Marie Moloney (Labour) | Oireachtas source

The reason I raise the issue is the frustration encountered with the local property tax, LPT, helpline. I do not just refer to today or yesterday in the lead-up to the closing date, it is a case of weeks of frustration for me and constituents dealing with property tax issues. One man paid his property tax this year on two properties, an apartment and a house. He received his bill on 18 October for four times the amount he paid this year but based on one property. He made contact with the helpline on 30 October, spent one hour on the telephone and was transferred to head office to sort out his query but the issue could not be resolved. When he next went onto the website, it was indicated that his ID did not match his PPS number. He followed up with an e-mail on 4 November. He rang again on 8 November and a man called Daniel told him he would send an e-mail on his behalf, but there was no reply. He rang the helpline again on 14 November. He was informed that the waiting time to speak to someone in head office was at least 25 minutes. The saga went on and on. He eventually sent two e-mails and, as of today, has had no call-back, having been promised that would happen. My office telephoned the helpline yesterday and asked someone to please ring him before close of business because he was getting frustrated. He tried to make contact with the local property tax helpline and was told someone would get back to him, but as of today he has received no call-back.

This is only one person. I have also had occasion to ring on behalf of clients. The most typical problem is that people are being overcharged for their properties. For some strange reason, the tax appears to have increased by four times the amount it was this year. People cannot get an answer from the helpline as to what is going on. They are told the matter must be dealt with by head office, but after holding for half an hour, they are told head office cannot deal with it either. It is frustrating for the general public and everyone involved. In one case, every time a woman tries to log on, she gets a message stating: “Actions outstanding since 2013”. In the case of another person, I was told they had not paid the tax, despite the fact that I was able to provide the receipt number on the telephone. Nobody involved in the helpline seems to be able to answer even the simplest of queries. I do not know why there is a helpline because those involved are not able to answer queries. I hope the Minister of State will say he can wave a magic wand and get the helpline working properly.

Another problem is that nobody can seem to get an answer as to what will happen if one does not identify by close of business tonight the way one will pay. What will happen to such people and what penalties will be imposed on them? Nobody will answer such queries. I await the Minister of State’s response and will comment further at that stage.