Optima Tax Relief LLC

SUMMARY -
Optima Tax's management has made multiple attempts to contact
the client with no success. 
 
RESPONSE
-
Optima Tax’s management has attempted to contact the client to
discuss his claims as outlined in the complaint, however, the client has been...

unresponsive
unfortunately. Optima Tax had actually attempted to address his concerns back
in August but the client was also unresponsive then as well.
 
In hopes
of addressing the client’s concerns, we would like to state that contrary to
his claim that Optima Tax had closed his case without a resolution in place, Optima
Tax had provided its representation as outlined in the Client Services
Agreement. In doing so, we were able to release a levy that was in place,
protected his assets and set up an affordable payment plan to pay off the
balance without any further action taken by the IRS. As such, there were no
false promises given as we were very transparent with our clients and the
services Optima was providing. The IRS does have certain programs that will allow
a tax payer to reduce their debt. Based on our financial analyses, however, the
client was in a position to pay his liability in full, therefore, he did not
qualify for such programs.
 
At Optima Tax we strive to uphold the philosophy that
"clients come first" and all of our representatives go through rigorous training to assure we abide by that
philosophy. We take all complaints very seriously, and we do our best to turn
them around when possible. Optima Tax
believes it took the necessary steps to address the clients concerns and
considers the matter closed. Please do not hesitate to contact Optima Tax with
any questions. Thank you.

I had an IRS issue that went back quite a few years. I had been paying monthly on an agreed plan for several years, but the penalties and interest just kept me from making ever paying it off. I had herd many ads and received many offers in the mail to help me solve my debt and when I heard Optima's ad, I looked them on line and then made the call. From the first call I was very impressed, I knew I needed a team of tax attorneys and CPA's to help me and it' wouldn't be cheap, but I couldn't afford not to hire someone to help me. Once they took over I could sleep at night and not worry about calls or letters in the mail! They stayed in constant touch with me by phone and email throughout the process and responded quickly to my calls and emails. They filed an Offer and Compromise and thank goodness the IRS accepted it. Even if they hadn't I feel Optima was thorough and asked all the right questions. I kept them informed of any changes to my situation and responded quickly to their requests. Once my case was resolved they continued to stay in touch and help me make sure this doesn't happen again. Thank you to the Optima Team!!!

SUMMARY -
Optima Tax's management has attempted to make contact with the
client but they have...

yet to return any messages or emails.
 
RESPONSE
-
Optima Tax’s management has made multiple attempts to reach the
client both by phone and by email without a response. As the client stated, she
contacted Optima Tax regarding her outstanding tax liability. Her assigned Tax
Associate educated the client as to our process and why we must conduct a
thorough investigation into her case and the client ultimately agreed to move
forward.
 
During
our recorded compliance calls, which every client goes through, the client is
asked a serious of questions covering all disclosures and all details of the
program they are enrolling into. During the call, we inform the client that
some of the information we obtain from the tax authority during our
investigation of the client’s tax situation may be information the client
already knows of. After all disclosures are made and the client clearly
expresses they fully understand the terms of their program enrollment we then continue
moving forward. In this particular instance, the client agreed to move forward
after full disclosures were made and they had a clear understanding of their
program details.  Subsequently, Optima
Tax conducted and completed their investigation services. The information we
obtained from the IRS is used to formulate our strategy to help resolve the
client’s outstanding liability.
 
The
information we gathered and relayed to the client came directly from the IRS. This
also includes the possibility of the year she mentioned in the complaint having
a different balance than she originally anticipated. After going over the
details of our summary and proposed services to help resolve her liability the
client explained to us that she felt she had to do some research on the year
she thought had a lower balance. At that point the client ceased all communication
with Optima Tax. Her assigned agent followed up with her on multiple occasions,
but the client stopped responding. Until her balance reaches zero, the IRS will
continue to add on penalties and interest.
 
At Optima Tax we strive to uphold the philosophy that
"clients come first" and all of our representatives go through rigorous training to assure we abide by that
philosophy. We take all complaints very seriously, and we do our best to turn
them around when possible. Optima Tax
will continue their efforts to make contact with the client until a resolution
is met. Please do not hesitate to contact Optima Tax with any questions. Thank
you.

