Wrong date of birth on P45 - how bad is this?

[ThumbleBells]

i have just been sent my P45 from my former employer in the UK and they have managed to get my DOB completely wrong, not one part of it is correct. I have been waiting for it to send off some tax forms before the end of December - if I have to wait for a new one to get to Oz from the UK, I will not manage that.

How bad is it that the DOB is wrong on my P45? Can I change it myself? It is a computer printed form, not hand-filled in.

Thanks for any help

No you shouldn't change it - they will have sent a copy to HMRC . I would send as is with a covering letter. I don't think it will make that much difference - DOBs have only been compulsory on P45s from fairly recently - The NI number is the really important one . You should phone your local tax office for advice too.