HMRC fails to answer almost half of calls - NAO

Although it employs the equivalent of 10,500 full time staff at a cost of £233mn, it failed to answer 43% of calls received, and, during the tax credit renewals peak, just one in three calls were picked up Those who did manage to get through were kept waiting for an average of two minutes, rising to four minutes at the busiest times, the NAO says. By contrast, the best practice target in the private sector is for 90% of all calls to be picked up within 10 seconds. Although the latest figures for the first half of 2009/10 have shown some improvement, the NAO says more than 27% of ca...