In 2012, I felt completely overwhelmed and thought there was no way out of my situation - that I would be forever in debt with the IRS because I was a dumb, young kid.
Joining Optima Tax Relief was one of the best decisions I made when I decided to take control of my life. The harassing phone calls stopped and the liens on my bank account stopped. Removing that stress right from the get-go got me excited about this organization.
Now after a few years, Optima Tax helped me handle '07, '08, '09, '10, '12, '14 debts that amounted to over $25,000. I am happy to say I am paying a mere fraction of that in order to become compliant.
Thank you Optima Tax and more specifically, [redacted], for helping me turn my life around.
- [redacted]

SUMMARY -
Optima Tax's management immediately
reached out to the client to discuss their concerns outlined in the complaint....

The
client has confirmed they are satisfied with the outcome.
 
RESPONSE -
Optima Tax’s management reached out
to the client to address their concerns as outlined in the complaint. The
client had referenced that he received berating emails about his payment he
failed to make to Optima Tax for services rendered. Like any service, if a
payment is not made as agreed upon per the signed agreement, the provider as
the right to cease their services due to non-payment. The emails that were sent
to the client were apologetic but stressed urgency to reschedule the payment so
we can implement our stay of protection. Optima Tax has a two Phase approach.
Phase I being the Investigation and Phase II being the Resolution. Optima Tax
went as far as including the remaining balance of the Investigation Retainer
into the Resolution Retainer so we can continue working his case as outlined in
the agreement. Although the client is fully aware of our efforts they decided
to work with the IRS directly.
 
At Optima Tax we strive to uphold
the philosophy that "clients come first" and all of our
representatives go through rigorous
training to assure we abide by that philosophy. We take all
complaints very seriously, and we do
our best to turn them around when possible. Optima Tax
believes it has addressed the
client's concerns appropriately and considers the matter closed.
Please do not hesitate to contact
Optima Tax with any questions. Thank you.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
[redacted]

I contacted Optima after researching other companies and actually being taken advantage of by a so-called "IRS Specialist" several years ago. I was facing a $1,100 per month payment and a total of $54,000 in back taxes. After contacting Optima, they were able to negotiate a $450 per month payment and reduced my total down to $45,000. The individuals that I dealt with at Optima were constantly in contact with me from the very beginning to the very end. Several things that I liked about Optima, in particular, was their professionalism, caring attitude, courteous service and prompt phone calls. Any question(s) that I had were always answered in timely manner. I am very satisfied with the outcome of my case. I'm glad that I contacted Optima to take this weight off of my shoulders and relieve some of the stress that I had built up over the years from this issue. My wife is now a client of Optima and she has nothing but great things to say about the way her case is being handled. I would recommend Optima to anyone who needs assistance, with dealing with the IRS. I am going to continue to use Optima to prepare my taxes in the future. Overall my experience with Optima was an A+.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
Whatever events that happened in our case you will always insist you did your part in very generic  statements .Thank you  indeed you put us in more mess and allowed your auditors and tax lawyers to be bullied by the IRS. Back and forth we will try to exchange pleasant words that will not convince  our belief  that you were not honest  from the beginning. How long are we going  to deal with this before we see any intention from you to resolve this case?  Now it is up to you to put this behind and negotiate your way to a finer result.
Regards,
[redacted]

SUMMARY -
Optima Tax has left multiple messages but have yet to establish
communication with the...

complaining party.
 
RESPONSE
-
Optima Tax’s management has made multiple attempts to make
contact with the client both verbally and through email in an effort to discuss
their concerns as outlined in the complaint. Unfortunately the client has yet
to respond to either our messages or emails. Additionally, the client never
expressed any concerns to Optima Tax directly until we received the complaint.
 
As the client
stated, we do offer a free consultation. The consultation consists of gathering
important information from the client regarding their tax liability and
subsequently providing our potential clients an in depth breakdown of how we
conduct our services and how we can potentially resolve their outstanding
liability. Thereafter, if the client is in need of our representation the first
order of business is to investigate the liability.
 
