American Tax Relief

They stole my $6000 and won't return it.

In September 2009, I called to get help with taxes and paid $5500.00. In a little over a month, they called back and said that they needed $3900.00 more to put all paper work in place to represent my family. As time went on, we had to send in things to IRS though it was going okay. I started getting letters from IRS again wanting money for back taxes. I've tried calling ATR but no call back. Now, I've found out about ATR fraud and am just upset with myself out $9400.00 and don't know how much trouble and worse now than back in September 2009. If there's a group lawsuit, I would like to be added to it.

These commercials make me sick. You think maybe this is one reason our country is in the state it is in? Our country has the lowest tax rate in the world. People should appreciate this and fulfill their obligations to their government. I know that there is misappropriations of government funds, but it is just as bad when we don't expect to be accountable enough to pay our own way. As long as we don't, scams like this will always succeed.

I saw their ad in the paper for Tax Relief. They immediately told me they could reduce my tax debt which was $38,000 to $3000 or $4000 then sent them $4900 to start the process. I had to keep sending them papers they requested over and over. IRS then contacted them. IRS claims they never returned their phone calls and my claim was denied. I tried calling American Tax Relief and they never returned my calls. In my opinion, this company rips people off and does absolutely nothing for you but keep your money. It is a travesty and an injustice.

called american tax relief in sept of 07. before i got off phone i was pressured into a power of attorny which they used to charge me $5000.00 which was taken straight out of my bank account for their services. i was asked to supply information for the case to send to the irs which i did provide. 2 weeks later i was informed that they needed more information and it had to be at their offices within 2 days or they would drop my case. this was on a friday. i could not get all the info they requested by monday but i sent what i had. that monday another $5000.00 was withdrawn from my account with out my consent because the info was not complete and they dropped my case. when i asked about the withdrawal i was told that they were continuing my case and that the second $5000.00 was used to reopen the case. within 1 month i was asked to provide info that they had already recieved. i called and told them that they already had the info and asked what the problem was. i was told that the irs rejected the info that i had sent and they told me that i needed to send the same info again or they would drop my case. again i was given very short notice to get them the info or they would drop my case and charge me another $2000.00 to reopen my case for the third time. i was told to have the info to them by april 20 2009.

i faxed the info on april 19 which was a sunday. monday the $2000.00 was withdrawn from my account again without my knowledge. when i called and asked what was going on i was informed that the info i sent to them was not complete and the $2000.00 was to continue the case. on may 8 2009 i recieved a letteer from the irs that my offer and compromise was denied because they had not recieved all the info they had requested. again i called american tax relief and asked what was going on. i was told that they did not understand why the irs agent they were working with would not accept the info that had been sent. american tax relief said they would appeal the case in " a month or two and try to get a different irs agent to take the case". on sept. 16 2009 i recieved a letter from the irs stating that american tax relief had dropped my case as of aug.24 2009. i have recieved nothing from american tax relief since i called them in may so it was quite the surprise letter from the irs.

in my opinion american tax relief makes sure that you cannot possiblly get the info to them on time and if you do they will find more info that is needed. this is a scam. i would have been better off sending the money to the irs. american tax relief basically charged me $12000.00 for nothing. they are crooks

I just called this company this morning after hearing the ads on XM/Sirius Radio. Within the first few moments, he collected my name, my spouse's name (filing information) and the amount in back taxes owed. He then said I would be forwarded to an interview to assess if they could help. I told him that I wanted to understand what they offered before I proceed with an interview. The line went dead.

I called back on another line and got the same agent. I told him that we must have gotten disconnected. He said that he hung up on me. I asked why. He said that it is a Monday morning and he is too busy to work with me if I am not ready to proceed.

Impact, it led me to this site and the horrific experiences that you people have endured. As a result, I feel very blessed that I dodged the bullet.

WHAT.

In December of 2008 I spoke to R. Campbell at American Tax Releif who stated that they were able to help me with reducing my business taxes of 2007 and 2008. I had to pay $5500 up front. They worked on the taxes for a few months requireing tax information one after another. Finally I got supsious after a phone call from C. Hanna who cliamed that they could settle with the Irs for less than the original arrangement. However, he was requesting $3900.00 more in payment to the company. I refused to go along without some proof of what waw orinally was to be settle. So I contacted the Irs to find out if a settlement had been made with the and they stated no.

At this point i got even more suspious, then went to my bank the next day to make a bank deposit to find out that even though i didnot agree to the new agreement Chris Hanna and Atr fraudley withdrawn $1950.00 from my account using their own check with a fake account number with a stamp on saying no signiture was reequired for the bank to honor this check. When i call ATR to speak with the supervior P.
Franklin and C. Hanna they state that they had a right to do this and that i should be glad that they could reduce the payment for less. They rude and threaten to discontine my case no matter what i paid them and i would not be getting my money back.

So i went to my bank and closed the account and put in a fraud claim against the company and their check was stopped. Now i a seeking legal assistance retain my $5500.00 back for unfinsh work and reporting them to the federal trade commission. I try to call back to Atr to inform them of my actions and that my lawyer would be calling them. After that they are refusing my calls.

In April faced with a large tax debt to the IRS and State and no job. I was living off of my 401k plan to make my house payments and feed myself, daughter & grand-daughter. I made the biggest mistake of my life and seen the ad on tv from one of the worst companies on the face of the earth and made a call to them asking what they can do for me, to make a long story short.

Sean guaranteed me that they could eliminate all but 3 - 4 thousand dollars of my tax debt if I paid them $5,900.00 well, I did and after that it was next to impossible to get a hold of them and when I did get a hold of them they would run me in circles giving me every excuse in the world as to why things are not settled yet. Then one day out of the blue I get a letter from the IRS saying they have set up a payment plan for which I am too pay them monthly, probably for the rest of my life. I then called ATR to find out what was going on and they told me that they set up a payment plan for me.

When I told him that this is not what you said you were going to do for me he said that once I have paid off a substantial amount of the debt they would pursue abatement of the penalty and interest. This company is nothing more than a bunch of illegal crooks preying on good honest people who found them selves in trouble. I will be filing a lawsuit against them in Los Angeles County Court this coming month 03/2009 as I hope to have the approx. $200.00 need to file the case so I can try and recoup my money, But, probably I am going to be spending more money on a dead horse.

If there is anyone else that would like to join me in this lawsuit maybe we can make it a class action lawsuit and put these scum bags out of business permanently and possibly any other firms like this one. although I am fairly certain now that there could not be any other company as scummy as this one!! How does a company like this stay in business as long as they have? Why doesn't the State shut them down? And, Why doesn't the Federal government and/or State put this scum bags in jail where they belong. I want my money back please if there is anyone out there that can help me please call me.

They Wanted $4k to start my file. after doing some research I figured I would help some other people. Check the Better Business Bureau website for more information about this company. There rating is F

Thanks to others posting the problems that they had.

they took my last $5,000.00 and did nothing for me. they are pure scum, and i get a stomach ache every time i see their commercial on t.v! i cant believe its still on, but it is! someone please contact me and lets stop them! i was so distrought after dealing with them.

