CRA any tips or tricks, venting........

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April 5th, 2021, 05:23 PM
fratri

CRA any tips or tricks, venting........

I got a letter in the mail saying CRA Myaccount had to be shut down do to my info being compromised....My son and wife got the same notice...
I checked the accounts and have been monitoring any suspicious activity and its all good...... Problem is I have been on the phone (hold) with them a total of 13-14 hrs over a number of days......
I mean it take forever to get through just to get on hold. Lots of times I call in, there system asks you for all kinds of things, then have to listen to a disclosure only to be told sorry all off our staff are currently busy, call back later.... What, you make me jump through all these hoops and you still hang up on me.....
Well finally after 10 tries today, I finally get on hold..... Today alone, I have been on the phone trying to access them since 2:15 pm..... Actually on hold with them since, according to my phone stamp, 3hrs 15 minutes now.... How can any business be allowed to stay open with this amount of poor customer service.... Now the kicker is, all 3 of us must be here if/when we get a live person.....

If anyone has any tips to bypass or make this painful act go a little faster, please chime in....
I know its tax time and most of them are working from home but wouldn't the government know that we would be calling in to get this resolved before the end of tax filing season. I understand there were approx. 800,000 accounts locked....

Like WTF are you doing, stop watching Days of our Lives and answer the dam phone. :)

EDIT: Just keeps getting better.... Actual human answers the phone just now, I explain why I am calling, he asks for the error code the system gives me..... I give him the code, he confirms its because of the hack (compromise)... Says he needs to pass my call along to the specialist.... Put me on hold where it announces ...Wait time is more then 2hrs :) WTF.....

Its times like this I wish our politicians where right beside me just to see how FK up this system is...... Doug I know this is a federal issue but I could use your help"......................
April 5th, 2021, 05:31 PM
impact

Is it a tax related question?
I have a CPA at my beckon call. Send me a PM. Maybe she can help?
April 5th, 2021, 06:32 PM
Species8472

Call the anonymous tip line and report yourself for suspected tax evasion. You will have 10 or 12 CRA staff at your house, on the phone and following you around in no time.
April 5th, 2021, 07:14 PM
fratri

Update:..... After 4.5 hrs I am off the phone with them.... They managed to get my and my sons account reactivated. My wife wasn't home so we will try to get hers activated tomorrow..... Crazy, that they make a person wait so long on hold.... Only in government eh....
April 6th, 2021, 12:59 PM
MarkB

Well, it's a busy time of the year for CRA, given tax returns are being processed.
April 6th, 2021, 01:11 PM
MikePal

Quote:

Originally Posted by MarkB

Well, it's a busy time of the year for CRA, given tax returns are being processed.

The whole scenario with the CERB is going to cause the CRA an enormous workload. Quite a few of those who received the cheques never filled returns last year so those have to be filled and resolved before they can process the 2020 returns. H&R block is going to have a banner year !!
April 6th, 2021, 02:22 PM
fratri

Quote:

Originally Posted by MarkB

Well, it's a busy time of the year for CRA, given tax returns are being processed.

Sorry Mark but having one wait 4 hrs on hold more than once is not acceptable. What, they didn't know they were going to be busy during tax time especially when over 80,000 accounts being hacked? Only in government can this be acceptable.
April 6th, 2021, 02:25 PM
Fox

Personal information got out, not a hack but there was a risk that information got out so they locked a bunch of accounts and some were only partially locked. I would rather have this than them not have concern for the safety of the information in the database.
April 6th, 2021, 02:28 PM
fratri

Quote:

Originally Posted by Fox

Personal information got out, not a hack but there was a risk that information got out so they locked a bunch of accounts and some were only partially locked. I would rather have this than them not have concern for the safety of the information in the database.

Sure that makes sense but waiting hours on end to speak to someone isn't how any business should be run
April 6th, 2021, 03:22 PM
Gilroy

Quote:

Originally Posted by fratri

Sure that makes sense but waiting hours on end to speak to someone isn't how any business should be run

Pretty much the same experience as you any time I have called. I remember once going into their big Federal CRA office here on Highway 10, talked to the so called staff most of them were useless and knew next to nothing. Most levels of government have extremely poor customer service as its a job for life.
April 6th, 2021, 03:56 PM
MarkB

Quote:

Originally Posted by fratri

Sure that makes sense but waiting hours on end to speak to someone isn't how any business should be run

I've been waiting to get my son's South African passport since January last year ... I know it's frustrating ... but you are definitely try to reach them at the worst possible time in the year!
April 6th, 2021, 04:04 PM
410001661

Quote:

Originally Posted by Gilroy

Pretty much the same experience as you any time I have called. I remember once going into their big Federal CRA office here on Highway 10, talked to the so called staff most of them were useless and knew next to nothing. Most levels of government have extremely poor customer service as its a job for life.

Terry,
I agree but by saying job would infer that they do work. It is more of a career.

Now that one year where I owed them money......now they had no troubles getting ahold of me when they wanted something - LOL.
April 6th, 2021, 05:07 PM
fratri

Quote:

Originally Posted by MarkB

I've been waiting to get my son's South African passport since January last year ... I know it's frustrating ... but you are definitely try to reach them at the worst possible time in the year!

They could have made a week long Seinfeld episode out of this.... Too bad I don't personally know Jerry, it could have been a great show :)