Consumer Affairs regarding J.K. Harris

from www.consumeraffairs.com/finance/jkharris
J. K. Harris



J.K. Harris• Consumer Complaints• Company Response
Gloria of Akron OH (06/10/07)i contacted them concerning my irs billing/ faxed all necessary infor including the pending lien action. i still expereinced the humiltation of a lien/ and had to negotiate an agreement wth the irs for my self they did not assist me in any way.
Barbara of Skiatook OK (05/07/07)I signed a contract with J K Harris on 11/15/06. I called and cancelled before the 30 days were up, by phone and letter. I called JKH on 2/16/07. They did not return my call. I received a release from my contract on 2/20/07, which i mailed back to JKH on 2/21/07. I called again on 3/26/07. They did not return my call. The recording said call would be returned in 24 to 48 hours. They intend to keep $745.00 for work they say they have done, but i have not seen any paper work. I paid them $2,700 and they say they owe me 1,955.00 which i have yet to see.
Christine of Westminster CA (05/03/07)
We paid $4,525 in 2004 and have received absolutely no services. When we mentioned this concerned to JK Harris, they responded that they had already begun working on our case. We contacted representatives from the IRS to verify this claim and confirmed that they had NEVER contacted the IRS.
We have been simply asking for a refund of our original payment and have received minimal response and ultimately an offer to refund about two thirds of our original $4,525. Until this day, we have received no refund and no service. Our penalties continue to rise and accrue.
Stephen of Gresham OR (04/19/07)
I went to JK Harris for help with my tax problem- I paid them about $3500.00. They have done absolutely nothing for me. I stopped making the $568.00 monthly payments and now I have them trying to collect the balance on the proposal amount that it would have cost me to get them to help me. I have bill collectors trying to collect money for services THEY NEVER PERFORMED! NOW I owe the IRS plus my master JK Harris.
Sylvia of Hollywood CA (04/06/07)
I went to JK Harris back in Sept. 2006 in hopes to settle my debt w/the IRS. They were so nice and helpful w/their promising words that they will help me remove my large debt w/the IRS. So... thinking this was actually the right thing to do, I put my down payment of about $850 which my daughter was kind enough to lend. After that, I set up an automatic debit of $218 to be taken off my account. Until this day they are still taking money, which is fine if they actually DO THEIR JOB!
I have had nothing but stress and frustration caused by my case specialist. She is careless, lack of follow up, no customer service, & above all, doesn't have a clue what she is doing. I have escalated my issues to a supervisor, and I all I get is them buying time. It has been almost 2 months and the IRS has but a levy and both my husband and my checks are being garnished for about $1000 a month. That's on top of the $218 I pay automatically to JK Harris. It is by far the worst I've had to deal with and so what do they do.
Kristen of Madison CT (04/03/07)The IRS put a lien on my military pension in 1999. As soon as the lien was lifted (I owed about $3000), J.K. Harris' cooperation vanished. They asked for the same, identioal information and I spent hundreds of dollars, faxing what each representative asked for, again and again, above and beyond the over $1800, with interest, I had initially paid.
Connie of San Juan Capistrano CA (03/21/07)Company is very responsive on the front end, untill they get you to sign the contract. In other words, high pressure sales. Once the contract is signed, they are harder to get hold of then IRS itself. For a 2000 and some dollar fee I have an expectation of a LOT more responsive customer service. Also, I would expect an itemized list of services performed. I thought I hired a firm to assist me in communicating and working out things with the IRS, instead I feel like I ran into a place that took my last $2000 and rendered no services, at least not to my knowledge. As a client of a firm that was given a power of attoerney top represent me with IRS, I believe I should be able to find out what services have been rendered, or actions taken in my name.
Now I'm left without resources for accounting or legal representation to resolve my case with IRS.
Mark of Shoreline, WA (01/31/07)I contacted JK Harris when I got a notice from the IRS saying I owed around $40,000 from 2001. It should have been simple to fix as they put all my business income, without deductions, as personal income instead of a partnership, LLP. Many calls and no call backs and when I would get hold of someone they would tell me my case was handed over to someone else. Finally I got a letter from the IRS that JK Harris was no longer representing me, by then my IRS bill was $50,000. I contacted my accountant and he met with the IRS and they said they won't add any more penalties or interest for 3 months so I will have time to fix the problem. So far it has cost me about $10,000 in fees from IRS.