May husband passed away suddenly in November 2008. I contacted American Tax Relief on 1/7/09 after finding evidence that my husband had not filed some of his tax returns. Since he was coming out of backruptcy after a previous marriage, we filed separate returns. I spoke with Chris H or ATR who promised they could resolve my husband's tax situation. I paid $8500 through a bank draft but never received any disclosure forms. I kept calling Mr. H and asking for some paperwork or documentation.

On 1/28/09, I asked for a refund only to be told that they did not give refunds. He then proceeded to tell me how he was trying to be nice about it and that he needed and additional $21,000 for attorney fees since my husband owed $400,000. I told him that I did not have any more money and that I was not responsible for my husband's tax burden before we were married and that I believed the burden to be excessive. Mr. H kept saying that the paperwork was in the mail and that if I contacted the IRS the amount would be larger.

To this day I still have not received any disclosure forms, contract or anything in writing stating that they do not give refunds, or exactly what their services cover. I believe ATR preyed on me because of my vulnerability after losing my husband of only 6 years. They should be sued and made to repay each client WITH interest. Losing my husband has been tough enough without having to deal with ATR representatives who are nothing more than crooks.

Since I'm out of $8500, I have no funds to pay the IRS. I could have given that amount to the IRS. I have spoken with the IRS and my tax burden should be much less than the $400,000 that ATR quoted.

On November 8, 2007 I made one of the biggest mistakes of my life. I talked with Chris H from American Tax Relief (ATR). I had a significant tax issue that I couldnt solve myself. I fell for the ads that American Tax Relief has on TV and called them. Chris informed me that ATR could solve the issue for pennies on the dollar. He said all I had to do was send him $12,500 and ATR would take care of the rest. Just two months later without any correspondence in between Chris called me to inform me ATR needed another $8,500 to upgrade their service.

Then just one month later Chris called again and claimed another $8,500 was needed to once again upgrade their service. Again there had been no other correspondence in between the requests. I was desperate and still believed his promises so I paid the additional amount. Fast forward to today. ATR has had exactly one meeting with the IRS on my behalf and they botched that one. In working with Melissa I supplied her every document she needed for the meeting. During the meeting ATR was advised that there were other filings that I needed to have completed so I was put into a non-compliant status. ATR didnt advise me of that either because they didnt know or they wanted to upgrade their service again. I didnt give them a chance because I fired them yesterday. Perhaps you can add my letter to the voluminous stack you already have on ATR. Maybe someday they will be held accountable for their actions.

I own and manage a small business, and interact with the public on a daily basis. I thought I'd dealt with some low life's, but these guys are without question the worst group of schiester rip-off's that I've ever had to deal with. Some months ago, I contacted ATR about pending issues with the IRS, and explained IN FULL DETAIL my situation. The 'sales' agent (Robert) told me that this would not be an issue - that they would take care of my situation and would most likely be able to handle it in entirety. He went to great lengths to promise that it would NOT be an issue, that they in fact WOULD be able to get my fines reduced/eliminated, and that if that were NOT to happen (and if they couldn't help me), they would close out and not charge me full rate ($8500)..

I gave them a credit card for the first half of the charge ($4250.00), on the agreement that they would charge this, contact the IRS, and determine what they could. They were to also immediately mail me a set of papers and documents, which I would need to fill out. After 10 days and 2 phone calls I never received these papers. Now, my situation was quite urgent, as I had communicated. In fact after 3 days I called in to find out why I hadn't heard.

After 14 days still no papers. I needed some action with the IRS, as I was under threat by a lawyer. 2 further calls. no paperwork. No return phone calls. AFTER FOUR WEEKS, I had my CPA represent me to the IRS and moved forward. I called ATR,got more run-around. Was told they were i motion. When I told them I was cancelling the transaction,I was told that was not possible,as I was contracted and couldn't cancel. They then began calling me repeatedly. Robert and another agent (don't remember off the top of my head) told me I had lied to them, that I hadn't disclosed my situation, made threats against me (that my supposed misrepresentation was illegal, blah blah blah), and that I wouldn't get any refund and no furter help from them.

Fortunately I hadn't wired the funds (as they had originally demanded!), but had a credit card company pay them (note only the first half was paid). several days ago I checked my credit card account. Guess what - - these guys had charged me (WITHOUT AGREEMENT ON MY BEHALF) another $4250.00. FURTHERMORE, My credit card has had 2 more unauthorized charges in the past 4 weeks. (please note that this card has NOT been used for ANY OTHER online or phone purchase in 3 years, nor have I ever had unauthorized charges in this time!) My credit card company is investigating this currently.

Meanwhile..... I faxed the company this morning, with a note reiterating two things from my prior phone conversation: 1. any further contact is unathorized, not allowed, they do NOT represent me at all to ANYONE, and 2. do not contact me except by fax or mail (do NOT phone me again). Guess what. these clowns called me ON MY CELL PHONE not 5 minutes after getting the fax. I do believe that is a felony. I didn't answer my cell phone, but Robert left me a nice voicemail.. Then after 3 minutes, he called me at my office. I had the forethought to record that conversation, during which he agreed that he KNEW I had legally warned him not to contact me again, and that he did so anyway. He then continued to attempt to coerce me over the charges, claiming I had received paperwork from them, that I was negligent, and supposedly I was somehow legally to blame for this, and that I still owed them even more funds! I am out of a lot of time dealing with these guys, and quite possibly I may be in deep water with the IRS, due to their negligence. There is not a chance in hell I would recommend these clowns to anyone.

They charged me $12,000.00 for $11,000.00 taxes owed. Now I cannot pay my taxes. I still had to pay an attorney in Virginia to do my taxes and he got the reduction not ATR.

I cannot pay my taxes because they took all of my money.

hired american tax relief back in 2004..they promised me that my buisness taxes would be settled for pennies on the dollar..400,000.00 inbuisness taxes which these were fraudulent due to sell of buisness. they said i ieed to give them 10,000. i agreed to give them 5,000.00 down but they would not get the other 5,000.00 until we had a resolution...i received my packet in the mail and filled it out complete and mailed it back. didnt here from them so i begin calling, which was a run around everytime i called.. couldnt get them to return calls. 30 days into it i noticed they hit my credit card for 5,000.00 ... never got any resolution. lost 10,000.00 and still owe taxes. which im still fighting. when can the government step in and cut the nuts off these guys and put there ass in prison...? there just seems to be no justice in america...

lost 10,000.00 i want it back

I owed $35K in back taxes. Chris from ATM sent papers only after securing $5500 from me. I have had nothing done, I had to fill out all the paperwork do the chasing around and then have received two threatening letters saying I should have sent this or that. Meanwhile I now have a deadline to get two turndowns from mortgage companies and pay my debt down to 25K

Meanwhile my tax bill is now $69K. I left 10 messages for Chris who didn't call back of course. When I finally reached him-he asked me for $3900 more. FOr what? I called the IRS and told them I was trying to get a mortage to pay them. Unfortunately I don't have a mortage so IRS would grab my home in a heart beat. I would love to get a refund but after reading your other complaints about this company I sure wish I had never called.

