Discussion:Worst client you ever had?

Mine? Client failed to tell me that he didn't file 2002 through 2006 when I prepared his 2007 returns. He can't be bothered to answer emails about questions needed for his tax return and it is 4-14-09. Extension time.

Michael

I did that a few years ago for a couple of non-filers who hadn't responded to further questions. Two of 'em paid up and came to get their info.

The third guy never responded: I put his records in storage and shredded them five years later.

Thanks Wonderwoman. Fortunately, he already paid handsomely and I have his returns done for these tax years excepting a a couple of pieces of information from him. I will extend him and give him an email this evening with the amount due and instructions to mail the Feds a check until we can finalize the return. He's had a rough go of it (health wise and in his personal life so I don't want to pull the plug on him just yet).

I can't be the only one with bad clients. There have GOT to be some really good stories on this forum.....

Michael

I wonder who this year's lucky two will be?

unfortunately still clients, they know where I live, I have moved several times and they keep tracking me down.

TexCPA 14:40, 14 April 2009 (CDT)

I gotta say that my best clients, bar none...are the little old widow ladies from our church. They are military like in their responses and very thankful. Of course they are all free (monetarily free anyway, people who do good things have good things happen to them). 8-)

I think there is something in the psyche of most clients who regard us as either an extension of the IRS or someone just feeding off their misery. Either way, I guess they figure that if they are paying they will answer when they get good and ready.

Almost there.....

My stupid brother is about to lose his 2005 refund, and he's got me to do his taxes for free. You can lead a horse to water....

and do you discriminate against widowers?

I'm not sure but I THINK he ended up in Club Fed for preparing and filing fraudulent tax returns for other tax protesters. He was a True Believer. Probably still is.

He is even with Georgia and owes about $2,205 to the Feds. If I do not hear from him by this evening, I will just extend him and send him an email to his Blackberry telling him how much he owes and to have payment postmarked by COB tomorrow.

I believe he might be thinking that since he hasn't filed anything but 2007 since 2001, he owes so much that a penalty and interest is just a little more to add to the heap. I would imagine that he plans to ignore tomorrow's deadline, but I have alternate plans.

Michael

Nah, free for life for the widows. None of them have a significant nest egg of any kind (one was charged $220 by H&R for a W-2 with standard the previous year) and the returns are very quick....maybe an hour from start to having a packet ready for delivery. Just for kicks, I sent a collection notice to one of the younger, more spry widows for my $1,000,000 tax preparation fee. She is paying me $.01 per week as a joke since I sent her to the collection firm of Dewey, Cheatum, and Howe. I am toying with foreclosing on her house next month if she misses her $.01 payment. All in fun. My practice is very small and I am still learning much so I have plenty of capacity so it isn't like these ladies are kicking out paying clients.

You know, you do bring up a good point. I never thought about the widowers (the Bible speaks of taking care of the Widows and the Orphans and I don't know any Orphans other than Annie who need tax work). However, it isn't really fair of me to exclude the Widowers. However, this is the South and few men outlive their wives but I can think of one or two...I will ask them. There is also a man who might as well be a widower because his wife is in full blown Parkinsons and Alzheimers and he is in his 80's....man what a shame. I am sure he could use the help as well. Thanks for the ideas.

Michael

I'll give you my experience.

I had a guy come in last week primarily for a consultation - not really to prepare 2008 return as he hadn't organized the information and really was just fishing to test me out.

As he was talking - the more he talked the more I didn't like having him as a client.

A very well educated client - a professional self employed person - got behind in taxes and wants to go straight. He's married with college kids - but - In order to obtain college scholarships for his daughters - he and his wife have been filing 2 SINGLE returns for years. For the last two years - he owed substantial amounts to IRS but never paid them. Never filed the state returns for either of the two years.

I take a look at the Schedule C from last year - right on the Schedule C on one of the open lines there's a $ 25,000 deduction marked Charitable Donations. I told the guy that was definitely wrong. I then see as a self employed person there were no estimates prepared for EITHER year. Client states they never prepared any vouchers.

