A HMRC contact centre in Porthmadog has been named the UK's worst-rated tax office in a study of Google reviews, although its ranking rests on just four ratings.

All four reviews of the Welsh Contact Centre awarded it one star, placing it bottom of 20 HMRC offices examined by tax consultancy EmpowerRD.

The company analysed 2,483 reviews as of 20 October and found that 75 per cent gave offices the lowest possible rating.

Cardiff's Tŷ William Morgan topped the table with an average of 4.29 stars from 21 reviews, while offices in Belfast, Bristol and Nottingham also appeared among the lowest-rated.

One reviewer complained in February 2024: “I found HMRC in Porthmadog only to find its a call centre and doesn't do face to face interviews.”

However, HMRC closed its walk-in enquiry centres in 2014.

Porthmadog provides specialist Welsh-language telephone support, and its Google rating cannot establish the quality of its staff or service.

The research also highlighted wider dissatisfaction with HMRC's telephone system.

Of 248 recent reviews containing written comments, 139 mentioned attempts to call the department, including complaints about long waits and disconnected calls.

HMRC's own figures show an average telephone waiting time of 12 minutes and 35 seconds in 2025-26, down from 18 minutes and 38 seconds the previous year.

A spokesperson for EmpowerRD, which specialises in research and development tax relief, said: “Long waits and dropped calls hit businesses as well as households.”

The spokesperson added that businesses could face difficulties when delays affected tax claims and enquiries.

The findings provide a snapshot of online opinion rather than a representative survey of customers.

With only four reviews, the Porthmadog office's position could change substantially with a handful of additional ratings.

The findings do not establish whether Porthmadog callers experience longer waits than those contacting other HMRC offices.