THe IRS is much nicer than American Tax Relief. I have been so stressed over this, The IRS is threatening to take my pension & SSDI and put a lien on my property. Yes they have put me through more stress than the IRS

Spoke with Associated Tax, Was assigned to Harry. Was very infomative, helpful knowledgable. Once they received payment, they never performed any service. Now, unable to reach anyone on phone/via mail/anything. Bait and switch operation.

$6000, No movement on IRS Issues and Interest Still running

Today I owe over $40,000. American Tax Relief has done nothing to help us. In fact, they have made it worse. I have requested my money back several times. They don't return phone calls, they might respond to you in writing if you are lucky.

I have gone to a local attorney and am finally getting the help we need. The local attorney didn't cost me what American Tax Relief charged me!

I am going to report this company to the Better Business Bureau and any other Bureau I can find.

Never - Never listen to the ads! This was a hard lesson to learn and live through.

I paid them $5500.00 to help me fix my back due taxes. I finally got a response back from the IRS and I owe them more then before. So American Tax Relief did nothing and took my money.

I paid $5500.00 for nothing.

In huge IRS debt and saw the TV commercial. Called and when you are desperate and afraid, I guess common sense goes out the window. Retainer fee to be $12,500 (Apparently fees based on how much you owe... more IRS debt, means you are more scared, and that much more susceptible to being talked into higher fees, which seem like nothing compared to IRS debt...) Since only had room on credit card of $6k, they agreed to take that, that day and balance on end of month 9/30/08.

Have never spoken to or received any advice and/or consultation from their staff attorneys and/or enrolled agents. Only communications were from their sales consultants who would call w/a friendly premise but always turned conversation to when could they expect to get the $6500 balance, 'could they get another credit card to run it through on?'. I would point out that due on 9/30, and ask about my case, but always conversation went back to the balance due.

Original sales guy was David, but on Friday, 9/26/08, someone named John called. Said he was David's partner so naturally I asked about my case. It quickly became apparent that the point of his call was collection of $6500 only using very strong-arm, collection agency type tactics. Escalated to where he was simply rude and I was not going to get any where w/him in civil manner, so I hung up. No call back from him to apologize or smooth out misunderstanding. Since this occured end of business day Friday, around 5:30 pm, over the weekend I faxed them a notice of my wish to discontinue our relationship, since no real activity performed on my behalf by them I requested a refund of the $6k already paid, and most importantly I revoked any POAs and credit card authorizations previously given. Faxed it down (hard copy via USPS this morning certified), because I wanted to give them written notice....but of course first thing this morning they have already drafted an additional $6500 from my credit account (today is 9/29/08, agreement calls for it to be drafted on 9/30/98).

Called them to drop charges and was told that it is non-refundable, which is ridiculous since I have received no service, was cancelling anyway, and in writing they were expressly told that they were not authorized to draft monies from any of my accounts. Needless to say, I have posted a complaint on Los Angeles County Better Business Bureau, (where by the way they have an F rating...wish I had checked prior to...water under the bridge...). I am putting out fraud alert on my credit accounts (they have too much info about me...scary). I will file a small claims for the initial $6k. I am filing a complaint w/the Los Angeles county District Attorney's office Consumer Complaint Division.

Well, unless ATR agrees to refund my money, I am out $12,500. Plus the time and additional stress it is taking to get my money back.

i paid them almost 2 thousand dollars for them to get us a tax settlement with the irs & they did nothing except want more money so they could continue or case. so i called the irs myself & got more satisfaction from them, than i did atr.

I hired Amer. Tax Relief in March of 2007 to negotiate a settlement on my behalf, re: my Ga. St. Sales taxes. They promised abatement of penalties, to petition for removal of interest, promised a feasible re-payment plan, etc... I was advised once I hired them to make no tax payments and not to deal with the Revenue dept. myself, to let ATR handle everything. I paid ATR $3950, they took my money and they've done NOTHING on my behalf, in fact, they've made matters worse.

As a direct result, I now owe 2x the original amount and it just continues to increase. Additionally, a lien as been levied and the state is threatening to sieze my accounts and close my business. I gave Amer. Tax Relief the last of my money and now I'm up against a wall with no hope of ever being able to pay the ridiculous amount now owed. The increased mental stress has been almost unbearable and has caused physical deterioration as well, resulting in medical bills at a time that I can't afford any medical insurance. Please help.

In March 2008, I hired American Tax Relief to help settle my tax debt. In the beginning, they came across as the answer to my prayer. I told Paul Franklin the details of my situation, what the government said I owed and what my tax returns said I owed. I also told them that I'd originally hired JK Harris to file my taxes and that they had been unable to get anything right the three times they'd prepared my taxes and that I'd eventually done them myself. Since I was let go from my job in 2004 and had not worked a day since, I was assured by Paul Franklin my Tax Consultant that they would be able to settle my taxes for $2,000 to $3,000 dollars after I paid them the $4,900 dollar fee. I told them that I didn't have any money that I lived with my boyfriend and that he paid all the bills now.

Long story short, my boyfriend agreed to pay the money to hire them. I returned all their paperwork on May 15th. They had already recieved their final $2450 payment on May 9th. After that, I heard nothing from them until I contacted them on June 30th to ask what the status of the claim was. They assigned me to a Gabriella who seemed like she wanted to work with me when I was talking with her...she just needed to run some things by her supervisor. But...the next phone call I got was from my tax consultant Paul trying to scare me and strong arm me into paying another $3900 for them to complete the process.

Seems rather than speak with her supervisor like she said, they were just looking for a way to bilk more money out of me with scare tactics. I told him I'd been speaking with the IRS because I had some questions regarding my daughters fiancial aid and this man had the nerve to yell at me like I somehow answered to him. Then when I told him that I didn't like his scare tactics, he told me I should be scared seeing that I owed the governement $60K according to their calculations. This company is scarier to deal with than the IRS themselves. At least with the IRS, they speak to you with respect.

My boyfirend and I are now out $4900 dollars with nothing to show for it. I would like to get the $4900 dollars back as nothing was as they promised unless I can come up with another $3900 dollars which could actually be my tax settlement since there is a formula that the government works off of for an offer-in-compromise.

My wife and I owe $41,000 to the IRS. We had contacted ATR for help, since the IRS didn't want to work with us.

I took out a 401K loan in the amount of $5,500.00 for ATR to take our case.

Now, after two years nothing was done, just a lot of paperwork back and forth. Nothing was resolved, since my wife and I make too much income for an Offer in Compromise.