Ann of Long Beach CA (11/07/06)I contacted them for IRS levies and they never provided the services they assured me that they would. I made several attempts to contact them via email and phone and my inquiries went unanswered until I emailed the president. I received a call from Ms. Garrett informing me that my representative had taken ill and that is why my account had not received processing. I asked for a refund back in August 2006. I received a general release letter, granting me a partial refund and I'm still waiting for the refund. I have yet to receive the payment or, an answer in regard to my refund.
As a result, I was losing over $1,000 per month which has resulted in me losing my apartment. I'm still paying the taxes that they were supposed to prepare the offer and compromise for. Once I receive the refund, I will get another company to clean up the mess, JK Harris failed to clean up.
John of Des Moines WA (10/24/06)I received a CP-2000 for an enormous amount and freaked out over what the IRS was asking for. I called JK Harris, met a representative who really was just a glorified salesman. He maintained that he knew some of the tax code, but when I went in depth to the issues, and explained that the CP-2000 might be an IRS error, he laughed and said the IRS will come after me and if you simply put down $1500 now, we can make this go away. So I did.
I was then making monthly payments to JK Harris and in total spent $3000.00. On the side, I was working with an IRS Taxpayer Advocate and eventually, all but a few thousand dollars were stricken from the CP-2000. I surely feel that JK Harris should have been able to do this. When I called them and said I know longer needed their services (because they had up to then done nothing whatsoever except request documents of me), I was told I would get a refund. It has now been a year and dozens of phone calls and yet, no refund.
Getting a CP-2000 does not feel good, and it is easy to feel a lot of fear. I think the JK Harris salesman capitalized on this, sold me the package and that was it. I tried leaving him messages on his phone, to ask for help, and never got a return call back. I would say, attempt to file the OIC on your own. I see no value in what JK Harris has to offer, and their customer service and response time is abysmal.
ˆ
Kelly of Denver, CO (09/06/06)We met with a JK Harris consultant in Denver and explained our tax situation. We told the consultant that time was of the essence because both my husband and I had received recent Notice of Intent to Levy's. The consultant assured me that JK Harris deals with this all the time. He asked for $500 and said they would get started immediately. I wrote a check for $500 that day. The only other contact I have had with JKH was when I call to find out the status. Each time, they give a different excuse. A form needs to be re-faxed because they can't locate the one we gave the consultant on the 21st; it's no longer that person's department handling our case; and on and on. In the meantime (months later), the IRS has now filed a Lien on me and a Wage Levy on my husband.

Ken of Oakbrook Terrace IL (09/02/06)Sums up like this. I had an issue in 2001 for taxes owed. I went to see JK Harris and disclosed all of my financial information. They determined that they would be able to take my case to OIC with the IRS. $3000 they took and now 4 years later the IRS levied all of my assets today without warning. I never got any calls from this firm unless I called numerous times only to get no information. They did nothing, gave me forms directly from the IRS after 4 years as if I couldn't do that myelf. They never provided me with any work they had done on my behalf. And now i called and wrote the begging for help and they still wont return my plea.
Richard of Hilton NY (05/21/06)We had tried to work with the IRS our self. But they wouldn't take our offer in compromise and the payment they wanted would have left us about $500.00 a month to live on. So we went to see Mr. Fenski who was working for J.K. Harris. We told him our story. He said that the IRS couldn't take our property, which is where we were living. He was sure that they could work something out with the IRS. He had worked for the IRS and knew they couldn't do this. So over about the next 10 months we paid them almost $1000. When we got the notice that the IRS was auctioning our property in about a month, we called J.K.Harris as we were told to do if we got anything from them. After a week we called them again, and again. After two weeks they told my husband that there was nothing that they could do! Mind you that we were told my this man that they didn't take cases unless they were sure they could win. Well, May 4, 2006 they auctioned our property, with us setting there watching them. Not only were we horribly lied to, but were left open for the IRS to take the only place we have to live. And paid Harris for this.
Joe of Arlington, TX (04/11/06)I received a Notice of Intent to Levy on back taxes. I went to JK Harris in an effort to get this resolved. I paid $500 up front and was pitched a credit repair deal for an additional $750, for a total contract of $3250.
JK Harris debited my bank account for a total of $1290 over 3 months. When I received the 2nd Notice of Intent to Levy I attempted to contact my account rep with no results. I finally contacted the IRS and was told that no one from JK Harris had made any attempt to contact them on my behalf.
