACH THE CHEQUE as requested. Found it? Good. I hope that you do not mind that I may have gone overboard with the stapler this time. I trust that means that you will now credit that money back to my account.
Now then, this is where it gets a bit complicated. You see, your checking of “obvious errors” that you make so much about in your letter, didn’t pick this next one up, probably because it’s in your favour and not mine. The Statement of Account points out a further payment of £70.92 “becoming due” on 31 January. Where does that figure come from? There is no explanation. I presume it comes from Box C9.5 of my Tax Return which I submitted in September. If you look again at the Tax Return you’ll see that Box C8.1 calculates a Tax and NIC due for 2004/05 of £16.86, and then the box underneath shows a sum of “unpaid tax for previous years” of £54.06, giving the total of £70.92 in Box C9.5.
Now I put that £54.06 in there (the same £54.06 as referred to in the first part of the Statement) so that it would be included in the amount I owe you – a total of £70.92. What you have done is add it on again, so that, if I paid the amount shown in the Statement of Account, I would be paying it twice. Maybe not so infallible after all?
In summary then, what I actually owe now is £38.05, as calculated above (taking account of the refund of the £16.01 cheque). What I will owe by 31 January will be £38.05 + £16.86 which is £54.91.
I shall forward a cheque for that amount immediately upon receipt of a corrected Statement of Account and Bank Giro Credit, so that everybody’s (but mainly your) records will be correct and complete and there will be no confusion. Isn’t that helpful? It would be even more helpful if you could display some degree of urgency so that I can pay this before 31 January so that I do not incur another surcharge.
I look forward to hearing from you.
I live in (OK V near) Dundee. Tax office is in Swindon. Fair enough but in the past I have also had the "swop shop" scenario to Cardif for some odd reason. My tax bill (£0.80) has to be paid to the office in Glenrothes Fife, not the tax office in Dundee.
Yeah I don't get it either, but hey I'm paying for it anyway.
Now don't get me started of WFC's.
MoJo.
Yeah I don't get it either, but hey I'm paying for it anyway.
Now don't get me started of WFC's.
MoJo.
Many years ago I used to work for the IR. Now don't flame me I didn't deal with personal tax. But when our dept was quiet they used to send us down to the post room to help out.
I can understand why they lose letters so frequently, there used to be paper everywhere even on the floor. And to be honest half of us who helped out didn't know where half of the stuff was supposed to be going to. And the quick 5 minute run through just wasn't enough to explain what all the different pidgeon holes where for, and what to do with letters that needed more than one departments attention.
I can understand why they lose letters so frequently, there used to be paper everywhere even on the floor. And to be honest half of us who helped out didn't know where half of the stuff was supposed to be going to.
And the quick 5 minute run through just wasn't enough to explain what all the different pidgeon holes where for, and what to do with letters that needed more than one departments attention.The Inland Renevue make even the DVLA seem like a well organised department.
I was once told I owed them just over £1000 but this was because of a mistake they had made copying details from form I had correctly filled in, into their computer (or loose leaf filling system as it should be referred to). And even after them admitting to their error I still had to pay, don't ask about the details.....I forget the actual conversation as it was over 5 years ago but I think it was because I think automatic systems to fine might have come into play, I would then get the money back. This I did and I did get my money back after 6 weeks of it gaining interest in their accounts!
If I wasn't so fed up with them I would have pursued getting the interest back as well but since they appear to be solely employed with gibbering chimpanzees only capable or pushing buttons after intensive training I thought I'd let it go.
I was once told I owed them just over £1000 but this was because of a mistake they had made copying details from form I had correctly filled in, into their computer (or loose leaf filling system as it should be referred to). And even after them admitting to their error I still had to pay, don't ask about the details.....I forget the actual conversation as it was over 5 years ago but I think it was because I think automatic systems to fine might have come into play, I would then get the money back. This I did and I did get my money back after 6 weeks of it gaining interest in their accounts!
If I wasn't so fed up with them I would have pursued getting the interest back as well but since they appear to be solely employed with gibbering chimpanzees only capable or pushing buttons after intensive training I thought I'd let it go.
One Two We Hate The Inland Rev-en-ue.
To the tune of "Electric Avenue" by Eddie Somethingorother
Thieving bastards.
The *only* way I have found to get the tax right is to pay a first-rate set of Accountants. The Revenue then do all their communication with them directly. For some strange reason they believe them whilst they do not trust a word I say....despite the fact that I provide the Accountants with all the same information.
Bizarre.
To the tune of "Electric Avenue" by Eddie Somethingorother
Thieving bastards.
The *only* way I have found to get the tax right is to pay a first-rate set of Accountants. The Revenue then do all their communication with them directly. For some strange reason they believe them whilst they do not trust a word I say....despite the fact that I provide the Accountants with all the same information.
Bizarre.
grass widow said:
Many years ago I used to work for the IR. Now don't flame me I didn't deal with personal tax. But when our dept was quiet they used to send us down to the post room to help out.
I can understand why they lose letters so frequently....... .
I too spent a few months working for the IR (or whatever they are calling themselves these days) in the "Common Services" Dept (Post room). 'Twas the 1st year of self assesment returns, where thousands were fined £100 for not submitting when they actually had. I now know NEVER to send them anything with a paper clip, as these things were responsible for many missing returns. Mail was opened, returns sorted into piles, logged with a barcode reader then passed "upstairs" When picking up a return from the pile with a paperclip on it the one below in the pile inevitably managed to attach itself and bypass the logging in process!
Re. the Wales thing I seem to remember a Public Dept (PD2), Ty-glas, Cardiff. This was used I think for IR emplyees, their families, and anyone famous or with sensative details (If they thought you worked at Man U theres a fair chance you fitted into the last couple of categories!)
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