To
confirm, our services are broken down into two phases. Phase one being the
Investigation Phase and phase two being the Resolution Phase. During the free
consultation the client is thoroughly informed that we operate in a two phase
approach and that each phase requires a different set of fees. This information
is conveyed to our clients verbally and provided in our written agreements sent
to the client for their review. Additionally, for each phase we also have a
voice recorded Verification Call that covers all disclosures, including fees
associated with our services. With each specific disclosure given, our clients
must acknowledge they fully understand the disclosure by saying yes before they
are able to move on to the next disclosure. After reviewing the Verification
Call, the client acknowledged they understood and accepted all disclosures.
 
After
Optima concluded the Investigation we analyzed all the information we obtained
from both the client and the IRS to formulate a strategy to help resolve the
outstanding liability. After thoroughly providing this information to the client,
the client has the option to enroll into our Resolution Services or utilize the
information we obtained from the IRS to resolve the debt on their own. The
client ultimately signed up for our Resolution services to begin on December
23, 2015. As part of our services, we ask every client who may be eligible for
a payment plan as an option what their payment affordability is. Although we
cannot disclose the amount the client informed us he can afford, we can assure
you that we did not advise him that a monthly payment to the IRS will be in
excess of $4,000.00. Furthermore, the information we gather, including the
balance owed, comes straight from the IRS, which in turn we relay directly to
the client.. This is supported by the IRS transcripts we have on file that
solidify the numbers we presented to the client.
 
At Optima Tax we strive to uphold the philosophy that
"clients come first" and all of our representatives go through rigorous training to assure we abide by that
philosophy. We take all complaints very seriously, and we do our best to turn
them around when possible. It’s truly unfortunate that the client feels as if
we have scammed him but we’re hoping that once communication is established, a
nice conversation will help clear the air. Optima Tax will continue their
efforts in hopes of coming to a mutual resolve. Thank you.

I had quite a large federal tax debt they were able to help me clear up. It was quite a reasonable amount that they were able to get my debt down to. My only complaint is they do not take care of your state at the same time. Other tax services do and I did not know that until I had already hired Optima.

To elaborate, Optima Tax addresses each case we take on in a two phase approach. Phase One being the Investigation Phase and Phase Two being the Resolution Phase. During the initial phase, we strictly provide an investigation of the client's tax matter, which includes gathering all pertinent information related to the client's tax liability and formulating a strategy to resolve the tax matter during the Second Phase, the Resolution Phase. As stated in our initial response, the client was clearly aware of the services to be provided in each phase. This is evidenced by his signed Client Services Agreement and completed voice recorded Verification Call that clearly states that during the first phase Optima Tax would be strictly investigating his case only and no other services would be provided during this phase. Client was adequately made aware that the Investigation Phase did not include preparing his taxes. Optima Tax made it clear to the Client that it would prepare his taxes during the Resolution Phase.   When the client contacted Optima Tax he was up against strict deadlines and as such, we implemented certain strategy to avoid any further potential damage. We implement certain strategies to protect the client against enforcement action so we may gather the requested financial documents to submit and obtain the best resolution for the client.   A member of our staff has been in contact with the client as stated in his latest response. Although we did reach a preliminary agreement with the client to fully resolve this matter to the client's satisfaction, unfortunately the client came back and negated the agreement. We feel that the resolution presented and initially agreed to with the Client is more than reasonable considering all of the facts of this case. We will continue to our efforts in hopes of coming to a final resolve.

SUMMARY -
Optima...

Tax's management contacted the client to address his
concerns and the client has agreed to continue services with Optima Tax.  
 
RESPONSE
-
Optima Tax’s management has made contact with the client to
address his concerns as outlined in the complaint. The client expressed his
frustrations regarding not receiving a copy of his tax returns. Although the
client did provide Optima Tax with all the necessary tax-related documents,
there was a specific form that the client needed to complete before Optima Tax
could finalize his returns. After informing the client as to the importance of
Optima Tax receiving such information and the substantiation for his expenses, client
confirmed that all his concerns had been addressed. Furthermore, his tax returns
have been completed and sent to the client for final review before being
submitted to the IRS. We are pleased that the client has decided to continue
his relationship with Optima Tax and
that the client is satisfied with our services.
 
