Taxpayers awaiting repayment of income tax for the basis year 2009 are entitled to expect better customer service than that which we are enduring at the hands of the tax department.

I have made repeated calls over the past three months and the outcome is always the same: firstly, a recorded message informs me that, due to heavy call traffic, I am being held in a queuing system; secondly, after several minutes I am informed as to my position in the queue; finally, after approximately 25 minutes, another pre-recorded message delivers the coup de grace by announcing that, due to the number of people attempting to contact the tax office, my call is being terminated with immediate effect. Taxpayers such as myself who “overpaid” deserve far better.