I ask him about real estate taxes and mortgage interest - both are jointly owned by him and his daughter (not his wife - his daughter). IRS sent notices for delinquent taxes (in the $ thousannds) - never corresponded to them until recently.

Based upon the 2006 return - if I were doing 2007 I would have gone through a complete overhaul to correct a number of things - primarily - at LEAST doing a MFS.

I then look at the preparer ID information - one of the Brock types - one of those factory storefronts and proud to be totally unlicensed.

Took me a year off and on before they finally accepted something.

I have no idea why I just did not ask them to please go somewhere else. Guess I'm just a sucker. Did feel sorry for the wife.

So she found a few minor things, and a couple of things that I'd read wrong about her information (why won't they use computers instead of little squinchy handwriting, one wonders) and she came over today for me to swap in the revised pages -- and insists on taking all the "bad" pages home to shred right away because my "shred" boxes in the garage aren't secure enough for her.

In contrast, another client folded her signed 8879s around her check to me and a couple of deposit slips and the UNUSED envelope I'd provided, and slid it into my obviously-shared mailbox.

Go figure!

After dealing with him all of this time, he tells me that the IRS received PARTS of his returns from 2002 through 2006. Parts? How did that happen? He can't tell me which parts they received. I checked his transcripts and the only thin I see is an SFR for the earlier years along with the various penalties and interest. NIGHTMARE!

He claims that the returns were prepared by H&R and another local tax service but since then the companies or branches of the companies who prepared his taxes went out of business so he cannot get a copy of those returns. Before I file, I will have to determine whether his State returns were filed. He CLAIMS that the State as yet to contact him about any of this.

Sheesh, can this guy get any more difficult to deal with?

Michael

I remember this guy for sure - Last year he had one 1099 for $82K and didn't have a clue what a "quarterly" or "estimated payments" were. We all were near tears as he left with his girl friend and baby son, as well as with a payment voucher for $24K and quarterlies estimated at nearly $6K (none of the $82K had been saved).

On the phone he said he parked the truck in the middle of 2008 and went from 1099 to w-2, "so I won't owe as much this year!" - I'm waiting for him to show up - I'll bet this is going to be bad again!

Good luck Westerntreks

Client is a contractor. Built a house for a relative. They have joint checking accout via a trust. She paid him to build her house. Half was his money! Tried to claim all as income ( I smelled EIC ). No receipts, nothing. Told him "I hope we can still be friends but I'm not preparing your taxes this year". Had a big sigh of relief and probably won't see him and his familY at my annual Fourth of July party. Don't care because I make THE BEST MARGARITAS and after a few I won't feel guilty at all.

Happy "end of season". I hope everyone enjoys the vacation.

That's the bad news. The good news is I discovered a way to slow time. If you need time to crawl, use your vacation to do taxes. In fact, the week I was off from my full time job seemed like at least two months. If it wasn't for the fact that I had my GPS unit in the car, I wouldn't have remembered how to get back to this place! :D

I must send an email to the client from hell. His behavior is unacceptable...I talked to him via phone yesterday regarding his mileage logs and insisted I see them before filing anything else for him. I also insisted that he sign my revised tax engagement letter which excepted business mileage as an item where I would pay the penalties and interest with respect to a negative audit result. I emailed him a couple times to his blackberry last evening to get those logs (no reply) and I left him a voicemail to the same (no reply). I am tired of being more concerned about his taxes than he is. I gave him a break on the price charging $550 for 02-06 and 08....but they are very simple and quick returns when the information is complete.

Going forward, every call I make, every email I type, my time spent driving to meet him and back, and any consultation I do with other Accountants about his crazy issues will be billable at $75 per hour. I will not file anything until I am given a copy of his mileage logs and verify them as complete. He owns the logs and in my mind, they are justifyable....he simply drives for a living using his vehicle on a daily basis for his employer. He will probably get audited because he has $65 in W-2 income and $63 in itemized deductions thanks to his 2106 deductions for mileage and the AMT. His problem. Everything on my side will be verified and reasonable.

Michael