HMRC has come under renewed scrutiny after figures showed that over 44,000 callers were abruptly cut off while on hold last year, with some facing wait times of up to 70 minutes.
The revelation arrives just as millions of taxpayers prepare to file their returns before the current tax year ends, sparking concerns that phone lines could become even more congested.
The tax authority rejected suggestions that it was providing a “deliberately poor” phone service. However, as consumers become increasingly frustrated by long waits and abrupt disconnections, many businesses are looking at how to improve the customer experience and mitigate bottlenecks — especially during high-demand periods.
Ben Booth, chief executive and founder at MaxContact, a contact centre software specialist, has outlined several strategies that organisations can employ to trim waiting times and improve caller satisfaction:
Intelligent call routing via IVRs
Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems can prioritise and direct callers to the most suitable agent based on urgency and expertise. This ensures issues are resolved more swiftly and keeps callers from being transferred multiple times. IVRs can also calculate estimated wait times, offer callbacks, and distribute calls evenly among agents to prevent lines from becoming overwhelmed.
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