“On Hold and Left in the Cold Campaign”
Introduction
The On hold and left in the cold campaign has been launched to identify the
problems that the public face when making enquiries regarding key issues in
people’s day-to-day lives, such as benefits, tax credits, or energy enquiries.
Every day, some of these people must endure long waits, and, after certain amounts
of time, are still left with issues unresolved, as a result of being cut off, giving up, or
not being able to afford the potential costs of ongoing calls. Even those that that see
the call through are left bitterly disappointed with the quality of advice they get.
There are also other barriers that callers may face when calling, such as difficulty
navigating automated messaging services, or others who are deprived of alternative
sources of solutions, such as internet access.
For those who wait a long time, they may be frustratingly unaware of any queues, or
uninformed of any estimates of waiting times on hold.
The “On hold left in the cold campaign” primarily focused on DWP and HMRC as
these were the most frequently contacted departments by Citizens Advice Knowsley.
However, other organisations such as British Gas and Scottish Power and Her
Majesty’s Courts and Tribunal Service (HMCTS) also have a poor track record when
it comes to answering the telephone to customer’s enquiries.
Who are DWP and HMRC?
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is responsible for welfare, pensions
and child maintenance policy. As the UK’s biggest public service department it
administers the State Pension and a range of working age, disability and ill health
benefits to over 22 million claimants and customers.
Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) are the UK’s tax and customs
authority, responsible for making sure that the money is available to fund the UK’s
public services and for helping families and individuals with targeted financial
support.
Reasons why a person may have to contact DWP or HMRC
At some point in their lives a person will have to deal with both the DWP and HMRC.
This is because they play a major role in our lives. The DWP will deal with people
who claim out of work benefits or ill health and disability benefits. When you work
you have to pay taxes and if you are on a low income you may be entitled to claim
Tax Credits in which case you would contact HMRC.
Although most new claims with DWP will start with an online application not
everyone has access to the internet therefore they will have to make a telephone
application. HMRC currently require people to Telephone to apply for Tax Credits.
Once a claim is ongoing, claimants are required to contact DWP and HMRC by
telephone to report any changes of circumstances. Any failure to do so within 30
days of the change can result in a fine of up to £300.
In addition, claimants who provide the wrong information on purpose can be fined up
to £3000. Examples of changes of circumstances could be;
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Starting work or increasing hours worked or an increase in pay.
Started or stopped living with a partner.
Had a baby.
A child has left home or left full time education.
Took in a lodger.
Both DWP and HMRC carry out checks and will correspond with claimants
requesting additional information. For various reasons people will need to telephone
DWP and HMRC to clarify what information they require or have the letter explained
due to the ambiguity of the content. In addition many claimants have poor literacy
and numeracy skills.
The “On hold left in the cold” campaign has also highlighted the costs involved in
contacting both DWP and HMRC.
Methodology
We have recently sent out a questionnaire to gather as much data as possible from
people visiting the bureaux from Halewood, Huyton, St. Helens and Kirkby, in order
to reach a general analysis on what the public experience on a day-to-day basis.
Knowsley Metropolitan Borough Council
Knowsley is one of six Local Authority districts that comprise the Liverpool City
Region (the others being Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens, Wirral, and Halton). It covers
an area of 33 square miles; just over 10 miles from South to North, and up to 7 miles
across. It comprises the towns of Kirkby, Huyton, Prescot, Whiston, Halewood,
Cronton and Stockbridge Village.
Knowsley Demographic
In the 2011 census the population of Knowsley was 145,893 and is made up of
approximately 52% females and 48% males.
96.4% of people living in Knowsley were born in England. Other top answers for
country of birth were 0.5% Scotland, 0.5% Wales, 0.4% Ireland, 0.2% Northern
Ireland, 0.2% India, 0.1% Philippines, 0.1% Nigeria, 0.1% Hong Kong , 0.1% China .
Estimates from Knowsley public health compendium 2015 show a population
increase in 2013 to 146,086.
The table below is rounded up to the nearest hundred.
Language
99.1% of people living in Knowsley speak English. The other top languages spoken
are 0.2% Polish, 0.1% Tagalog/Filipino, 0.1% All other Chinese, 0.1% Malayalam.
Religion
The religious make up of Knowsley is 80.9% Christian, 12.5% No religion, 0.3%
Muslim, 0.2% Hindu, 0.1% Buddhist. 8,335 people did not state a religion. 180
people identified as a Jedi Knight and 7 people said they believe in Heavy Metal.
Source www.localstats.co.uk/census-demographics/england/north-west/knowsley
Life Expectancy
Average life expectancy for Men is 76.7 years and for women 80.8 years. The
average age of people in Knowsley is 39.
