The taxman's not really got it has (s)/he?

Last Friday was designated Tax Return 2005-6 day. I know, quite early in the cycle, but having only been self-employed for just over a year, I wanted to be sure what my tax bill was likely to be, so that I knew I had enough in reserve to go shopping ;-) or have to start saving some more :-(

So, log on to the server, hmm, takes a long time to eventually suggest there's a problem. You clear your IE cache, and try again. No good. It still says it's out of service - try the link to the service downtime - it says it should all be up.

Try the helpline then, they're normally good chaps. This time though - "unusually high volume of calls", get transferred "sorry too many calls, clear your IE cache and try again"; followed by a dialling tone. Yes they hung up on you!

Try emailing them, a quick reply comes back, however they promise a reply within 2 days. TWO DAYS!!! Are they kidding????

Nope

A few hours later, normal service is restored and all goes well.

A few days later, I finally get my reply - clear your IE cache and try again.

If a techie has this much hassle, how easy is it for a user to do a tax return online? Not easy enough I'd say.

PS oh and - good news, I have enough put by!