Ron Ostermann Company

Revdex.com:
I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID ***g>, and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me and the matter has been resolved
Sincerely,
*** ***

Review: To Whom It May Concern:

I am an American photographer, professor and arts writer who moved from New York City in July 2014 for a teaching position in Montreal. I previously lived and worked in New York City for nine years. Since 2008 or 2009, I have worked with the same tax accountant, [redacted] My previous experiences were largely positive and I thought I had a professional relationship with someone I could count on and trust to complete my taxes in a timely and effective manner.

However, earlier this year, I contacted [redacted] to set up an appointment for Wednesday, February [redacted] at 2pm during a week that I was in New York City. We agreed in an e-mail exchange that I would pay him $400 to file both my American and Canadian taxes for 2014. He (or his assistant) promptly replied to a number of emails regarding this discussion before our scheduled meeting.

We met in his new office in Suite [redacted] at [redacted] at 2pm on Wednesday, February [redacted]. I provided my information for 2014 earnings and expenses for deductions as I am also partially self-employed as an artist/writer. He wrote down my information on a notepad and took my earnings documents, and we agreed that I would send him my Canadian earnings statement when I returned to Montreal given that I was unable to receive it from my employer in Canada until the end of February.

Every year, [redacted] has requested to be paid for his services in cash and I have paid him cash in full for his services at the end of each of our meetings. This year, I paid him $400 cash at the end of our meeting, which was an increased rate from previous years. We counted the twenty $20 bills together adding up to a full payment of $400. He said that he would send me a receipt and given that he has followed through with his end of our agreements in the past, I said okay to this, which was clearly a mistake.

He told me that once he had received my Canadian earnings statement, he would complete my tax papers within one or two weeks. When I returned to Montreal on Friday, February [redacted], I sent him an email with a PDF of the Canadian earnings and a request for my receipt of $400 cash for full payment of his services. He did not reply to this email, so I wrote another email to him checking in on March [redacted]. He did not reply to this email, so I sent him another email on March [redacted] asking him to contact me as soon as possible. I also called his office number ###-###-#### on March [redacted] - no one answered and his office phone does not accept voicemails. I called his other number ###-###-####, which I assume is his cell phone, and left a message asking him to contact me. He did not reply to any of these emails or return my phone calls.

Given that [redacted] was very prompt (within an hour, a few hours, or a day) in replying to my e-mails before we met on February [redacted], I can only assume that he is intentionally avoiding communication with me. Incidentally, I searched for information about him online and discovered a disturbing review of [redacted]'s services from a former client who describes how [redacted] also did not respond to his emails, phone calls, or follow up on their agreement. This client writes that he contacted the Revdex.com to report his experience with [redacted]. The review can be read here: [redacted]

At this point, I have given up on hoping or expecting that [redacted] will contact me and follow up on filing my 2014 taxes before the US deadline on April [redacted] and the Canadian deadline on April [redacted]. He has severely damaged my trust and wasted a lot of my time and emotional energy - as well as my money at this point - with this undue stress and anxiety. He is currently in possession of $400 cash for services that he did not follow through with in the manner that we had agreed upon both verbally and in writing.

I'm asking the Revdex.com to evaluate this bad business practice and unethical behavior and contact [redacted] to resolve this issue. His contact info is listed below:

[redacted] Ostermann & Company LLC

[redacted] P ###-###-####

F ###-###-####

Thank you in advance for your assistance.Desired Settlement: Given that [redacted] has damaged my trust with his lack of response to my repeated efforts to communicate via email and by phone, I am asking for the return of all documents he took from me during our meeting and a full refund of $400 paid for his services unless he could provide an apology, a valid explanation, a receipt for those services, and the completion of my US and Canadian taxes within the next week. I am in a position where I will have to immediately contact tax preparers in Canada to do the work that he has failed to do. In addition to contacting the Revdex.com, unless all of these conditions are met promptly, I fully intend to write a letter to the IRS to report [redacted]'s unethical business practice.

Consumer

Response:

I have reviewed the response made by the business in reference to complaint ID [redacted], and find that this resolution is satisfactory to me and the matter has been resolved.

Sincerely,