People who call HM Revenue & Customs are being advised to take detailed notes so they can refer to them in the event of a dispute. The Low Incomes Tax Reform Group, an initiative of the Chartered Institute of Taxation, has issued the warning on its website. It follows a number of disputes where taxpayers were either misadvised or misunderstood advice given to them on the phone by HMRC. In one recent case, a court cited a failure to take notes of a conversation with HMRC as a factor in rejecting an application for judicial review. LITRG director Robin Williamson said: 'When ringing HMRC, it is essential to keep a careful note of the date and time of the call, to whom you spoke, and what was said. Otherwise you may be at a disadvantage if you have to prove that you called HMRC in a later dispute.' He said the department is increasingly encouraging taxpayers and tax credit claimants to deal with them by phone, often through contact centres. 'While business by telephone makes HMRC more accessible to the ordinary taxpayer, one of its drawbacks is that a caller might act, or refrain from acting, in reliance on what HMRC said or - more to the point - on their recollection of what HMRC said. 'This can become an acute problem for the caller who does not have a professional representative with whom to double-check information and advice they receive from HMRC.'