Fortunately I was able to resolve my issues with the IRS myself. I emailed JK Harris and told them that I had spoken with the IRS, the following day a very nice IRS agent contaced me to let me know that someone representing JK Harris was requesting information on my account and did I want to go ahead and release the information. I declined and then requested a full refund from JK Harris. 2 weeks later I received a letter that said the request would be considered and that I would receive the answer in 30 -45 days. It has been over 60 and no check and no letter of decline.
From my experience this appears to be a serious case of conspiracy to commit fraud, mail fraud and wire fraud all perpetrated by personnel at JK Harris company.

Donna of Carrollton TX (03/25/06)Paid JK Harris 2100.00 for nothing!! but fustration. Lost my paper work several times, no return calls, no urgency. Received lien on wages and property two years after hiring JK who did nothing. I ended up resolving my own offer in compromise since his office screwed the form up three times. I ended up settling for less than JK Harris said was a "very Good deal".
Catherine of El Dorado Hills CA (02/25/06)On December 22, 2005, my paycheck was garnished, I got $347. Desperate for some assistance I found an ad indicating that JK Harris & Company was "the best", according to the Wall Street Journal. Mr. Pelle indicated that he would fax my Power of Attorney, to South Carolina, that night, so that it would be there in the morning, so they could get this levy released immediately.
After this JK Harris would help me repair my credit, help set a budget, etc. I sent in my budget, on January 6th, as requested, with a note that I could probably make it through the month. One of the "welcoming" clerks from the company had told me that the IRS had 30 days to respond to the request to release a levy, and would drag their feet until the 29th day. In the meantime, Mr. Pelle had set up debit withdrawal for payment, for February 1st. I told him that if JK Harris did not get the levy lifted before payday that there would be no money.
On February 1st, my account was hit for $176, and a second debit withdrawal of $123, both to an account that had $3.73 in it. On January 31st, I received a package, from my Tax Specialist (which she mailed on the 19th), indicating that I had not turned in all my budget information, which should have included three months proof of all my expenses. I called Mr. Pelle, wanting to know why this tax specialist had not even checked my file until almost 30 days after the power of attorney was sent? It was pointed out that this was my responsiblity, and that there was nothing she could do without this information. (As it turns out, the IRS didn't need this information, because my tax returns are current)
I have made phone calls to my tax specialist, sent emails, cc'ing Mr. Pelle, and no one has ever returned the calls or emails. Sixty days from my initial contact with the company, and afraid that I would have another garnished paycheck, I went down to the IRS myself. Within less than an hour my levy was released, and I had set up a very reasonable payment plan. The IRS was actually a delight to work with. The IRS problem is resolved, and their records show that in 60 days, JK Harris & Company had never talked with anyone regarding my account.
Norn of Nyc NY (02/24/06)
I received a notice of Intent To Levy from the IRS October 2005. I freaked out, and didn’t know what to do. I'd heard ads from JK HARRIS and they sounded as if they could help. I made an appointment for the very next day with JK HARRIS, to meet a representative named Ryan Goolcharan. Mr. Goolcharan looked over the Intent To Levy letter and went through a checklist of my financial information. Mr. Goolcharan told me that by signing Power Of Attorney over to JK HARRIS, I could prevent the levy and that the IRS would not be allowed to contact me or my employer.


Mr. Goolcharan also told me that, for a fee of $2100, he would be able to settle my tax debt for less than half of what I owed. I happily paid $500 down and signed a contract for an automatic monthly deduction of $180 plus a $10 processing fee (though I didn’t find out about the "processing fee" till later). I relaxed, thinking I had taken a positive step towards resolving my financial problems, and breathed a sigh of relief thinking that I'd stopped the levy.


My first sign that something was amiss was when I tried to contact Mr. Goolcharan for an update on my case was told that my new "caseworker' would be Mr. Huffines. I asked to be connected with him and she connected me to his voicemail. I left a message telling him that I'd just been informed that he was my new caseworker and I was calling for an update on my case. I left my name, ss3 and to phone #s where he could reach me. I didn’t hear back from Mr. Huffines, so a week later I called him again. Mr. Huffines couldn’t really give me any details of my case, telling me that they were just waiting for the IRS to "get back" to them, and that I shouldn’t worry.


Then I received another INTENT TO LEVY notice! I immediately called Mr. Huffines and said that I'd been told that by granting JK HARRIS POWER OF ATTORNEY, I'd be preventing the levy and that the IRS would have to channel all communications through JK HARRIS. Mr. Huffines assured me that this was the case and seemed genuinely puzzled that the IRS had bypassed JK HARRIS.