Now the IRS has levied my paycheck and will leave us pennyless. My wife is on disability and I don't know how we are going to afford her medical bills now.

In early July 2008 I spoke with Robert Campbell about some tax issues I was having. I then asked for a cost estimate for his firm, American Tax Relief, to work on this problem for me. Before he would give me a cost estimate he insisted on getting my bank information. I tried twice to avoid this but finally succumbed.

Once he gave me the cost estimate I said that I could not afford that figure and thought the matter was closed. In a few days a package of forms and a cover letter arrived from American Tax Relief. The cover letter very clearly said that the first step was to complete the enclosed powers of attorney for the IRS and a survey form which was also enclosed. Since I had no plans to do business with ATR I simply ignored the paperwork. I was shocked when, on August 4, 2008, ATR emptied my bank account by executing a withdrawal of $1950.

I spoke to Robert Cambell and he was agressive threatening and tryied to take money out of my checking account without my permission. THEY ARE down right extortionist. I want to let the feds know that these so called lawyers are bilking thousands of money from hard working TAX PAYIERS

He didnt care if i made payroll or had any money left in my account

June 26, 2008 we signed a contract with David Bradley stating that he would be the power of attorney to get all the tax information from 2000-2008. We gave him $5,900 to do both fed. and state and he said we would only owe the IRS $1,000- $2,000. After we gave him the money we received a phone call from a man named John Buckner yelling at us saying that they need more money ($3,100) in 2 hours or they were going to drop us.

At that time we knew it was a scam and they were taking us for a ride. We were stuck and they had all our money. They are the most ignorant people I have ever met. I don't know how they can sleep at night. I would never do business with them and I just want everybody to know to stay away from those people!

They had taken money out of my bank account without my permission and after doing that they wanted more. After giving them all of our personal info. John Buckner said he was dropping us.

During my initial call will ATR, the representative was initially polite and seemingly helpful, however, he pushed for more and more personal information including name, address, Social Security Numbers, and then wanted 3900.00 upfront by check over the phone to take our case. I asked Shawn to let me read over the paperwork he was supposed to be faxing, research the company, and discuss the service with my husband and I would call him back. He became irate and insulting. I had to hang up on him. Apparently he knew my research would uncover numerous complaints regarding their rude, bullying tactics.

I am now establishing fraud alerts with the credit bureaus for our protection against ATR becasue I gave them our SSN

This is an addition to the report posted. Now, on June 6 I received a letter from my credit card company saying they were unable to process the credit. When I initially talked to American Tax, I provided my credit card over the phone. I was to sign and return documents that were faxed to me but I changed my mind, advised them by fax within a day and did not sign any documents. They did not provide any service to me as we terminated before we even started. Sounds to me like my credit card company and American Tax are in bed together.

I'm out $2450 at this point. This is after American Tax agreed to a refund over the phone with the credit card representative on a conferfence call.

my husband contacted atr in april 2008 to help him straighten out a big delinquent tax problem and paid them 3,900.00. on april 17, 2008. on 6/4/2008 a chris hannah called and stated he had let an arbitary deadline go by and demaned another 3,100. they did absoloutely nothing but use strongarm and scare tactics. questioned our character and yelled. i am interested in any way shape or form to sue these people to recover the 3,900.00 and to shed light on this company!

i did not have the 3,900.00 to begin with. that put us in a financial bind and now their threats to sue us over the 3,100.00 as being a bad check has me constantly worried and feeling helpless that they just took the money and did not in any way offer us any form of service for this money. how can i recover this money?

Watched one of their commercials and contacted them by phone. I was told that to handle my case I had to ok a money withdrawal from my checking account in the amount of $5500.00. After 30 days and no communication other than paperwork that was sent to me, I called and was told that 30 days had past and no response from me so I had to pay another $3900.00 to them to continue working on my case. At this pont I figured I had no choice and agreed.

Then nothing happened for a number of months until I call and was put in touch with another associate. So far all that has happened is I have to sign an agreement with the IRS stating that I will pay $533/month. I could of accomplished this by myself.

I called American Tax Relief when I found out that in spite of trying to pay our taxes properly, we still owed $11,000. All the guy on the phone cared about was How much can you send us today? He mentioned a figure which seemed a reasonable amount but alarm bells rang when I realized that all he had to go on was an amount due and no specifics on the situation. When I started to ask questions he swore at me and told me I guess you don't need help. and then sworw agin and hung up.

I did a free consultation with American Tax Relief during which my credit card number was taken. I opted to not use their services and after calling them to inform them I did not want to proceed, I also sent them a fax terminating my case. Two days after the date of my fax my credit card was charged $2450. When I discovered the charge on my credit card I called them to remove it. They talked in circles about how I was not in their database so they had no record of the charge and couldn't issue a credit. Fortunately, my credit card company dispute manager got them on a conference call and they changed their tune and said they would issue a credit.

Took $2750 for a fee. I said I could not afford $5,500 - he said that he'd 'work with me' about any further amount - came to find out they sent a bank draft to my bank account and without my knowledge or consent, withdrew the remaining $2750. Then I got a call from his supervisor that he needed another $3500 because the amount owed the IRS was $20,000 more than I told Campbell, which was NOT TRUE!

I defaulted on my alimony, mortgage and ALL bills due this month, there is just no money in the till now!

I paid American Tax Relief $10,000 in advance to settle a $122,000 payroll tax debt. ATR claimed that they could get the bill reduced by at least 60%. Once we paid we could not get a direct response or information from ATR on how our case was progressing.

They gave us inaccurate and misleading information or no information at all. We had to attend a meeting with our local IRS agent without legal representation even though their literature indicated we would no longer have to deal with IRS.

When we called to get answers the people at ATR hung up on us and would not return calls. We have since obtained other legal counsel to resolve our tax issue and they have indicated other numerous errors made by ATR.

I am one the unfortunate victims of American Tax Relief (ATR). This company based in Hollywood and Los Angeles, California, advertises by way of radio and television that they can help individuals with issues with the IRS and can stop liens and negotiate IRS debt down to next to nothing. I enlisted their services with a deposit of $2750 to which they debited from my credit card on January 29, 2008. Robert Campbell (the representative from ATR) said that he would have the lien removed from my payroll check immediately. A month later nothing much was done. Unfortunately, after they received my deposit I found dozens of complaints about this company defrauding customers out of thousands of dollars and their being in worse shape than when they first contacted them. I faxed a letter to ATR on March 5th expressing my dissatisfaction with their service and my concerns about the many complaints I found, and requested a refund. Typical of the behavior other past customers experienced, Mr. Campbell left me a phone message around 8:15 a.m. on March 6, 2008, calling me a liar and said that they will pursue collection of the additional $2750 I supposedly owe their company.

I am sorry that I had anything to do with this company. Not only do I still have to clear up this IRS issue, I have incurred more debt by charging this $2750 on my credit card, and now my credit will probably be in jeopardy because they are coming after me for the balance. Someone needs to pursue putting this company out of business for good! How someone with such a horrible reputation and history of defrauding consumers can continue to do business is beyond me.