23.4% of residents are smokers.
Health
Knowsley has a higher percentage rate than the rest of the country for mental health
conditions. It is also in the top 10 of clinical commissions prescribing
antidepressants.
The table below shows that 12.2% of people in Knowsley are unpaid carers. Over
35,700 (24.5%) residents claim their day to day activities are affected in some way
by their health and 9.5% say they are in bad or very bad health.
Provides No Unpaid Care
Provides 1 to 19 Hours Unpaid Care a
Week
Provides 20 to 49 Hours Unpaid Care a
Week
Provides 50 or More Hours Unpaid Care
a Week
All Usual Residents
Knowsley
128,028
8,782
3,207
5,876
145,893
Day-to-Day Activities Limited a Lot
Day-to-Day Activities Limited a Little
Day-to-Day Activities Not Limited
All Usual Residents
20,786
14,965
110,142
145,893
Very Good Health
Good Health
Fair Health
Bad Health
Very Bad Health
All Usual Residents
67,153
43,505
21,420
10,631
3,184
145,893
Source ONS Neighbourhood Statistics based on 2011 Census
Skills and Qualifications
Knowsley is ranked 355 out of 379 districts on our skills and qualifications score,
indicating a resident workforce that performs in the bottom 20% of districts by
national standards, in terms of human capital.
Knowsley Level Knowsley %
Individual Levels
NVQ 4 and above
NVQ 3 and above
NVQ 2 and above
NVQ1 and above
Other Qualifications
No Qualifications
19,700
40,300
58,100
72,400
5,400
14,000
Great Britain %
21.4
43.9
63.3
78.8
5.9
15.3
36.0
56.7
73.3
85.0
6.2
8.8
Source; Grant Thornton district profile September 2014.
The Labour Market - employment, wages and unemployment
The proportion of residents aged 16-64 in employment stands at 66,700 (71.8%).
The proportion of unemployed is 5,300(7.9%).
Source: ONS annual population survey (July 2014- June 2015)
Average wages for Knowsley in 2015 were £474.90 for full time workers based on 40
hours per week.
There is a gender gap in earnings of £105 per week between male and female
workers. Male workers earning on average £537.50. Females earning on average
£432.50.
Source: ONS annual survey of hours and earnings - resident analysis
Economic Inactivity July 2014 – June 2015
All People
Students
Looking after family/home
Long term sick
Retired
Other
Total
Knowsley
5,700
6,000
10,200
2,200
1,200
25,800
Source: ONS annual population survey
Knowsley %
22.2%
23%
39.4%
8.4%
4.6%
28.2%
Housing
The housing in Knowsley consists of 61,323 properties. The average price of a
property is £108,960.1
1Source Land Registry House Price Index October 2015 .
Breakdown of Knowsley properties by accommodation type;
Accommodation type
Households
Detached house/bungalow
Semi- detached
house/bungalow
terraced house including end
terrace
flat/maisonette/block of
flats/apartments
bed sits
flat in commercial build
caravan/ mobile home
shared dwellings
total
7975
25375
21578
5711
279
216
180
9
61323
Source ONS Neighbourhood Statistics based on 2011 Census.
Knowsley housing tenancy consists of 26.6% social housing sector with Knowsley
Housing Trust the dominant landlord. The percentage of properties owned outright or
mortgaged is 61.8% with the remaining 11.6% privately rented.
The table below is a breakdown of type of tenure;
tenure of household
owned outright
owned with a mortgage/loan
shared part own part rent
rented from council (LA)
rented other social
rented private landlord/letting agency
rented private from employer
rented private relative or friend
rented private other
rent free
total
16032
21864
314
7479
8854
5488
17
405
70
800
61323
Source ONS Neighbourhood Statistics based on 2011 Census .
The majority of properties in Knowsley are 3 Bedrooms ONS figures have 2,880
people are affected by the spare room subsidy.
Breakdown of Knowsley properties by number of bedrooms;
number of bedrooms
no bedrooms
1 bedroom
2 bedroom
3 bedroom
4 bedroom
5 bedrooms or more
total
107
4022
12838
35574
7787
995
61323
Source: ONS Neighbourhood Statistics based on 2011 Census .
Benefits
Working age client group – main benefit claimants (May 2015).
Statistical Group
Job Seekers
ESA & Incapacity Benefit
Lone Parents
Carers
Others on income related benefit
Disabled
Bereaved
Total Claimants
Knowsley
2,190
11,290
2,080
2,990
450
1,660
220
20,860
Knowsley %
2.3%
12%
2.2%
3.2%
0.5%
1.8%
0.2%
22.3%
Source: DWP benefit claimants – working age client group
The latest DWP JSA claimant figures for November 2015 show there are now 1,635
people (1.7%). However, the figures do not include people who claim universal credit
and are unemployed.