Well, as you can imagine, the levy took place, leaving me with only $325 per pay period!!!! I called Mr. Huffines, crying, to tell him that the levy had taken place. Mr. Huffines told me to fax him 3 months worth of bank statements, my most recent pay stub, my tax returns and copies of my rent and utility bills. He said that he would present these to the IRS to show that the levy would cause me hardship and that the IRS would then release the levy. I faxed all the requested information and waited. Then I called Mr. Huffines to get an update. Lo and behold, his phone number no longer connects me to him, but to a Mr. Rhodes voicemail. I explain my situation and leave numbers so that he can reach me. He never returns my calls.


I finally reach him and he tells me that Mr. Huffines is no longer with the firm so I recap the entire JK HARRIS story for Mr. Rhodes and he tells me "oh, we can’t stop a levy!", and he chuckles as if I should have known better! He then tells me that I need to re-do my 2001 taxes (the taxes that have caused all this trouble) and fax the completed returns to him before he can take any action. I do this. I leave more voicemails for him, with no replies. Out of desperation, I call the IRS myself. They tell me that they have no record that they have EVER heard from JK HARRIS on my behalf!!!! "Besides", the IRS rep tells me "You don’t need them you can just settle this yourself. They can’t do anything that you can’t do"


So today, I call Mr. Rhodes again to confirm what I’ve heard from the IRS rep. He asks "Oh is the levy against you already active?" and I THOUGHT MY HEAD WAS GOING TO EXPLODE!!!!!! This is my caseworker and he sent familiar with the MOST BASIC ASPECT OF MY CASE?!?!?!?!?! "YES!!!!" I scream. "well, fax me that NOTICE OF LEVY, but do it before 4, because I’m leaving early to go to the beach this weekend!" so here I am, on the verge of suicide, on the verge of eviction, the only way I've been able to eat the past week is my coworkers are bring me their leftovers, bless them... and this man from this company that I've already paid $1900 to COULD NOT CARE LESS. JK HARRIS is a huge waste of money. I wish that I had just contacted the IRS right from the beginning...but I was scared and I thought I was doing something smart. I WAS A SUCKER.

Desmond of Alton NH (01/31/06)I've been working with jk harris for over a year and ahalf to take care of my back taxes and have gotten nowhere except liens against me from the IRS now totaling over $13,000.
Donald of Acworth GA (01/23/06)Paid almost $3000.00 over a 12-month period and no work was done... Even a simple tax return was not done correctly, but the major thing for an IRS/tax settlment issue was not done.. It took me calling them after 8 months to find out my entire file had been lost.. However the paperwork for auto deductions from my checking account to pay them did not get lost.. What a waste of time and effort on my part.
Cassandra of Fort Worth TX (01/23/06)Went to JK Harris with intentions of filing bankruptcy to clear up my tax and credit problems. They convinced us that we did not need to file bankruptcy and put us in their credit repair program instead. After paying over 1500 dollars on a 5600 dollar plan, our car was reposessed and we received an eviction noticed. We ended up filing bankruptcy with a different company just in time to keep our car from being sold at the auction. JK Harris our money and left us in a worst position than we were already in. Even though they are included in our bankruptcy, they continue to harass us claiming that we still owe them 4600 dollars.
Nancy of Bronx NY (01/12/06)On January 11, I discovered a “pre-authorized” debit was deducted from my account for the amount of $200.00. On October 11, 2005 I met with Ryan G regarding issues I have with my Federal and State taxes. After discussing my options, I choose a plan where my federal and state would be combined I would pay a monthly installment of $88.00 which would be deducted out of my account. When I received a “welcome” call, I was told the contract I signed was only for the Federal and the services would not cover the State. Hence a second visit was scheduled and now Ryan G disappeared and I was assigned to see David W. Mr. W not only fabricated dollar amounts for services, but offered me services that I did not need at the time. He offered a contract for Financial Recovery Services that went along with my state package. Going forward, I signed this contract. I called Mr. W and asked him to void the Financial Recovery Services and re-contract me for the State ONLY. After several attempts, he finally returned my call, assuring me this contract would be VOID and in place a new contract would take its place. ON JANUARY 11, THERE WAS A “PRE-AUTHORIZE” DEBIT IN THE AMOUNT OF $200 FROM JK HARRIS AND FINANCIAL RECOVER SERVICES. I DID NOT AUTHORIZE THIS DEBIT. I DID NOT ASK FOR THESE SERVICES AND THIS CONTRACT THAT WAS NULL AND VOID WAS HONORED WITHOUT MY PERMISSION OR AUTHORIZATION.
