Pay or we'll raid your home, taxman tells 95-year-old widow (and they owe HER money)

Published 23rd Mar 2011

HM Revenue & Customs debt collectors have threatened to visit the home of a frail 95-year-old widow and confiscate her possessions, even though she has paid too much tax.

This shocking threat was made in a letter that arrived on Saturday, just three days after HMRC chiefs had been hauled before a committee of MPs to explain the chaos that has engulfed millions of taxpayers.

The letter warned: 'We are arranging a visit to your house. We will view your possessions and list those that we will sell at auction. We strongly advise you to avoid this as it will cost you much more to pay this way and can be embarrassing.'

The letter was received by Beryl Frew, whom Money Mail featured in January. Mrs Frew has failing eyesight and hearing, and needs daily medication for her blood pressure.

HMRC sent her a bill for £3,946.27 after she became confused by complex tax forms.

We asked the charity Tax Help For Older People to look at her case. After examining her records it emerged that she has in fact paid more than £380 too much tax.

HMRC agreed with these figures. But in another staggering example of incompetence it failed to tell its debt management section, which issued the threatening letter.

A spokesman says: ' We apologise to Mrs Frew for the distress caused. The letter was issued in error and we are urgently looking into how this happened.

We will be contacting Mrs Frew to apologise and put her mind at rest.'

Following our intervention, HMRC has promised the pensioner will not be visited by debt collectors.

Mrs Frew's family knew the tax bill was wrong, but like tens of thousands of others, faced frustration in getting it resolved.

Last Wednesday, the Treasury Select Committee revealed that HMRC answered just 40 pc of calls last year following the disastrous launch of its new computer system.

The target from the national Audit Office is that just four out of every 100 calls should be allowed to go unanswered. HMRC bosses claimed that the volume of calls it had received was totally unexpected - even though it sent out 1.3 million surprise bills last autumn.

Despite this horrendous record HMRC chief executive Dame Leslie Strathie admitted she does not know when an 18-month-old pledge to move to low-cost 03 numbers will be fulfilled. She said: 'Let me accept that as a challenge.'

The hearing last Wednesday revealed HMRC has 79 expensive 0845 phone numbers for taxpayers and businesses to call.

A 30 minute call can cost up to £3.19 from a landline, or a whopping £12.30 from a mobile phone.

One pensioner, whose case was raised at the Treasury hearing, had been left on hold for two hours and 12 minutes. This could have cost him £54.12 from a mobile phone, or £13.62 from a landline.

Money Mail sent a dossier of your letters and emails to tax committee chairman, MP George Mudie.

Referring directly to our Money Mail campaign, Mr Mudie said: 'The letters are just ridiculous. People waiting for 30 minutes. People phoning and phoning and phoning. People writing and writing and writing. The elderly are having the toughest time with this.

'There are millions of people, many of them elderly. You have sent them amazing numbers by letter, to pay thousands of pounds within a month. They want to speak to somebody to get reassurance. They can't get through.'

Money Mail also sent dossiers to a number of leading ministers, including the man ultimately responsible for HMRC's actions, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury David Gauke. He has yet to respond.

Source: ' Daily Mail '

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