Complaints

The complaint text that is displayed might not represent all complaints filed with BBB. Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business.

• Initial Complaint

  Date:10/21/2024

  Type:Customer Service Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  despite numerous attempts to get this company to stop calling they persist by calling up to 20 times a day with different numbers, that I cannot block or reporft spam. I call them and their recording says to press 9 if you do not wish to be contacted any more. Pressing 9 does nothing. Finally an agent comes on and just stays silent after introducing himself. They leave voicemails every call offering tax resolution to a large tax debt I owe the ***. I don't owe any back taxes and they persist, and cannot be blocked or reported as spam. When I choose that option on my iphone 15, nothing happens. It's as if they have hacked my phone or found a way to avoid being blocked

  Business Response

  Date: 10/22/2024

  *** *****
  ******************
  ************************

  *** ***** is not a client of ours and we have never called him.  He may be speaking about the Alliance Tax in ********** or ******* (neither of which are affiliated with Alliance Tax in *********).

   

• Initial Complaint

  Date:07/30/2023

  Type:Order Issues
  Status:

  AnsweredMore info

  Complaint statuses

  Resolved:

  The complainant verified the issue was resolved to their satisfaction.

  Unresolved:

  The business responded to the dispute but failed to make a good faith effort to resolve it.

  Answered:

  The business addressed the issues within the complaint, but the consumer either a) did not accept the response, OR b) did not notify BBB as to their satisfaction.

  Unanswered:

  The business failed to respond to the dispute.

  Unpursuable:

  BBB is unable to locate the business.

  I sought the help of Alliance to resolve some old IRS tax debt from when I started my LLC. I was told that an Offer in Compromise (OIC) was the best option to resolve my tax debt. They said I would work with an attorney who would complete the OIC and negotiate with the IRS on my behalf. I was not offered other options and, when I asked, was told penalty abatement was not worth pursing. I signed the contract for Alliance to complete the OIC on 5/21/21 for a fee of $7000. I was first assigned Atty ****, who I was told did the first OIC wrong, which resulted in the first OIC being denied on 1/3/22. Atty **** also gave me incorrect information that ultimately resulted in my second OIC being denied on 2/9/23. During all of this time with Alliance from May 2021-January 2023 an additional $6821 had been added to my tax balance in interest and penalties. A total loss of almost $14,000 due to their error. Further, I was originally told I would have an attorney during this process, but both attorneys I had been assigned abruptly left. I was then told ****** ***, the owner, would manage my case even though he wasn’t an attorney. Under ******, I was constantly being assigned to different staff members, who claimed to be involved in my case. Often it took weeks to get anyone to respond to me, if at all. When I tried to talk to ****** about my concerns, he declined my request for a refund stating, “we did our job”. When I asked what I was supposed to do to address the debt, ****** said Alliance could negotiate a payment plan with the IRS for me, but this would be a new contract and I would have to pay them for that service. He also recommended I ask for penalty abatement for all penalties, which I was told wasn't possible in the beginning. In sum, I feel I was constantly misled during this entire experience, intentionally or due to negligence. I should not have to be financially responsible for the attorney error and poor business management that led to this outcome.

  Business Response

  Date: 12/04/2023

  • Our agreement states a CPA or Attorney will work on your case.  We have attorneys available to work on the case when needed.  A CPA was the case manager on her case.  At the time Ms. ********* started with us, we had an Attorney on staff.
  • The tax debt was created years ago.  Ms. ********* could have resolved the case well before coming to Alliance Tax.  No additional financial loss was created by Alliance Tax.  We did everything we could to resolve the case.  Her financial circumstances changed (for the better) which significantly changed the Offer in Compromise.
  • We spent more time on this case than most cases.  The hours spent far exceed the fee Ms. ********* paid.  We are already in a loss position.  No refunds will be forthcoming.

  Customer Answer

  Date: 12/05/2023

  Better Business Bureau:
  
  
  
  I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ********, and have determined that this does not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
  
  
  In response to Mr. ***'s statements:

  1. I have attached my engagement letter. It does not state anywhere in this agreement that services would be provided by an attorney or a CPA as Mr. *** claims. I have no record of that in any of my emails or documents from Alliance. An attorney and a CPA are also not interchangeable professions. Had I been told a CPA would be completing this, I would never have paid $7,000 and likely would not have gone forward with it. At that time, part of my decision to go ahead with the OIC was the security of knowing an attorney would be representing me.  
  
  2. I agree that Alliance likely did end up spending more time than anticipated on my case due to the first attorney completing the OIC incorrectly and the second attorney then needing to complete a new OIC. This was due to no fault of my own, which is well documented. I also have documentation of the second attorney, ******* *****, specifically stating ****** had done the first OIC wrong. 
  
  As
  I noted previously, the first attorney, ****** H, currently has her license
  suspended by the Wisconsin Bar Association for numerous failures to comply with
  their licensing requirements. Please see attached photo of her current suspended
  status.
  
  3. I would like to point out the pattern of self-serving behavior and interests Alliance Tax Resolution Services continues to demonstrate. For reference, I submitted this BBB complaint on July 30th, 2023. On November 20th, 2023, I received an email from the BBB complaint specialist stating “Unfortunately, despite multiple attempts to reach them, we have not heard from Alliance Tax in regard to your complaint. We will be heading toward suspending their BBB accreditation at this time.” I received notification on November 29th, 2023 from the BBB that the complaint was closed due to the lack of any response from Alliance. A few days later, I noted that Alliance’s status with the BBB was marked as “suspended” on the website. It was only then, when it negatively impacted his business, that Mr. *** provided a response to my complaint on 12/4/23, more than four months later. This is consistent with my experience with Alliance Tax Resolution Services. They were very responsive and helpful in the beginning and then almost to the day I paid the $7000 fee for these services, everything changed and it would take weeks, if at all, to get a response from them. Several other BBB and verified Google complaints document this pattern as well. I feel it is unethical and unacceptable for a business to practice in this manner and I see no way you could possibly provide quality and accurate services under these terms, as is evidenced by my own case. 
  
  
  
  Regards,
  
  
  
  **** *********