Yvette of Salt Lake City UT (12/30/05)I owe the fed. gov. $6000.00 debt. .JK Harris said they could get me out for pennies on the dollar. I gave them $1750.00 +$500.00 that I was to pay the gov. this was 2003 -- now in 2005 my pay checks are being levied. JK Harris did nothing for me, But cost me a lot of money and a lot of headache.
Dionne of Piedmont SC (12/27/05)I went to the so-called local JK Harris office in Greenville to seek help with tax problems. I gave them a check for $245.00 deposit to start work for me on September 15, 2005. The money was drafted from my account on October 3, 2005. I faxed and mailed a cancellation letter to them on October 6, 2005 because I never heard from a case specialist. After calling several times and never reaching anyone, someone from the review and oversight department told me they received my letter 10/13/05 and I would receive a refund in the mail 45 business days later.I was patient and waited. On November 21 I was told by Jill T (I saved the message) that I would receive a refund by December 16, 2005. I never received it nor would anyone return my phone calls or messages to give me any information. Finally, after calling everyday and dialing different extentions I was told by someone a refund letter had been sent on 12/21/05. When I got the letter it read I did not require a refund because of a welcome call and credit reports were ordered, none of which I received. I want my entire $245.00 back because their services were never rendered.
Yolanda of Bedford OH (12/19/05)I spoke with Curtis in regards to refunding my money of $1100. I initially signed up with JK Harris to help prevent a garnishment regarding an eviction. Not only were they not able to stop the eviction but also said they would not be able to be able to repair my credit which they promised in their sales pitch. So not only did I end up paying 25% of my paycheck for entire year but also the $92 a month charge they deducted out of my checking acct. Curtis only agrees to pay around $462 after I sign a form full of legal jargon and mail back to them. Probably to prevent any legal action.
Jamie of Bonney Lake WA (11/15/05)I received a letter in the mail in August 2004 from JK Harris stating that they could help me with my defaulted student loan. I made an appointment and met with Rick Hane in the Tacoma office on September 28, 2004. At that time I was assured that there should be no problem helping me with this service. Due to my circumstances the loan would probably be dischageable. At that I time I wrote 2 checks both for $195.00 each. 1 to be paid on 9/28/04 and 1 to be paid on 10/28/04 as part of the intitial fee to start the process. In addition to that I had to set up a direct debit from my checking account for $79.50 each month plus a $3.00 fee for another 10 months. A few days later I got the welcome letter and forms I need to fill out and sign. I returned them and waited. A while later I called and talked to Paige to see what was going on and was told they needed more information from me. I needed to sent in all my tax return information and all my student loan documentation. I mailed them all that information. About a month went by and I hadn't heard anything so I decided to call again. When I called my case had been transfered to some else. They said they never received the information I mailed so I faxed 70 pages to there office. Finally...after an imediate follow up call they were able to proceed. They issued a letter for discharge that came back as not applicable to my situation??? I started getting harrassing, mean phone calls at home and at work. So I called again to find out what they were doing about my case and my case again had been transffered to Jessica. I reported all these phone calls and sent the letters I receiving in the mail to Jessica. I was reassured over and over again that this was going to be taken care of, that they could not garnish my wages..etc.. Jessica then filed another discharge letter in 9/05, a year later, that came back denied as well. In the process of that letter I sent her the intent to garnish my wages letter that the collection agency had sent to me. On the letter it gave a date that this needed to be addressed by. The second discharge letter came back denied as well on 10/24/05. On 11/14/05 my employer received a garnishment. I never received a phone call fron Jessica after receipt of the denied discharge os even a letter. I called Jessica on 11/14/05 and left a voicemail for her about the garnishment. On 11/15/05 I called Jessica again and once again the only thing she could tell me is that my case had been transferred to Gail. When I called and talked to Gail she said there was really nothing they could do now that the garnishment was in place, unless I could pay 3 months up front. So, now I am having 20% of my monthly income garnished and alls what they can tell me is sorry!!!! I have taken the day off work to try to get to the bottom of this and apparently there are no supervisors or management at JK Harris becuase nobody knows who they are. I am so upset that after paying them about $1200.00 it took them over a year to file 2 discharge letters and get my wages garnished mean while the intrest on my student loan has been accruing. I will NEVER suggest them to anyone I know!!!