I thought I was dealing with an honest company to assist me with a huge tax burden. I was so desperate for help that I completely lost all of my common sense...that is: If it sounds too good to be true it probably is. These people are so sick and deserve dire consequences. I had originally tried to deal with the IRS on my own but had little success. As my tax liability (with penalties and interest) grew, I was at a loss at what to do. I went to ATR for help after hearing their commercial on TV and radio. I should have known from the start that this was nothing but a scam. Unfortunately, I was so desperate. How I have come to regret that now! I paid ATR 2 separate payments of $3250 to help me settle a tax liability of $51,000 for less than $20,000. Wow, I thought, this is the way to go. I was so wrong. They make you fill out tons of paperwork to masquerade as actually working a case file.

Sadly, I came to find out yesterday that my entire bank accounts have been cleaned out by the IRS due to a levy! I am ruined financially, no thanks to American Tax Relief. These guys, especially Sean Madden, are evil.

I lost $6500 to American Tax Relief. I also had $9300 seized from my bank account to pay a portion of my outstanding balance. I was left with the impression that they were still going to work on my case. After reading all of these horror stories online, I am certain my options have totally run out.

I want all consumers to beware of this unethical company with their false claims of being able to settle your tax debts for pennies on the dollar. All they want is to collect your money before they ever understand your specific tax situation. The individuals that answer their phones are hard core sales people with no tax knowledge or expertise. They take advantage of individuals who truly need help on very serious tax situations and never intend to do anything about it, except to collect outrageous fees before they ever even examine your specific case. At the end of the conversation they ask you for your bank information and want you to immediately fax over documents to them that will allow them to take money right out of your bank account for their fees.

When my husband called them and asked them questions, they yelled at him and said 'when you get serious about your taxes, call us' and hung up on him. Out of curiosity and already disgusted, I called back and this same guy was making disgusting comments about women referring to them as 'chicks' and then proceeded to ask me to fax a power of attorney and my bank info. I was smart enough to know a scam when I see one, so I want to warn anyone else out there who is thinking of using them to BEWARE! I settled my own issues with the IRS directly. The IRS posts a warning on their website about agencies claiming to settle tax issues for pennies on the dollar. Before you ever give your money to a place like this, try to work directly with the IRS or call the tax advocacy. If that does not work, find a legitimate tax attorney!

I am lucky that I was smart enough NOT to consider dealing with this Boiler Room, so they did not get one, single penny from me. You can even call the tax advocacy and they will help you to resolve your issue. This is what I did. THANK GOD I did not buy into this horrendous scam.

I hired American Tax Relief about 8 months ago to help me resolve some tax issues. I paid them $4900 and was told that as soon as I signed over power of attorney to them, the tax dept could not legally take any of the aggressive actions they were threatening. Three days later the tax dept. did show up and took possession of my restaurant, changing the locks and threatening to start auctioning off the business contents in 12 days if I didn't come up with almost $9000. I borrowed the money, opened my business back up and continued dialog with the people at American Tax Relief. They assured me that what the tax dept. had done was illegal and that they could still help me resolve the tax problems. I returned all the questionnaires and all other requested statements, etc. For the last 8 months I was under the impression that this company was working for me.

I finally received a voicemail in November 2007 from Shawn Madden, from ATR, stating that he would really like to get moving on my case, and I needed to return his call. Upon calling Shawn Madden I learned that nothing had been done on my case. He claimed that he had never received a completed questionnaire and that I had terminated his company's POA with the tax dept. I sent him proof that the POA was still in effect but was told that I would still have to send him another $3500 to resume work on the account as he hadn't received the questionnaire. I told him that I desperately needed help as the tax dept. was once again threatening to seize my business, and that I didn't have any more money to give him. He told me to call him back when I came up with the money, until then there was nothing he could do for me.

I've had to close up my business. The tax dept gave me until 1-17-08 to come up with $26,000, or they were going to once again seize and auction off my business. I just didn't have the money, and I didn't have any choices. I'm out of business, unemployed, and so far in debt that it scares me to death. The people at ATR made me a lot of promises and assurances and did nothing at all to help. They took my money and ran. I was desperate for help. I guess that makes for the perfect victim.

In 2003 I paid ATR $3500. in cash to settle my tax debt with the IRS. Every time I contacted them (they never called me), to inquire about progress they were making, they gave me an excuse as to why I could not speak with my attorney. My tax debt continued to increase and my wages were garnished. I still could not get an answer from ATR as to what was going on. I ended up calling the IRS myself and found out that no one from ATR had ever contacted them. In 2006, I wrote to the CA Attorney General, WI Dept. of Consumer Protection and I attempted to file a complaint in small claims court. Three times I paid the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Dept. to serve the papers. They were never served on time. I contacted a local process server to serve papers and he claimed that ATR was out of business and nothing further could be done. Within the past three months I have heard their advertisment on the local radio station and they have the same address. Is there anything more that I can do to recover my $3500? I would use that money to pay the IRS. I still owe them well over $12,000.

My wages were garnished 25% of $9.00/hr. I was able to have that reduced to 15%. I now work part time and I am paying them $50.00 a month. I have suffered great embarrassment at my jobs as they knew how much I owed to the IRS. My credit is non-existent. I saved some money to make an Offer and Compromise. Money that I should be saving for retirement as I am 52 years old. This situation has also taken a toll on my mental health and I continue to take antidepressants to combat the resulting depression and anxiety.

In April of 2006 I called ATR. I was connected to a James Flemming who immediately stated that in order to retain their services I needed to deposit the amount of $5,500.00. The money was transfered immediately by wire transer. I was able to speak to James on two seperate occasions and we sent all necessary paperwork that he requested. When I could not reach him again, I was then directed to a women that said James was first on leave and then she later stated that he had taken a leave of absence and that she was taking over his accounts. I sent all the paperwork again to her as she could not find the paperwork I had previous sent.

They were suppose to contact the IRS but also failed to do so. After not hearing from them when the IRS deadline was fast approaching I was told by ATR that there was nothing that they could do for me and could not help me further. The bottom line is that I paid them $5,500.00 and I did not receive any help from American Tax Relief. I then had to paid the IRS monies owed which amounted to a sum of over 40 thousand plus dollars.

I saw a commercial for American Tax Relief. I thought, finally an answer to my tax problem. I had gone through a divorce during the previous tax year. I am the owner of a small preschool in Tennessee. I fought for my preschool during the divorce and luckily enough I was able to retain sole ownership. Although, during the process of the divorce I began paying myself a regular salary due to the fact that I was now a single mom. I began having to make the choice between feeding my kids and pay my bills or pay the tax. I thought I could catch up on my taxes, but little did I know how quickly and enormously the penalties and interest would grow.