At Optima
Tax we strive to uphold the philosophy that "clients come first" and
all of our representatives go through rigorous training to assure we abide by
that philosophy. We take all complaints very seriously, and we do our best to
turn them around when possible. Optima Tax believes it has addressed the
client's concerns appropriately and considers the matter closed. Please do
not hesitate to contact Optima Tax with any questions. Thank you.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution would be satisfactory to me.  I will wait for the business to perform this action and, if it does, will consider this complaint resolved.
Regards,
[redacted]

Optima Tax Relief was an enormous help to me in my financial situation. They negotiated an Offer in Compromise with the IRS and allowed me to settle my debt for far less than the amount the IRS stated that I owed. They were professional, courteous and extremely communicative throughout the duration of the time that they worked with me and I would be happy to recommend them to anyone.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
I have yet to discuss the issue in depth with them, I did speak to a representative and explain to him that while I am traveling on business I would not be able to dedicate the proper amount of time required due to the nature of this issue. Their representative was trying to get me to sign an agreement for a large sum of money even after I explained that I would not be able to make the large payment, his response was " Just sign it and send it back, when the due date comes, tell them you cant make the payment and we will try to change the due date" is this for real? Stressing the need to resolve a matter with the IRS in a timely manner is a good thing, but using the scare tactics and pressure to get me to sign an agreement that I told him I could probably not comply with is a very shady business practice and they should be held accountable, I can only imagine how many people out there wind up in similar situations.
Regards,
[redacted]

Optima Tax Relief was extremely attentive from the first time I spoke with a rep to the final step with the offer acceptance. They were always on top of keeping up with any updates, requests or just checking in. Their professional staff was quick to handle some urgent matters. I highly recommend them to anyone seeking assistance. They are worth giving a call.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.Optima has not made any offer since we entered this claim.  The reason for that being they have not followed through on two telephone calls scheduled for discussion of the pending complaint.Our rebuttal/rejection to OTR's response is itemized in detail on the attachment of this notice. 
Regards,
[redacted]

SUMMARY -
Optima...

Tax's management has made multiple attempts to contact
the client to address his concerns but we have yet to establish communication.  
 
RESPONSE
-
Optima Tax’s management has attempted to contact the client and
we are hopeful that we can come to a mutual resolve. The client alleges that
Optima Tax is not diligent in its operations because it requested documents
from the client multiple times. When Optima requests documents from the client
it instructs the client on the specific requirements that are required by the
IRS for each document. Once we receive requested documents from the client, we provide
them to the IRS accordingly. The IRS agent receiving the documents will review
them and make the final decision of whether to accept the documents. In the
event that the agent decides not to accept a document, Optima Tax must ask the
client to resubmit the document. Given the sheer volume of documents the IRS
processes, there is often a lapse in time between when we send documents to the
IRS and when we are given a response. This explains the lapse in time between
our requests that the client identifies.
 
Although
the client believes his case is not complex, the IRS does not treat any case
with less scrutiny. Moreover, Optima Tax believes all of its client’s cases are
important and seek to provide the best possible result for our clients.
Therefore, we thoroughly analyze each case and this process can take time. In
contrast to the client’s belief, we were on the verge of finalizing a
resolution with the IRS on the client’s behalf when he became non-responsive.
 
Once we
were advised that the client wanted to cancel our services and was seeking a
refund, one of our Executive Relations representatives immediately reached out
to the client. We have no record of the client returning her calls. The agent
also sent out a non-responsive email urging the client to contact us to discuss
his concerns. Unfortunately the client never gave us an opportunity to address
his concerns prior to receiving the complaint.
 
At Optima Tax we strive to uphold the philosophy that
"clients come first" and all of our representatives go through rigorous training to assure we abide by that
philosophy. We take all complaints very seriously, and we do our best to turn
them around when possible. Optima Tax
will continue its attempts to make contact with the client. We are hopeful that
we can come to a mutual resolve if the client returns our attempts to reach
him. Thank you.

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted] and have determined that this proposed action would not resolve my complaint.  For your reference, details of the offer I reviewed appear below.
Whatever events that happened in our case you will always insist you did your part in very generic  statements .Thank you  indeed you put us in more mess and allowed your auditors and tax lawyers to be bullied by the IRS. Back and forth we will try to exchange pleasant words that will not convince  our belief  that you were not honest  from the beginning. How long are we going  to deal with this before we see any intention from you to resolve this case?  Now it is up to you to put this behind and negotiate your way to a finer result.
Regards,
[redacted]

Optima Tax answered many of my prayers and their customer service is impeccable. They were very comforting and helpful through every step.