Steve of Colorado Springs CO (10/30/05)I have paid JK Harris close to $1000 and have not had squat done. I've had to send tax papers twice, and nobody will call me back. I've dealt with the IRS and state taxes to try to get levies lifted. I cannot believe I'm paying this out, and doing all this myself....Never again!
Jeffrey of Gaithersburg MD (08/25/05)I made an agreement for JK Harris to help me overcome an IRS bill that was not legally applied to me on 11-24-04. After I paid them a fee of $1,250 and doing no research, they advised me to let them get a small monthly settlement payment with the IRS. This was not what the salesperson and I spoke about. In any event, JK Harris received a cancellation letter from me on June 22nd, 2005. They have performed zero work for me and I have cancelled the agreement per the conditions of the agreement. It has now been 65 days since they received my letter and I have proof of delivery from the post office of the delivery. They will not return my phone calls or emails and I want my refund immediately. My Desired Resolution: Because of not performing for me any service whatsoever and obviously "hiding out" from processing the refund in a timely manner, I require a full refund of $1,250 received by Aug 30th, 2005. An additional late fee of $25 on aug 31st and $25 per week thereafter to be added if not paid by that time.
Angelita of Chicago IL (07/27/05)I enlisted the services of JK Harris to resolve a tax issue I have with the IRS. When I was contacted by them they promised the world, claiming that they can get the back taxes reduced, penalties, fees waived. Everything that people told me was too good to be true. The individual I talked to was a savvy business man on a North Michigan Avenue address and he was going to work the numbers and have all these things resolved. Well, nothing has been resolved except the fact that they have fraudulently continued to take money out of my checking account with out authorization from me to do so. I am completely disgusted that I fell for this. When I have tried to call individuals, they never or weeks later return my calls. You never get a person on the line only voicemail. I really feel that the Attorney General's Office needs to look into these individuals.
Lori of Casco ME (07/19/05)My fiance paid $2400 for an Offer in Compromise that he never qualified for. The so-called salesperson should have been able to determine this from the start. But that is not the way JK Harris works. There were many unreturned phone calls, lost paperwork, and a letter received from JK Harris closing my account before the IRS even made a final decision. After requesting a refund from the 'Review and Oversight Dept' and waitng 45 days, they still couldn't bother to respond.
David of Grapevine, TX (9/7/05): On June 22, 2005, I received a Notice of Intent to Levy from the IRS and on that same day I made an appointment to meet with Adam at the Fort Worth office of JK Harris. We gave Adam the Notice along with a great deal of other financial information so that JK Harris could file an Offer in Compromise on our behalf and prevent the Levy from taking place.
We signed an agreement for their services at a cost of approximately $3,800.00. Additionally, we contracted with them to provide us with Financial Recovery services at a cost of approximately $900.00. We were told that we needed to provide the necessary documentation for the OIC to their office in 7 days. We gathered the required documentation and delivered it to them on the 7th day (June 30, 2005).
We received a few letters from their office in SC thanking us for our patronage, but no real work from them until August. On August 16, 2005, the IRS followed through on their Intent to Levy by levying all the money in my bank account ($1,460.72). This money was needed to pay bills including electricity and water, but fortunately for JK Harris, they automatically debited their $358.00 payment on the 15th, so they still got paid!
We immediately contacted JK Harris, speaking to Meka, about this situation on August 16th. We were told that they would contact the IRS and would attempt to get the levy waived. After waiting two days for a credit to our account, I contacted the IRS myself. I asked if JK Harris had contacted them to "work this out" and was told that no one from JK Harris had contacted them. After spending the next 2 hours on the phone with a couple of IRS representatives, I was able to get the levy released. I also was able to provide enough information to the IRS to get a reduced payment plan that was less than what I was paying JK Harris.
The following day, we began the process of canceling our services with JK Harris tax recovery and JK Harris FRS. On August 22, 2005, we received an e-mail from Autumn at JK Harris FRS informing us that she had received our cancellation and would process it. However on September 1, 2005, another $135.50 was debited out of our bank account.
We contacted JK Harris on September 7, 2005, about the debit and were told by Kurt that we needed to fill out yet another form before they could credit our account. This would take approximately 7 business days.
At this point, I'm wondering if we're going to have a similar situation with the tax recovery services on the 15th. I am going to have to close my bank account in order to prevent JK Harris from literally driving me into bankruptcy.