In addition to out of work benefits claimants people employed on a low income can
also claim housing costs. The latest housing benefit figures for Knowsley show there
are 17,755 claimants of which 13,305 are social tenants and 4,452come from the
private rented sector. Of the total claimants, 12,970 are on an income related benefit.
People of all ages can claim disability living allowance (DLA) which is currently in the
process of being migrated over to Personal Independence Payment (PIP). In
November 2012 ONS figures had Knowsley DLA claimants standing at 15,655.
Latest figures from Nomis show in February 2014 there were 11,530 DLA claimants.
As of October 2015 there were 2,258 PIP claimants in Knowsley.
Tax Credits
Tax credits are currently administered by HMRC. There are two components,
working tax credits (WTC) and child tax credits (CTC).
In Knowsley there are currently 14,600 individuals claiming tax credits between them
they have 22,200 children.
Out of work claiming CTC
Claiming WTC and CTC
Claiming CTC only
Claiming WTC only
Total
4,700
5,800
1,900
2,200
14,600
Source: HMRC. Geographical statistics for tax credits December 2015.
The table below is the annual amount Knowsley residents received in benefits in
2014/15.
Knowsley
2014/15
Attendance Allowance
Bereavement/ Widows Benefit
Carers Allowance
DLA Children
DLA Working Age
DLA Pensioners
Discretionary Housing Payment
ESA
Housing Benefit
Incapacity Benefit
Income Support /Incapacity Benefit
Income Support /Lone Parent
Income Support/ Carer
Income Support Other
JSA
Pension Credit
Severe Disability Payment
State Pension
Winter Fuel Payment
Total
£17,500,000
£1,800,000
£11,700,000
£5,200,000
£34,400,000
£33,000,000
£1,000,000
£63,900,000
£80,500,000
£300,000
£1,900,000
£8,800,000
£3,600,000
£500,000
£10,800,000
£42,200,000
£3,800,000
£180,800,000
£4,800,000
£506,500,000.00
Source https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/benefit-expenditure-and-caseload-tables-2015
Benefit expenditure by local authority, 2014/15
Results
With the data collection period now over, the total number of respondents who
answered the survey is 77.
The following assumptions can be made using the data for analysis:
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On the priority scale (1 – 10), ratings of 7+ have been deemed to be a very
high priority phone call
With the assumptions in place the following findings can be derived from the
data:
o The most commonly called organisation was HMRC, with 37 people
calling
o +The most common enquiry when calling this line was regarding tax
credits and child tax credits, with 20 out of 37 calling to make an
enquiry of this nature.
o 28 out of 37 made a phone call, with the nature of their enquiries being
a very high priority.
o Between the 37 respondents who called HMRC, a total of 145 attempts
were made to call for advice. This equates to an average of 3.9
attempts made per person.
o 20 out of 37 people had a minimum waiting time of 20 minutes. 7 of
these people waited for over an hour. Only 2 people had a waiting time
of less than 10 minutes.
o Out of the 32 who answered this question, 16 people got through to an
advisor. None of the people who waited over an hour got through. Only
6 people found the advice useful.
o 1 person ran out of credit, after waiting over an hour.
o 14 people were either cut off, or gave up (6:8).
o 34 out of 36 people who answered were unhappy with their waiting
time. The two that were happy waited up to 20 minutes.
o Of the 14 who answered, 13 people knew that the call would cost
money.
o Only 8 people found the automated messaging service easy to
navigate, against the 13 who had difficulty. The remainder were neutral
o Of the 35 who answered, 29 people dismissed the online service as an
alternative enquiry service. The reasons for this were mainly because
their enquiry was specific and personal, with many others highlighting
barriers to access and/or use of internet.
On the whole, it would be fair to conclude that, with HMRC, the customer
experience is generally unsatisfactory. With the average number of
attempts nearing 4 per person, and the majority of people with important
issues waiting for unreasonable lengths of time, it is no surprise that many
people are discontented. With the transition from offices to telephone and
online services taking place, there are several indications that this may not
be appropriate for everyone.
One respondent highlighted how he had his social security payments
stopped, and calling to enquire why, and resolve this would have a more
severe financial impact on him/her.
Using all of the data, the following findings have been derived to illustrate the overall
caller experience: From the 77 respondents:
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A total of 56 people made a call relating to a very important matter which
needed resolving. 31 of the 56 rated their enquiry as a matter of utmost
importance (10 out of 10)
A total of 263 phone call attempts were made between the 77 respondents.
The average number of calls per person is 3.41.