I called the 800 number hoping to work with someone knowledgeable about taxes. I really wanted to make a repayment plan. I was told by one of the Hannahs at ATR that I qualified for the penalty abatement program. I was under the impression once I sent in all of my paperwork they would begin to represent my company and resolve my tax issues. I was sent an enormous amount of paperwork to fill out and a huge amount of copies to send to the company. I would call the company to ask questions, be put on hold, told someone would return my call shortly and never would. The paperwork was so detailed that an average person could not understand what to send back to them. I spoke with someone who told me to just send it back incomplete! Yet, on the paperwork it clearly states not to send imcomplete paperwork.

After, some time had passed I spoke with Chris Hannah who proceded to talk to me like I was uneducated and told me that I had passed the time limit. I told him I had every piece of correspondence from the company and no where on the paperwork did it explain that there was any time line after only speaking to someone that I had to have the paperwork back. I understood that once they had all of my information they would move forward in representing me to the IRS. I was treated very poorly and the company attitude was not professional. They also tried to get me to pay an additional $4,000! I had to take out a loan for the first $4,000. I have no where elso to turn and now I am too afraid to hire another firm.

I am further indebted to the IRS due to the amount of time that has passed. I have not seen any action on behalf of the American Tax Relief. They took my $4,000.00 and did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING for my company.

Well my story is the same as all the rest, I was taken by ATR. They promised they would take care of my tax problem. I got nothing.

Tonight I got a phone call telling me the IRS was now saying I owed more money then they first reported. And now I need to pay ATR more money because there is more work to do.

I already paid them $4000 and now ATR needs $4600 to settle my trouble with the IRS. Im out the $4000,and I'm still in trouble with the IRS!

I called and asked for a receipt from American Tax Relief for the 11 thousand dollars I paid them to do tax work in 2006. Frist of all they never did the work !!! and then when I asked for a receipt they said I should have kept better records and paid the IRS. He Rick George ( if that's his name ) said he would not send the receipt from my payment because he saw that I complained about him. These people should be out of business. Why does the IRS let them continue ?

I was laid off after 25 years with the same company, shortly there after I developed severe RA, I could not walk or use my hands, was on many perscription drugs. I withdrew some of my 401K but at end of year but forgot to include in my tax filing. Got a big bill from the IRS. Called ATR to get some help.

They charged me $5,500 and promised that they would reduce the amount owed and get me on a payment plan. During that time my wife developed cancer, need less to say we really needed their help, we got nothing for our $5,500.00. With all the medical bills we had to sell our home and now a year later I'm working with the IRS to avoid a lien......

I'm working two jobs and my wife is working full time and we are facing liens and levies......

I contacted ATR in response to a direct mail solicitation. Eli guaranteed me that they could resolve my tax problems. He used pressure sales tactics to get me to agree to allow him to deduct $3000 from my bank account before the conversation was over.

The next day I contacted my accountant. My accountant had recently hired a former high-level IRS manager who had been personally responsible for approving/denying OICs. My accountant said his firm would handle the case for the same amount that I had paid ATR, and throw in tax prep for three years besides.

I immediately called ATR to ask for a refund. They said that my 24-hour refund period had lapsed. I told them that I was going to have my accountant do the OIC anyway. They said, fine, you have a fully paid-up account with us when you decide you need our help.

I got burned by my accountant, who after three years had still not filed my OIC and who billed me $14,000 for services NOT rendered. Everytime I gave him the documents he requested, no action was taken; the information would become obsolete and I would do all the research again...I had the distinct feeling I was dealing with a crew of alcoholics. But, back to ATR...

After I fired my accountant I called back ATR and reminded them of my fully paid up account. In the meantime penalties had accrued and my case had ballooned to where I owed over $200K. The ATR rep said that since it was much larger case necessitating more work they had to charge another $5000. I told them that they did not have my permission to charge more funds, and since they refused to honor their word they did not have permission to work on the case---I prefer to deal with people who are honorable.

Later, to be safe, I checked with my bank and ATR Had taken $1000 from my account, which the bank retrieved from them. I actually closed the account and opened a new one to protect myself from ATR.

So, after spending $6000 on two different white-collar bandit firms I decided to file the OIC myself. It took me about 5 solid days of work. I researched and found software on the web that cost $100 and that helped automate the process of filling out the forms; it's the software that your accountant would use if you hired him/her to do the job. I bought some books that helped. I called the IRS numerous times and with each call I was given another hint, another tiny clue that helped me stay on course. After I filed the Offer I completed myself it was accepted; I negotiated a $33K settlement on at $216K debt.

YOU CAN DO THIS YOURSELF.

Also, know this: it doesn't matter how large your debt to the IRS is, the amount of work to fill out the OIC forms is exactly the same for a $10K debt as it is for a multi-million debt (although of course sorting out accounts will be more complex if you're the type of person with lots of money).

I was ripped off for $3000 by ATR, and for $3000 by my accountant.

Now every penny plus is taken paying the care home and IRS. There isn't even enough left over to pay the minimun balance due on the credit card that paid the tax relief company.

I payed American Tax Relief $5,300 in late July of 2005 for representation to the IRS. My tax debt at that time was $60,036. I got notices from the IRS in June of this year saying they now wanted $76,680.

When I got last year's notice from the IRS, I called ATR and they had me send it to them saying don't worry and let us do our job. I did because this is what I paid for.

After more than 30 phone calls in the month of June of this year (before and after recieving more notices from the IRS) and NOT ONE return, I contacted the IRS (I have names and numbers) and was told that ATR had only contacted them about my case three times (with the most recent one being in February of 2006). I sent cancellations of their Power of Attorney to represent me (to ATR and the IRS) and began talking directly to the IRS to get this over with.

My tax liability has, under ATR's direct compensated involvement to avoid, has not only not been addressed but has grown approximately $17,000.

Why are they not accountable and why can someone not hold them responsible for monetary damages?

Besides the original $5,300 for services never rendered, my tax liability has, under ATR's direct compensated involvement to avoid, has not only gone un-addressed but has grown approximately $17,000.

Two years later and a 28% increase in my tax liability because of these fools. It's safe to say that they did exactly what they set out to do and cost me money. Not only what they took in the beginning but then making it grow by ignoring the IRS while telling me and my wife don't worry about it. Let us do what you paid us to do.

I also owed money to the IRS and called ATR. They said they would save me at least half of what I owed. $15000. Took over two years and finally got a reply from the IRS telling me to pay the tax in full. As far as I am concerned they did nothing for me.

I paid $5,300 in late July of 2005 to American Tax relief for representation. My tax liability was just over $50,000 when I contacted these people. It has now been 22 months since first contact and they won't return a phone call. I've left approximately 32 messages (with Stacey Brandon and a supervisor named Hadji Chana) in the last ten working days.

My latest notice from the IRS has my tax liability at approximately $77,000. I called the IRS today (Friday 15 June 2007)and their representative said that ATR's Stacey Brandon had contacted them in December of 2005, and twice in February of 2006. That's a total of three calls on my behalf in 22 months and seemingly no attempt at resolution whatsoever.

