The same question every week
A client's return showed a repayment due. They expected it within a few weeks. It has not arrived, and they ring the practice. The manager checks the client's record, finds a note, promises to look into it, and forgets in the January rush. The client rings again.
Across the practice, a steady number of clients are waiting for repayments at any time, each one tracked in a note or someone's memory, and each one a potential phone call.
Repayments have no stage in the job
Once a return is filed, the job is usually marked complete. Any repayment due is a follow-up nobody formally owns. There is no list of repayments expected, no reminder to check on them, and no record of what the practice found when it did check.
Checking itself takes time, whether by looking at the client's record in HMRC's online services for agents or by calling HMRC. Without a list, checks happen only when a client chases, which means the practice is always reacting.
Clients often assume the practice has more visibility than it does. When a refund is late, they expect an instant answer, and not being able to give one makes the practice look less on top of things than it is.
What untracked repayments cost
| Issue | Effect |
|---|---|
| No list of expected repayments | The practice cannot see what is outstanding |
| Checks only when clients chase | Reactive work and repeated calls |
| Notes in different places | Staff repeat checks already done |
| Clients not updated | Frustration and an impression of neglect |
| Security checks and holds unnoticed | Repayments stuck longer than needed |
There is a cost to the relationship too. A client waiting for money they are owed is anxious, and each call that ends with "we will look into it" makes the practice look less organised than it is, even though the delay sits with HMRC.
The repayment tracker we build
- When a return or claim with a repayment due is filed, the expected amount and the date filed are logged, taken from your tax software where it allows or entered in a quick form.
- Each repayment gets check dates based on intervals your practice sets, and your team receives a task when a check is due.
- When someone checks, they record what they found, such as issued, being processed, held or queried, with a note, so the next person does not repeat the work.
- Clients receive short updates at points you choose, with wording your practice approves, so they are not left wondering.
- When the client confirms receipt, or your team sees it has been issued, the item closes.
- A practice-wide list shows every open repayment with its age and last check, so managers can see what needs attention.
The tracker records and prompts. Checking with HMRC is done by your team through the usual channels.
Fewer calls, calmer clients
Every expected repayment is on a list with a next check date. Clients get updates before they need to ask. Staff see what colleagues already found. Stuck repayments are noticed sooner. And the practice looks organised about something clients care about a great deal.
Managers can also see patterns, such as the kinds of claim that tend to be held for longer, which helps set clients' expectations more carefully in future.
Is this familiar?
- Clients ring asking where their refund is
- There is no list of repayments the practice is expecting
- Checks happen only when a client chases
- Different staff check the same repayment
- Clients are rarely updated unless they ask