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What I have Learned From My Clients Regarding the Scam Known As Tax Masters

They seen the flashy TV commercials of Patrick Cox's side profile telling taxpayers with back tax debt "We Solve Tax Problems".  They had been hoping that the claims of tax help were true. They took a leap of faith and decided to hire Tax Masters so long that they could feel help was there and they could start to sleep better at nights.  They would soon be awakened when their bank accounts were levied and no one from Tax Masters were calling them back.  Then they did their homework and found sites like mine.  They contacted me and found out the truth how there are many scams in the tax debt representation industry, with Tax Masters being the biggest of them all.

How companies can continue to operate like this is beyond imperceptibly.  Here is a synopsis of one man's experience of using Tax Masters.

Paying Tax Masters $4000 to prepare and negotiate an Offer in Compromise.  After several months went by and not Offer was submitted the taxpayer gets hit with a IRS bank levy.  After frantically contacting Tax Masters he finally receives a call back by one of their tax attorneys who says he will have the levy released and does.   The taxpayer is now told that he is in a currently not collectible status and does not need to worry about paying the IRS back.

"What about the Offer in Compromise I paid $4000 for?" asks the taxpayer.  Their attorney responds that she has no experience with preparing or working offers as she is in the "Levy Release Department" (which is ridiculous that an attorney in this industry does not know how to prepare an Offer in Compromise but that's another story) and they would need more money now that his fees have been used up working on the levy release.  Talk about adding injury to insult!

After conducing research the taxpayer contacts me and we agree to do business where I will file and negotiate an Offer in Compromise on his behalf.

Upon contacting the IRS I come to find that the taxpayer is not in a currently non collectible status but rather a modest installment agreement of $150 per month.   I mention this to my client and he tells me that Tax Masters told him that he does not have to make these payments and if he defaults the case will automatically go into currently not collectible status.  This is not accurate and proof that a law degree doesn't equal competence in dealing with IRS collection matters and why you are much better off going with an Enrolled Agent like myself or Jay Freeborne.

If my client was to default the payment plan (installment agreement) he would then be open to enforced collection action by the IRS such as bank levies, wage garnishments, etc.

This also complicates the Offer in Compromise we are working on as under the new law it states that a taxpayer on a payment plan must continue to stay current on that plan or the Offer will be rejected.  This is worth mentioning because the Offer process is not a quick, often times taking anywhere from 6-12 months.

Many people like the idea of hiring a big company with the belief that is safer than going with a one man show such as myself but the results sharply contrast such a belief.   I may not tell you what you want to hear but I will always tell you what you need to hear (and I lose many potential clients for it but it all balances out in the long-term as evidenced by the success of my company). 

If you are serious about hiring someone to represent you before the IRS please contact me directly at 720.340.4065 or email at nick@patriotresolution.com


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