Every week, we have consultations with people that have, unfortunately, been taken advantage of by "tax resolution" companies. We know it can be tempting to hire these companies. Some rely on scare tactics or unrealistic ‘guarantees’ to bring in their clients, or make a ludicrous claim that “you will never have to pay the IRS again.” Many of our clients are often in worse trouble than when they started.
Getting your money back from these companies is nearly impossible. They may go bankrupt, go out of business and open the business under a different name, or simply stop returning phone calls. They know that if someone has a tax issue, they most likely do not have the money needed to file a lawsuit against their company.
If you are currently working with another companyand it is not going so well, here are some questions to consider:
Changing horse mid-stream or going over the falls?
It is always better if a good team can take over your cases as soon possible. It gets more and more difficult to repair errors (and more expensive for you), the longer an incompetent firm is on your case.
Are you sure they filed outstanding tax years? Did they investigate your case?
Do you know if they even bothered to investigate your case? Did they share with you what the IRS is saying about you? Did they even bother telling you that you need to be current for the IRS to agree to any settlement? Did they make your situation worse?
How long has the company been in business?
Many tax companies operate unethically — if not illegally. New ones pop up all the time. They can afford large marketing budgets because they devote few resources to paying a competent staff to actually solve your problem! They shut down before any legal proceedings can get started, the company is renamed, and they open again in another state.
How secure is their document system?
We use a Microsoft SharePoint Document Management System. This is regarded as the most secure system for sharing sensitive information. This is the system that the vast majority of Fortune 500 companies use…for a reason. Besides security that email simply can not provide, it allows us to exchange huge files with our clients. How seriously does the company you worked with, or were thinking of working with, take their security?
Can they warranty their work?
Did you know that the IRS has a hard time following through on implementing solutions they actually agreed to? The IRS is so big and has so many departments, that it cannot effectively communicate with itself. That's why good firms warranty thier work; so that the IRS actually does what they said they were going to do. And if the IRS makes a mistake, you’re covered.
