Fed up....

[Shogun]

If the last payment was made in July, then the DoFD should have been in August.  They have to apply what they recovered for the vehicle at auction toward your balance, it doesn't matter if it was a bank or a auto-finance.  They can't bill for the same amount twice.

[coterotie]

The good news about the car deficiency is that unless they have taken some action of which you are unaware, it is past the SOL in OK.

If you went to a tax preparer and they are still in business, I would see an attorney about filing a claim for the erroneous preparation.  While you would be responsible for the taxes, they are responsible for the fines, penalties and interest from their errors.  If they are even slightly reputable, they will have an errors and ommissions policy that will pay. 

Also, you can find some additional information here:  http://www.ok.gov/oab_web/

To prepare returns they have to be registered etc.  I would definitely start pressing the issue with the preparer.

FYI, I am a CPA, but don't practice.  Primarily because I don't want to carry the e and o policy if I'm not a full time practitioner. 

[Shogun]

I had a problem with one of my OK tax filings too.  And in OK they withhold your professional licenses if there is a discrepancy in your filing.  They actually owed me money one year, and sent me a letter stating that my medical license for the state was being rejected due to taxes.  I finally got everything gathered up, sent it in.  They then advised me that they were releasing my license but it was too late for me to get my refund.

I didn't care about the refund, but they would have held me from working!

[Shellie]

I've lived on OK my whole life and I know every state has their downfalls but OK has some doosies (sp).  I have talked to countless people about the situation and no one has ever said anything about any repercussions for the preparer.  I felt like they should be held accountable in some regard but no one else seemed to mention that.  THis weekend I will be looking for my 09 taxes to get those filed so I can resubmit my letterr asking to have the penalties and interest waived.

Question:  Since we signed them do I have a leg to stand on?  Wouldn't they just say I was in the wrong for signing?  I mean we just signed it.  I didn't think to question it, that's why I went and paid someone to do our taxes.

[Shellie]

One more Q; as far as my 09's are concerned do you think I will have to pay penalties or anything else?  I have never owed, always gotten a return from both state and federal but these are a little late getting filed.  I really don't know how all that stuff works.  

[coterotie]

Generally speaking, if you are owed a refund, there are no penalties or interest assessed.  They can penalize you for non-filing, but they generally do not.  But don't go past Oct 15 of this year.  Things get a little hinky at that point.

To your other question, reliance on a paid preparer does not relieve you of responsibility, hence you being on the hook for the taxes.  However, if the taxes were prepared in error and you substantially relied on the expertise of the paid preparer their professional responsibility takes over for the penalites and interest.  You can look on the URL I referred to to see their licensing information.  Again, if they are still in business, you have several avenues to complain threaten to.  If they aren't in business, you still have avenues for recovery from either their e an o policy if they are a business with professional licensing or from their homeowners policy if they are doing it as an individual and have a house with insurance on it.

Again, as a professional I fully advocate hammering the person and going nuclear sooner rather than later.  Bad eggs have no business staying in business particularly if they are unlicensed and uncovered by protection.

Hopefully, in your letters to the state you refer to the reliance on the paid licensed (if, so by the state of OK) advice of the tax preparer.  I would think this would be another mitigating factor for you.  In fact I just thought of this, give the Collection Agency the name of the guy who did the return, let them work on him for a while, I say this only slightly TIC.

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@Shellie wrote:

One more Q; as far as my 09's are concerned do you think I will have to pay penalties or anything else?  I have never owed, always gotten a return from both state and federal but these are a little late getting filed.  I really don't know how all that stuff works.  

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[Shellie]

This tax preparer got so so many clients those same years.  We were oilfield and many of our friends and family and co-workers went to them and almost everyone I know personally who went to them had the same issues we did.  They claimed all these deductions and when IRS came back and asked for receipts and proof we had no idea what they were even asking for.  We didn't even know some of the deductions existed much less did we qualify for them.

[Shellie]

I can't find them listed on there.

[coterotie]

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@Shellie wrote:

I can't find them listed on there.

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So they are not licensed as a tax preparer.  Strike 1.

Are they still in business?

[Shellie]

I'll have to just give them a call.  I searched just their last name and nothing came up and they weren't listed under the zip either.