Living in Spain I have found it very difficult to access UK companies and government organisations by phone calls whether regular or rip off numbers. After struggling on the phone time and again for a proper service I ended up getting the fax numbers of these companies and corresponding by this method.  Faxes can be sent by a dedicated fax machine or a PC with a modem and have several advantages over a voice call. They are cheaper as you are not put on hold whilst waiting for an agent, the actual connect time is very short and most of all you have proof of delivery by the time/date stamp that they received your communication. This last point is perhaps the most important as too many organisations 'lose voice calls' but can't deny receiving a fax. Additionally, it puts the ball firmly in their court and any delay whilst they reply might be in your favour.

The effectiveness of this approach does depend on the reason for the communication but will usually coerce the other party to do their job properly. If its a payment they want from you thats in dispute, it works very well as they have to do all the running around and any delays you benefit. If its information you want from them, you may have to resort to threats of an ombudsman or watchdogs to attract their attention but nothing works better than having it in writing.

An alternative to fax is email, but with more limited use. The main problem is that with the exception of hi-tech companies, nearly everyone else has no email correspondence channel on their web sites. Government departments like the tax office are the worst offenders and although they have shown a email option on the web site for a few years its still not available. Solutions to get around this are to use their web site feedback or comment link even if they state its not for correspondence. Dump your correspondence in that  comment 'box' requesting that it be forwarded to the correct department. Assuming that this is your last resort to try and get a response, I'd add threats to contact  the ombudsman or the press once more to drive the point home.

In summary, I always start off trying to contact organisations by phone but places like the DVLA and Tax office are definitely on my s*** list now as being lazy and unresponsive. The only way I achieved a response was by a fax to the DVLA and email in the comment box to the tax office both with veiled threats.  As an addition to the great work done on the telephone numbers of organisations, it would be a good idea to add their fax numbers when obtained. All organisations have a fax machine.