Online tax system slashes errors

By KEVIN TAYLOR

An online tax payment system on WestpacTrust's website has dramatically reduced the rate of errors.

The bank says the error rate for electronic payments such as automatic payments and direct debits to Inland Revenue from all banks is about 32 per cent, caused mainly by customers filling in forms incorrectly.

But WestpacTrust's online system, which started in December, has achieved an error rate of less than 0.1 per cent.

The system prompts customers at each stage while inputting details, leaving less chance for mistakes.

IRD has written to other banks asking them to consider introducing similar systems.

WestpacTrust introduced the system to expand its services to small and medium-sized businesses. The manager of the bank's internet business, Henry Davies, said about 5000 payments involving about $17 million were made monthly using the system.

WestpacTrust is IRD's banker.

The most common errors in tax payments were wrong bank account numbers, incorrect IRD numbers or tax codes, or choosing the wrong tax year for payment. The errors were mainly made by customers.

Errors under the old system had been costly to correct manually.

Colin MacDonald, general manager of business development and systems for IRD, said electronic tax payments to IRD represented a small percentage of total payments.

But the payments from WestpacTrust were complete because the bank's system contained all the details IRD needed to process payments properly.

"To my knowledge none of the other banks have implemented a specialised tax payment page on their websites."

Mr MacDonald said WestpacTrust had told IRD it would help other banks to install the system.

The WestpacTrust system not only helped IRD but would also offer other banks' customers improved services.

Mr Davies said the number of customers using the online tax payment system was growing.