The econimic damage is obvious. My tax liability has grown since they got my $5,300 and I'm now in debt over this up to about $82,000. My income is less than $40,000 per year and my wife doesn't work.

At a minimum I feel like American Tax Relief owes me my original $5,300 (plus interest and penalties) plus the difference of what I owed when I contracted with these people. At the most, they can pay my back taxes plus punitive damages. They misrepresented themselves and would not talk to myself or my wife during this process except to tell us we're going to take care of this for you, just relax. This has been a tremendous stress on my wife, our marriage, and our lives.

I am a single mother that has got behind in taxes that I could not afford. I owed approx. $13,000. I contacted American Tax Releif and was told that they could lower the amout to approx. $4000. I payed them $3,900 in April 2006 to take care of this. It is now June 2007 and they did nothing. I am now out of the $3,900 and my taxes are up to almost $15,000 because of late fees and interest.

I had to set up a payment plan myself and now there is a lien on my property.

This has been a huge strain on me and my children. $that $3,900 could have went a long way in feeding and clothing my girls, but instead a company that I thought I could trust took it from us. Now my tax debt is worst than it was a year ago. I wanted to contact the IRS last year but was told by ATR not to do so.

I paid American Tax Relief $4000.00 in March of 2005, I was asked to pay the money within minutes of asking what they could do for me. The company did nothing and the IRS continues to hound me.

I contacted ATR on 5/7/07 and was told by them that I would need to pay another $5000.00 for another POA and that they would not repay my money. I would like to speak with anyone who would be willing to pursue a class action suit against this company of thieves.

I have chronic kidney disease and American Tax Credit took my money when I was going through Kidney Cancer, I was so ill and thought that they would help.

I had some IRS problems some of my 941 had not been paid. It was an honest mistake that my bookkeeper over looked. I called American tax relief to get help the guy I talked to said I can gurantee you, I will get you out of pentatils & intrest so I paid his company $5,500.00 to help me. And guess What? They didn't do anything. As the dead line for payment got closer My Wife took it upon herself to contact the IRS and get to the bottom of what we could do. So american tax relief did nothing. I call and spoke to george At ATR he told me he was going to keep my money. He actully told me I'm keep your money every cent of it, and I defy you to get it back. I don't know what else to do.

As if it were not bad enough oweing the IRS some undetermined amount of nothing less than $8,000.00. Then American tax relief cliped me for $5,500.00. I would say i have been damaged very much. I own a very small business, I have maxed out my line of credit, to make ends meet and looking for answers.

I called American Tax Relief (ATR) for help with the IRS and their aggressive collection manners. I briefly explained to Steve about my situation, without hesitation he said ATR could help. He just needed to ask me some questions. He asked, I responded. You initially feel a sense of relief knowing someone is going to help you with the biggest thorn in your side. After a couple of minutes of asking questions, he puts me on hold. I hold for about 3 minutes (thought we got disconnected). When he returned, he said that he called my bank and drafted my checking account. I was shocked! And what was worse, it was for $7,500.00.

The company states that I authorized it, that couldn't be right because I didn't have that kind of money in the account (bank statement verifies this). If he had told me what it was going to cost me for ATR to help me, I wouldn't have been able to do it. I scrambled to get the money in because Steve said ATR can help and it would be immediately after they receive their fee. I would never have to speak directly with IRS agents from that point on.

There was no consulting in any form in either of the 2 times we spoke (first call was when he drafted my account and the second call I said that the IRS was still calling me and he said don't worry about it, he'll call them). I NEVER spoke to any attorneys or enrolled agents listed on the POA. I cried for help when the IRS placed a federal lien against me - no response from ATR. I cried for help when the IRS levied my accounts receivables - no response from ATR. I cried for help when the IRS levied my bank accounts - no response from ATR. I cried for help again when another federal lien was filed against me - no response from ATR. When I called, I spoke to a receptionist or a sales person I could never get through to an attorney or enrolled agent. They always said, your enrolled agent will call you in the morning - I never got a call back, ever.

I purchased their services in February '06, it wasn't until sometime in April '06 it was realized that they didn't have correct POA papers. WHAT? I sent all my information in as requested, there was no follow up. I know they received it because I sent it confirm recipient's signature. The IRS agent assigned to my case never received the POA so she made several visits to my home, continued to call daily and all the while I kept saying that ATR was my POA and to contact them.

Since ATR never intercepted any of the IRS's actions, I had 3 federal liens filed against me, my checking accounts and accounts receivables were levied. By June '06, I said enough and requested a refund (6 times). When I got no response, phone call or mail, I sent my complaint into my State's Division of Consumer Protection/Fraud Department and California's Attorney General. ATR claims that I didn't cancel within the 5 day cancel period -and only get half your payment. ATR stated that working with the IRS is a step-by-step process. If that is the case, how can they say that a customer only has 5 days to decide to continue business with ATR when in 5 days that is absolutely impossible to determine.

I am pursuing my complaint with my State's Department of Justice as well as the State of California's Attorney General. I am also obtaining a private attorney for guidance. This company should not be able to continue business in this manner. We, the consumer, must take some kind of action. Yes, we messed up with the IRS, but it doesn't give American Tax Relief the right to take advantage of that - they advertise that they can help settle with the IRS for past due taxes, they advertise that we would never have to communicate directly with the IRS that they will speak on your behalf, they say that you may pay much less than what is owed but you end up paying more. A lot more.

American Tax Relief told us it would cost $3,250 to do an offer in compromise. We signed their authorization form which states that $3,250 would be charged on our credit card. We wound up paying them $6,500 because they ran it through twice. The credit card company is ging to file a fraud complaint against them.

"Eli" told me that the IRS debt could be settled for $10,000, but the completed offer that ATR sent me showed that I have to pay the IRS over $40,000, even though I owe them $65,000.

i paid ATR $3200 after a free consultation in which they promised me that they could help me with my case. I explained my entire financial situation to them and they said they would file an offer in comprimise and get my tax problems solved. 14 months later, after i did 98% of the work, the irs says they will not accept any offer, i am to pay up in full. Now ATR says too bad, so sorry. I divulged complete & accurate info to ATR before i ever paid them. They completely lied to me, accepted money under false pretenses. Now i'm in worse shape than before & have been financially & mentally damaged!

My husband and I hired American Tax Relief to represent us in arranging payment plans for our 2002 Federal and State Income tax reports. Our contact is Jim Fleming. Unfortunately, after paying their service fee which is a total of $6,000 plus fees, we were unable to begin the payment plan because my husband was still unemployed (since Sept. 11th of 2001). My husband just got a job and started working in March of this year 2006. Two weeks ago, my employer received a notice from the Franchise Tax Board to commence deductions from my payroll effective 5/12/06.