71 people answered this question. Of these, 44 people had waited at least 20
minutes for an advisor. 9 people waited for more than an hour.
The most common outcome of waiting is that people got through to an
advisor. However, this is represented by only 30 people out of 63 who
answered. Nobody who waited over an hour got through to an advisor. 15
people were each cut off and gave up, with 3 running out of credit. The 3 who
ran out of credit waited at least 20 minutes.
Of the 30 who got through, 19 gave an opinion on the usefulness of the
advice give. 15 were satisfied with the quality of the advice given.
Of the 73 who answered, only 9 people found their waiting time acceptable to
them. The maximum waiting times of these 9 were 20 minutes. 5 waited less
than 10 minutes.
Of the 31 who answered, only 2 people were aware that their phone call
would incur costs.
23 out of 77 were able to navigate the automated messaging service with
relative ease, and 20 found it difficult. The remaining people were neutral.
Of the 71 who answered this question, 58 people did not think an online
alternative would be suitable to resolve their enquiry. When asked why, the
main reasons were as follows:
o Enquiries were personal and specific, and required verbal
advice/agreements and oral consent to continue.
o Clients had a hard time navigating the websites established, or found
no adequate solution when they did.
o Clients would prefer to speak to an advisor, as it would provide a more
direct remedy to their issues. Online troubleshooting appears to be
generic.
o Clients were faced with key barriers to access to internet, such as
having no computer at home, or not being in proximity of a library
computer.
Only 9 out of 73 were part of a queueing system. Of the 64 that weren’t, 52
would have preferred this.
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47 out of 74 people would have preferred a call-back system to avoid long
waiting times on the phone.
A total of 63 people were not happy with the waiting time.
Again, the overall satisfaction rate of the callers appears to be very low, with only 9
people being satisfied with their waiting time on the phone. Many customers who
were dissatisfied mentioned some of the frustrations that they endured while seeking
advice. These varied from being passed from pillar to post, to high call-costs of
making the call and waiting. Others mentioned how the service was poor when they
did reach an advisor, while one mentioned how the automated service gave options
which were irrelevant.
Conclusion
Waiting times at the DWP and HMRC are unacceptable, if these organisations were
in the private sector they would be under pressure from shareholders to improve. It is
highly likely they would be calling for the chief executive to be sacked. However, they
are not and therefore, continue to provide poor customer service.
HMRC have been under scrutiny for their poor performance throughout the year. The
chief executive of HMRC, Lin Homer, told members of the Public Accounts
Committee "We have already apologised for what we see as a failure in our
performance at the end of last year, and the first couple of months of this year."
In June she apologised for the service, which she admitted was "not up to scratch";
after figures showed that a quarter of calls went unanswered.
Knowsley Citizens Advice carried out a survey between October and November
2015 entitled “A day in the life” in which they attempted to contact DWP and HMRC
on an hourly basis. This found that although HMRC had diverted £45 million of tax
payer’s money to recruit an extra 3,000 staff to address the problems within the call
centres there had been no improvement.
DWP removed telephones from job centres. These could be used to call potential
employers, to speak with the DWP directly or to contact other departments which are
vital during periods of unemployment.
The same survey also highlighted the burdening costs involved to contact these
organisations being borne by people without disposable income.
Calling Charges
Calls to DWP and HMRC are charged at no more than calls to geographic numbers
(01 or 02). Calls from landlines are typically charged up to 9p per minute; calls from
mobiles typically cost between 3p and 40p per minute.
Using average call waiting times, customers using a mobile phone could incur the
following costs:
Department
ESA
JSA
Income Support
Tax Credits
Universal Credit
Average time on hold
00:08:08
00:08:41
00:09:09
00:14:54
00:04:40
Cost
£3.60
£3.60
£4.00
£6.00
£2.00
Citizens Advice are seeing growing numbers of DWP and HMRC customers coming
to the bureau to use the telephone as they are unable to afford the cost of calls.
Proposals
We would recommend that HMRC and DWP be held more accountable for failing to
provide a quality service. Both departments should offer a Freephone service to
clients who are reliant on Benefits and Tax Credits. Claimants do not have the
disposable income to cover these additional and at times unnecessary costs.
We would also request DWP to reconsider their decision to remove telephones out
of job centres. As it is clear from the survey not everyone has internet access or are
computer literate.
These two recommendations would also assist Citizens Advice by freeing up their
time to assist other clients.
It is clear that the Knowsley economy is heavily dependent on benefit income and
Tax Credits. Therefore, any changes to the welfare system will have an enormous
effect on the financial circumstances of Knowsley residents.
We would encourage those reading this report to highlight the issue to their local
members of parliament as it is clear it affects a large number of the population.