I have paid JK Harris tax recovery a total of $658.00 to date and JK Harris FRS has been paid $371.00 to date. I have also racked up $372.00 in NSF fees from my bank. For the $1,401.00 that I paid to JK Harris, I have received no substantive services.
James of Mineral Ridge OH (4/12/04): My mother paid $4,000 to help resolve my past tax problems. I moved around a lot and never filed a couple of years. They promised to file the years I failed to file and obtain the W2 information needed to do this. My girlfriend ended up filing the paperwork as JK Harris sent in forms only half-filled. They fail to work with any sense of urgency even months after I signed up. They wouldn't reply in a timely manner to my phone messages, letters or emails.
The BBB shows them in good standing but refused to help me get at least half of my mother's money back. You'd do better to invest your $4000 in the Lotto than with J.K. Harris. The $4,000 my mother gave me to resolve my back taxes is gone and I still have years of taxes that J.K. Harris was supposed to file that I am paying penalties on.
Patrick of Winter Park FL (1/28/04): On approximately 7/31/03 I entered into a contract where they were to represent me with my tax problems with the IRS and with my financial recovery. They had set a fee of $2,250.00 for the tax side and approximately $1,000.00 for the financial recovery. I agreed to pay J.K. Harris $250.00 down, which I did pay, and $200.00 a month for help with the IRS. As for the financial recovery I was to pay $80.00 per month separate from the $200.00 per month. After entering into these two contracts I was to provide J.K. Harris with tax records and all documents pertaining to my indebtness, which I did do.
Shortly afterwards I became ill and had to be hospitalized. I lost time from work with no pay. Since the agreed upon amounts mentioned above were to deducted from my checking each month I contacted the J.K. Harris and explained the funds would not be available and not to deduct them until a few days, later due to me having to have the funds transferred from another account. The Representative, Ms Lee, who was supposed to handle my account did not return any of my messages therefore I had to go to her supervisor. I was advised they could not stop the automatic deduction and that I would have to close my checking account which I did.
I got a bill from J. K. Harris for a $30.00 stop payment and an additional $20.00 from my bank. I tried for several days to have Ms Lee return my call which she never did. When I finally got word to Ms Lee she did not call the numbers I left where she could reach me. She called and left one message on my home number which I told her office I would not be there until after 10:00 P.M. each day. After playing phone tag for two weeks I finally got Ms Lee out of a meeting and she advised me that my best solution would be to file bankruptcy.
J.K. Harris had not even spoken to me regarding my financial issues but insisted I continue to pay my monthly fee for the services I was not afforded. At this point I terminated my agreement regarding financial recovery but continued seeking tax relief from the IRS. I was assigned to a lady named Ruth Jameson who I had left numerous messages with to no avail. I provided all tax information as requested but still no return calls. In the meantime J.K. Harris placed my account over to collections.
I called and explained that they had not lived up to there end of the agreement to represent me and that when I saw that I was going to recieve help I would resume payment. I was getting collection notices from the IRS in the meantime. Finally after approximately two months Ms Jameson called me to tell me she was out sick and had just stopped by to pick her messages up and that she would work on my file the following week. Two weeks went by and I heard nothing. Finally I spoke to Ms Jameson and she told me her grand mother had "passed" and she would be out for a few days. In the meantime IRS was coming down on me hard.
I explained to the IRS agent what I was doing and they told me I had to file certain documents with them so that no further action would be taken until a full review could be made. I called Ms Jameson and she told me the IRS could not contact me that they had advised I.R.S. that J.K. Harris was handling my request for compromise. After calling the IRS they said no such report had been filed by J.K. Harris and I was due to have levies placed against me any day. I called Ms Ruth Jameson back again and left mesasages after messages. Finally Ms Jameson told me she had sent the forms to IRS but since I stopped paying on my account she could not help me.
I sent $848.00 to bring my account up to date. Ms Jameson verified that the money had been received and she would be sending me certain documents for me to review, sign and return. I was told they were going out Fed Ex the next day. The documents dd not come the next day, two days later or even a week later. I called back and left messages after messages regarding the lack of receipt thereof. Ms Jameson told me she had to rework my file and add some more detail and that I would get them in a couple of days. After a week went by and I had not recieved the documents again I called and called but no return calls.
As a result I have been turned over to collections and the IRS is on the dawn of taking all my assets, garnishing my wages and the money I have paid is for nothing. The mental anguish is more than I can bear.
