To despise HMRC

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I have a job and I am receiving a small regular pension. The total is about £56K. HMRC has issued me with new tax codes - D1 for each. This means I must pay 45% tax on everything. It is clearly wrong, but II cannot get through to anyone to get them to correct their error. They refuse to accept any contact except paper letter or phone call. They are such a hateful incompetent arrogant organisation.

Thanks I appreciate the help - it's all been correct a while, for some odd reason HMRC have issued D1 for both for the new tax year.
I will persist with the phone - I did call soon after 8 today but had to give up.

Thanks for this I will take a look.

I hear you OP. It’s not just the Uk. I’ve had awful experiences dealing with Danish, UK and US tax authorities. I’m paying serious amounts of income taxes. You would think they could answer the phone or respond to email. Nope, you are expected to hire a tax accountant and have them deal with it. In effect a tax on top of the tax.

It’s a racket and I resent that I’m still sorting out my 2020 taxes, with over $50k owed by IRS, £15k owed by HMRC. Funny that when I owe them I’m paying interest and penalties yet when they owe me they take their sweet time, over 18 months now. I’m divorced and my ex husband has paid nothing in child support. I need that money.

The Danish taxes are unbelievable and they started from the stance that I was a thief and defrauding them. The lady asked me why my income was so high. Duh, I work my ass off and I’m very good at what I do. Put it this way, I get paid less than 1% of the revenue generated for my employer. Others around me get paid an awful awful lot more and pay less taxes in the jurisdictions they report in because they are owners. Funny that.

Depending on the income split between your job and pension, you should expect a tax code of 1257L on the main income and may be 0T, or D0 on the second income.

Just based on what you've said here, I can't see why you'd be on D1 as a total of £56k is nowhere near the additional rate band for 45% tax. (Unless they're collecting tax from a previous year?)

Also, the link for the email is: https://www.tax.service.gov.uk/shortforms/form/P2
(You will be prompted to log in first)

I've never actually used the email form - because if it has reached the stage where I'm having to contact HMRC, it's quicker to explain it verbally than write it all down. But in your case, for the simple correction of two PAYE tax codes, an email will probably do the trick.

Good luck.

Ive phoned HMRC ten times since last Friday. Been on hold at least 30 minutes each time, and still not spoken to anyone. My PAYE assessement for this year says that I'll be earning over 70k! I was made redundant a year ago, and am living off my redundancy and an inheritance so not earning at all. No idea where this figure has come from.

I'm interested that so many people find HMRC reasonable. I own a couple of BTLs and they audited my accounts a few years ago. It took the best part of a year, as I had to print out all my records and send them to them to scan in, then they sent them back (never heard of email at HMRC), then sent me a 4 page letter asking some of the most stupid questions I'd ever encountered in my life. It was totally ridiculous and made me think a bunch of kindergarten kids had gone over my accounts. Anyway, I eventually got so tired of their daft questions I sent them a letter telling them to get lost and next thing you know I get a letter from them saying they're happy with my accounts. Numpties.

The only sensible person I've found there on the phone was in the corporation tax division. She told me a joke which was actually quite funny.

Sorry, I think the email form I linked can only be used by an authorised agent.

Dang! I thought I had the holy grail of being able to email! - thanks anyway.

Feel your pain, I’m hanging on for work purposes at the moment, being pushed from department to department 😞

Yes I just tried the email link too

Does anyone have an email address that works?

I have always phoned them at 8am and get through though it takes a while. They are really slow though. It took me 8 months of back and forth to get my tax refund last year. And you have to post paper documents as they won't accept scans even though the paper documents are just print outs that they then rescan. It's madness.

I'm interested that so many people find HMRC reasonable.

I don't think that HMRC are reasonable or unreasonable. It's a faceless entity; dealing with HMRC is not a personal interaction.

Individually, the people are generally helpful and friendly but I do also get the frustration - especially if you've been on hold for the best part of an hour and then their automated system cuts you off.

On the other hand if you ever want to feel warm and fluffy about HMRC, then speak to the IRS.

Now sorted out by a helpful person at HMRC - but I shouldn't have had to call.

Thanks for everyone's input (and I do mean everyone, including the people who said I was rude and aggressive and the people who posted incorrect and unhelpful "advice" - I love AIBU).

They are awful as an organisation. However you should be able to go online and adjust your income which should sort it out.

I'm actually on hold to them atm. 20 mins in. Often takes well over half hour.

I’ve had to contact HMRC many times, sometimes for work, sometimes re my personal tax. I have never ever found an email address so if anyone does have, that would be amazing.

I have written actual letters and listed them, but they were never acted on.

Phone is the best, but it can be hard to get through. Phoning at - or just after - 8am is best.

Have you tried phoning them 5 minutes before they close? They're usually pretty keen to get you sorted so they can clock off.

You doesn't sound rude or aggressive to me either OP.

Frustrated and stressed and for good reason too but you've been factual and corrected misinformation you've been given by other posters.

My friend was trying to fix an error with HMRC about a year or so ago, and I was there when she on the phone because she'd already been told she was aggressive when all she did was say "that's not correct, please check again" no raised voice or anything like that, and they said they won't be abused and hung up on her. She tried again the next day and did this thing where she went "it's probably me being thick and stupid and I'm sorry if it's a faff but could you could you double check that correct because it's not what I thought it should be" and they were lovely and helpful and sorted her problem (and they were, in fact incorrect)

Really? It took me over 45min to get through yesterday. I actually googled mid way through to see if they were on strike.

I have a friend who called the day before and he didn't get through at all.

Now sorted out by a helpful person at HMRC - but I shouldn't have had to call.

🙄

I waited 50.mins the other day as I was taxed at the emergency rate, though they couldn't explain why. We're helpful but I can see how the wait.irritates.

I agree getting through is long and difficult. But, like many here they’ve always(40 years and counting) been amazingly helpful and nice when you do get through.
choose a time when you’ve got a couple of hours and it’s not peak times, make a cuppa, go to loo first, find something interested to read, get all your info ready and settle down to a long wait while you put you’re feet up.

just to say also, once retired with multiple income streams such as earnings and pension, they often put tax allowances on one stream only, plus the lower rate, than high tax rate on other…all adds to same but it is way easier from PAYE perspective apparently. The very nice people on the phone will explain that if it is the case.

Still waiting...

Going to have to give up soon and accept I've wasted my lunchbreak.

Taking the fucking piss now. Almost an hour. 😡

I had an issue a couple of weeks ago where every time I called the hold went on for so long the call was actually cut off each time with a jaunty ‘Thank you for your call, goodbye’! It was hard to keep calm and cool tbh. Anyway, to those also trying, the way I got someone to resolve my issue in the end was to use the Webchat function (which clearly states you are talking to a computerised system) and to then ask the Webchat if I could speak to an advisor. An actual human being then takes over the Webchat and resolved my issue, o it had to wait about 5 minutes for an advisor.