I faxed a copy of this FTB notice to Jim Fleming at American Tax Relief requesting they resume their services to represent us on this matter so we can now begin to make payments. Mr. Fleming contacted my husband and noted their service contract with us expired and that we needed to pay them a new fee of $3,000.00 to get re-started services. Of course, we were not going to pay them again. Well, on April 28th, they must of had a record of our checking account number and was able to debit our account for an intial fee of $1,550.00.

I was bilked out of almost $12,000 by American Tax Relief and was lied to right down the line. I never spoke with an attorney even though I was told a firm of tax attorneys would be handling my case. They told me that they could cut my debt in half or at least by twice whatever I paid them. They asked for additional monies three times using various excuses while I waited for resolution. I checked these excuses out with the IRS and California State Franchise Tax Board and was told that they had "misinfomed" me and that they had only contacted each agency once in the entire 7 months that I've been waiting to have my tax situation resolved.

Now, I've just been informed that the State has put a lien on my properties and the IRS has given me another 4 weeks to settle with them. Both of them told me that I cannot qualify for an "Offer in Compromise" as I was told by American Tax and that my only hope is to set up a payment plan (which, of course, I can't afford). Now I owe additional monies in fines, interest and am out the $12,000 I paid American Tax.

I paid American Tax Relief $3,900 to assist me in resolving a tax problem I had and still currently is having with the IRS. The IRS notified me of there intent to place a levy on my bank account months after I had contact Mr. B. H, for his company's assistance. However, just as the other individual complained about never receiving call backs, I was hung up on, I would call everyday to see what was going on with my account, and all I was told was my case was transferred to a different department. Interestingly enough, I continued to contact Mr. B and everytime it seem as though the phone rep would get angry and tell me that Mr. B was not availble and he would give him my message and ask to wait for his call back.

Mr B. would never call. Once Mr. B called back after I had to tell him that I would go to the media if he refused to return my call within 48hrs. He called back to tell me that his other rep was working on my case. They caused me to loose 10k from my checking account.

I paid American Tax Relief $3,600 to assist me in resolving a tax problem I had becausse the IRS had notified me of there intent to place a levy. Come to find out two years later they did not ever take care of the issue. Now the IRS has removed every dollar I had in the bank including my checking account which I ended up writing bad checks on because I was unaware it was going to happen and put a levy on most of my salary, leaving me with approximately $160 per week to live on.

Interestingly enough, when I try to contact American Tax Relief, the phone reps become excited, start yelling to co-workers, put me on hold, then come back to tell me a supervisor will have to speak to me and then HANG UP. During one phone call though, they told me if I now pay them $3,800 they could take care of this for me. If all of this is not enough, I called the IRS myself and am taking care of having everything resolved. Come to find out they are very helpful and everything that American Tax Relief promised to do for me, I can take care of myself.

I hope someone else reads this and isn't too nervous to contact the IRS directly!!! Now if I can figure out a way to get my money back from American Tax Relief I'll be brand new. Doubt that will happen though, considering I have yet to receive a phone call back from one of those managers I need to speak to and I have given them 3 different contact numbers.

Oh my God! I guess I’m not alone. I paid $3400 to them and they got nothing done for me. I was told that I didn’t have to talk to the IRS and they would handle everything for me. Well, that didn’t happen. The IRS has me in knots. I’ve called so many times and no return calls from them. Some guy name Steve is the last one I got a hold of. He said someone name Lucy would call me back. It’s been a month now.

I first contacted them in 2003. I spoke to Joe. He sold me . Boy, He’s good. He made claims and guarantees that never happened. I consider myself to be pretty sharp and can see through the Bull^%#. I guess I was way off on this one. I’m planning to try to contact all folks who were ripped off and get a class action suit going against these guy’s/ The one thing I have on my side is. media contacts and I plane to use my resources.

After reading numerous complaints concerning American Tax Relief, I know I am not alone! My husband and I have been victomized by this company as well. After reading complaints, we too report the same treatment. We have all been victomized by this company and their contracters. I myself wrote to the State Attorney General of Calif. If enough complaints are received, I believe the the State will look into their business practices. We too were told that no refund was due because of contract agreement. I believe a contract involves both parties and American Tax Relief did not perform under their own contract agreement.

I paid their fee and have not had any return phone calls or any sort of resolution to my tax debt. They have hung up on my repeatedly and nothing has happened.

I had been trying to negotiate with the Georgia Revenue Department to pay back owed taxes. I was having no success as a lay person dealing with a tax department. Like a fool,I contacted American Tax Relief on 9/15/2004 I spoke with Joe B and explained my situation and felt I needed assistance with completing an arrangement for payment. It is now 8/7/2005. I have spent countless hours trying to get them to even answer a phone call. To date they have never called,written or taken any initiative to treat me as a client.

Finally in Feb. 2005 they sent me a financial form to send to the Georgia Tax Department for an Offer and Compromise there was so many typing errors I had to return it to them. They took $5000 from me and now tell me they just found out that Georgia made a new rule that an Offer and Compromise can only be submitted every 10 years and my contact and converations with Georgia Revenue Department constitutes an Offer. I reminded them that I had told ATR I had made an Offer to Georgia in my initial conversation with Mr. B and that I had sent them all my records of negotation with Ga. Actually it was a question I answered on a financial form they sent me.

So the fact is they knew and saw an open door to get my money and/or negligently by accepting a case saying they were experts in tax resolution and don't know what they are doing and took my money.

On or about April 15th 2005 we entered into an agreement with American Tax Relief to assist us with reduction of our tax bill. Their representative, Ted G, told us their services included reviewing and submitting our 2004 tax return and negotiating with the IRS for a reduced settlement of tax liability. Based upon Mr. G’s assurances we signed with ATR and paid a fee of $3900.00. Since that time we have sought progress reports without success. Of late, they have even refuted claims made by Mr. G who is no longer employed with that company. We have expressed our deep dissatisfaction with the company through our current contact Norma. She advised us to call their 1800 number and arrange to close the file and apply for a refund. The contact on said number was very rude when we requested a refund, refusing such and hung up on us.

In September 2003 my husband contacted American Tax Relief for help with tax debt from a defunct business. They took $1600.00 from his account and $1600.00 from my account and sent us a questionnaire. As I am putting this years tax stuff away I asked my husband how our tax issue was being handled. He didn't know, as they never contacted him. I called (800)252-9528 and asked for a refund since I feel they basically took our money and then forgot us. I spoke with a man who said his name was Bob. I explained what had happened and he told me that they never received our paperwork and they did make one follow-up call.

I asked for a refund since they had not done anything for us and he explained that the case is too old, the money was for legal representation and there will be no refund. I asked how they could have provided legal representation when they didn't receive our paperwork. He said that they had been in touch with the IRS on our behalf. I then asked for proof and he said no that it was private information.

Paid $3,600.00 to handle case of past due IRS Federal Taxes. Started case lat August 2004 and April 2005 still nothing. Not even garnishments stopped. Cannot get anyone to respond at company .