Roberto of Sao Paulo, Brazil (6/10/03): I sent JK Harris my 2001 tax returns in July. I have not heard anything from them. Up until that time, I was in contact with a Mr. Cliff W. Since I live outside of the US, it is impossible to enter in contact via their 800 number. At the end of May I was in the US can called JK Harris, where I was finally attended by a gentleman by the name of Irwin M. This was on Monday, May 19. I was told that they would have a reply on the status of my taxes by Wednesday 21, or Thursday 22 at the latest. By the end of business Thursday, it was I who had to call them to ask about my taxes. They had no response and asked to call back Friday.
I called back Friday and they had no response and I was told that I would receive a call by the end of business to give me an update. I was also told by Mr. Miller that if I was not called, I would receive an e-mail the following week providing me with the necessary information. Again, no call and to date, no e-mail. Since last week I have been sending e-mails on a daily basis requesting some information. I have received no reply from JK Harris.
Damage Resulting: Fines related to late filing of my taxes, and possible non-recogniiton of my form 2115 (paid foreign taxes).
Robert of St. Charles MO (7/26/01): I am having a tough time with this tax resolution company (JK Harris) that did not do what their contract said they would (or anything at all for that matter) and caused me to get garnished by the IRS for over $3600, which started a domino effect in my life that has caused me to be evicted and has ruined my credit since I couldn't pay all my bills for quite some time. I had just re-established the credit after a bankruptcy and now it is ruined again.
To cover the $3600 deficit in my income caused by the garnishment that wasn't supposed to happen by signing up with this company, I was floating several payday loans at once and going deeper and deeper in debt. I finally was able to retire those, but I am still behind on everything except utilities because of what they didn't do. They were supposed to act as my POA (Power of Attorney) in negotiations with the IRS to do an 'offer and compromise' for back-taxes I owed. I signed a one year loan agreement with them for $3500 to perform the services, but then immediately took out a 3-yr loan at a finance company so I wouldn't have to pay off the $3500 in one year. I then paid them off in full before I even got the coupon book.
Unfortnately, JK Harris kept sending me notices saying they couldn't work on my account until I had paid my installments due, and if I didn't pay them immediately, I could be garnished since they were not my POA and were not working on my account with the IRS as promised in their contract. I called them and told them I had already paid. They would tell me they would look into it and not to worry if I was correct in what I kept telling them. I even offered to send them the cancelled check.
I wouldn't hear anything from them until a month later asking for another installment when I had already paid the account in full MONTHS prior to the letter. The back and forth with them on this issue became very frustrating! I was finally garnished in August, 5 months after I had paid them to stop that from happening, and after I had called them several times telling them I had already paid them in full so they could start work with the IRS on my account.
When I called them to tell them about the garnishment, they then told me they had figured out the problem and that they had verified I paid in full. However, they then tried to tell me they couldn't work on my account because I had not sent in the paperwork (past tax year information for years IRS was coming after me for), which I had sent in to them when I sent in the check to pay in full. I even have the AIRBORNE receipt showing I sent it and it was received! She then told me they had fired the guy that was working my account for not working his files and not performing the work he was supposed to. She sounded embarrassed when telling me that, but she had the gall to do so! It was one run-around after another! But she said she still needed copies of my records to proceed and asked me to resubmit them.
I told her I needed to talk with the IRS first since they had already garnished me and I cannot afford ANYTHING coming out of my check, let alone $900+ per paycheck (over 75% of net income). I then talked with the IRS and they told me the quickest way to get released was to work with them which is what I did and got it released -- TWO months later!! I then demanded my money back from JK Harris. I told them I felt I could sue them for a lot more for their incompetency and fumbling of my account which caused a horrible domino effect on my life, but I told them if they just refunded my money I would not pursue further legal action against them. The $3500 would almost make up for the $3600 taken and I could get caught up on all my bills and that would satisfy me just to get out of this nightmare they put me in.
I figured if I made that simple request, simple since they never did a MINUTE of work on my account except to harass me for money I ALREADY paid them, I would be more likely to get a refund. I was told via e-mail they were considering my request, then I got a letter in the mail a few days ago telling me my refund has been denied because I did not send them the paperwork that I had ALREADY SENT them once before.
There are MANY people out there in serious financial and emotional trouble because of the IRS, and companies like these are preying on us and trying to take advantage of us in vulnerable situations. I did consider suicide when garnished and had to go on Paxil for severe depression that I am just now starting to come out of. I think if I get my money back from them, it will help even more. I don't want to get a lawyer involved because they will want a third of the money to even take the case without retainer, and I don't have the money to afford to put one on retainer for this.
Report