Treating Customers Fairly Policy

Outcome 1: Fair treatment is central to our culture

Otis Tax is a founder-led business. The Directors holds direct responsibility for customer experience, product decisions, and complaint handling. There is no separation between leadership and customer outcomes. Every product decision is evaluated against whether it genuinely serves the needs of an unrepresented sole trader, and feedback from users is actively used to shape the product roadmap.

Outcome 2: Products are designed to meet the needs of identified customer groups

Otis Tax is built specifically for sole traders, landlords and freelancers who are mandated to comply with Making Tax Digital for Income Tax and who do not have an accountant managing their affairs. The product is deliberately narrow in scope: it does one thing, MTD compliance, and does it as simply as possible. Pricing, features, and user experience are all designed with this specific group in mind.

• The spreadsheet upload pathway is designed for users who already manage their finances in Excel or CSV format, removing the need to adopt new tools
• Open banking integration, currently in development, will serve users who want an even simpler pathway with no manual input required
• Pricing is annual and submission-based, reflecting how our users think about tax: at defined points in the year, not as an ongoing monthly overhead

Outcome 3: Customers receive clear information before, during, and after the point of sale

We are committed to clear, plain-English communication at every stage of the user journey:

• Pricing is transparent and displayed clearly before any payment is taken
• The MTD submission process is explained in plain language throughout the platform
• Users receive confirmation of every submission made to HMRC
• Deadline reminders are sent ahead of each quarterly submission window
• Users can see a live estimate of their tax liability at any point

Outcome 4: Where advice is given, it is suitable

Otis Tax is a software product, not an advisory service, and we do not provide regulated financial or tax advice. We are clear with users about this distinction. The product assists with the mechanical process of MTD compliance: gathering, formatting, and submitting data to HMRC. Where users have questions that go beyond the scope of the product, we signpost them to appropriate resources including HMRC guidance and professional tax advisers.

Outcome 5: Products perform as expected and service is of an acceptable standard

We are committed to delivering a reliable, accurate service:

• All submissions use HMRC's official MTD API, ensuring data reaches HMRC in the correct format
• HMRC Assist is integrated into the platform, flagging potential discrepancies before a return is finalised
• We use Sentry for real-time error monitoring, with root cause analysis conducted following any significant incident
• During peak submission periods, pre-deadline readiness checks confirm the platform is stable when users need it most
• In the event of a service outage coinciding with an MTD deadline, we liaise directly with our HMRC account manager to ensure users are not penalised

Outcome 6: Customers do not face unreasonable barriers after the point of sale

We are committed to making it straightforward for users to get support, raise concerns, or leave the service:

• Our Complaints Policy sets out a clear process for raising concerns, with a response commitment of 3 business days and resolution within 15 business days
• Users can request deletion of their account and data at any time
• There are no long-term contracts or cancellation penalties
• Users can contact the Directors directly and will receive a personal, prompt response