Santa Barbara Tax Products Group

Review: I have file my 2016 taxes with [redacted] and choose to have my fees deducted from my funds. Im now aware that my tax preparer uses a third party for these purposes. Santa Barbara Tax Product Group claims to have received my refund, deducted my fees and attempted to send the remainder of my refund to me on the the delivery method I choose which was a direct deposit. They claim my bank rejected the deposit and therefore they opted to put my refund on hold. I contacted my bank and was told that no attempt was made by this bussines to deposit any funds and that they did not reject any deposits to my account. I have checked, double checked and triple checked with my bank and tax preparer to make sure all information was correct and accurate including names, routing and account #S. This bussines proceeded to hold my refund without notifying me or my tax preparer of such action and further more they could not provide any information on why they claim my bank rejected the deposit. I was treated rude by their representatives over the phone and at one point attempted to contact them with my tax preparer on the line and they decline to assist me with my tax preparer on the line. I strongly believe that an error was made by this bussiness or they just never really attempted to deposit the remainder of my refund to withold it for some unknown reason to me. They are now requesting additional documents such as ID of me and my spouse so they can take up to a week to verify and an additional week to send a paper check in the mail which creates confusion, frustration and further more am uncertain of what additional problems they are going to create in order to withold my refund even longer. I believe this Bussines is very irresponsible for holdind peoples money with no valid reason or explanation to consumers and not even notifying costumers of such action.Desired Settlement: I want to receive my full refund including fees for the direct deposit and the fees for having my fees deducted from my funds. Most important to attempt to let SBTPG know that this is our money and they have no right to withold it at will with no explanation on why and to also let them know that in the future they need to notify either tax preparer or costumer of such action and provide a valid reason.

Business

Response:

February 26, 2016

Dear Mr. [redacted],

This is in response to your

complaint filed against Santa Barbara Tax Products Group (TPG) through the

Revdex.com on February19, 2016.

Your complaint stated that you

used TPG to process your return. There was an issue with your account and TPG

needed to put it on hold. You spoke with TPG’s customer service but were unable

to receive the information you needed to access your tax refund.

If a taxpayer enters a

bank account that will not accept the refund deposit, the transaction is

rejected by the receiving bank. Often times this occurs because the taxpayer

has entered incorrect bank account information or the account is closed. In

these cases the receiving bank returns the funds to the sender, in this case

TPG. TPG has nothing to do with incorrect account information entered by the

taxpayer or the receiving bank’s decision to return the funds.

We apologize for the

inconvenience this has caused you and the manner in which your inquiry was

handled by our customer service agents.

Customer courtesy is an extreme priority for us and in this case, we

apparently failed you. All the customer

agents involved have been reminded of their obligation to always process

customer inquiries in a respectful manner.

After speaking with you on the

phone on February 19, we were able to resolve the hold on your account. On

February 20, TPG was able to process your tax refund and mail it to the address

on your file. Please allow up to 7 days for the receipt of the check.

If you have any more questions or

concerns, you can reach me at [redacted], Monday through Friday, 7am to 4pm.

Sincerely,

Compliance Analyst

Review: AccountNow refuse my deposit do to my error .I called up until the time I was able to receive an I bond I submitted the Ii bond TVG received my check back made to ACH deposits after taking their defeat fees my check is currently on hold after all information an indentity has been proven I madeapproximately 12 calls to TPG telling them there was something wrong before they received the actual check back the same day I submitted the iPod they made a deposit back to their banks very unprofessional and every customer service representative says something differentDesired Settlement: my desired outcome would be to honor myi bond send my refund to the notarized documentation which as a safe address or release my funds back to the IRS which has the same address as the I bond

Business

Response:

Re: Case[redacted]

Dear [redacted],

This is in response to the complaint filed against Santa

Barbara Tax Products Group to the Revdex.com of San Diego on March

3, 2015 regarding your refund direct deposit.

Upon review of your record, a Refund Transfer (RT) was

chosen when your taxes were prepared through Turbo Tax. On February 3, 2015 the

IRS funded your federal return;fees were deducted to pay your Turbo Tax user

fees and an additional deposit product fee. Your Bank rejected the funds and

declared the account an R17 “File Record Edit Criteria” and the funds were

returned to TPG on February 4, 2015. According

to your contract, TPG issued a Cashier’s Check on February 4, 2015 and mailed

to the address on record. The check was returned to our office as

“undeliverable” on February 24, 2015. Our

regulators require that we follow Customer Identification Program (CIP) and

Know Your Customer (KYC) procedures, which are part of the statute of the USA

Patriot Act. Once you were verified as the lawful owner of the funds, your

refund was released on March 9, 2015 and mailed to the address on record. Please allow 10 business days for receipt of

your check.

Please feel free to contact me at 877-908-7228, Monday

through Friday 7 am to 4 pm, if you have any further questions or concerns

regarding this complaint.

Respectfully,

Compliance Analyst

Consumer

Response:

I spoke to "ceo " [redacted] suppose to mail friday .we will see

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,

Review: I used turbo tax to file my taxes this 2012 and instead of paying right away I used the opton of paying when my taxes came through and have the money withdrawn from it and this is were the company tpg comes in to play, they take the funds pays turbo tax and then collects a fee to do so. Well the IRS took so long that turbo tax took the money out of my account and so they were paid before I received my taxes, so when I got my taxes today mind you 2 months after I had already paid turbo tax this TPG company takes the taxes and withdraws there fee without having provided a service of any kind because I had already paid turbo tax months prior. I called them and they refuse to give me my money back saying it was already scheduled and that there is nothing they can do about it. I wasn't aware that a business can charge someone a fee without providing some sort of service in return. This is only the first step if I don't get my money back before the end of the month, next will be a lawsuit, and I will use every penny I have until I get my money back. its the principle that I am fighting, you can't have run over the little guys without whom you won't be able to conduct business.Desired Settlement: I would like my money before the end of the month of May or my next course of action will be legal.

Business

Response:

Review: This tax group, from customer service being rude, as well as literally telling me "it's MY law" when I asked why she couldn't go any further with my issue. Her name was [redacted], ID number [redacted]. Seven one two seven seven four for those that may get this blocked out and another [redacted] answers.

Firstly, I had to speak to 5 different customer services agents. Each call takes a half hour being on hold. [redacted] was the worst of them all, and when she answered, she immediately put me on hold for another 3:37. Didn't tell me her name until after she came back. I recently moved one month ago, and gave my new address instead of the one "on file" and after verifying my name, SSN, status, refund amount and such, told me "my computer won't let me go any further, you're gonna have to call back." She even told me that there was "another call coming through" as if they have call waiting or something. Anyway, got to a manager and was told to upload my ID online. I did, but I just wanted either another direct deposit, or a paper check sent out. They told me they need my ID first. And it takes up to 4 business days. I uploaded my ID and called back; another half hour wait. I was told that it needs to be the front AND BACK. There was no place to upload more than one picture. I found this out after I went back and tried to upload via taking a picture with my camera (the first time I already had one saved). So NOW I'm back in the queue and have to wait ANOTHER 4 business days.Called back to complain. Another half hour. And was told that they don't even send the money back to the IRS; they hold on to it. Then it hit me: this is so they make interest off of holding people's money. The long waits isn't to verify your identity. Think about it: if someone somehow stole your info with SSN, address, refund amount, and status, and wanted a paper check sent,they'd have to steal your mail EVERYDAY, and then find a place to cash the check that is untraceable. I want my $4554 (minus fees).Desired Settlement: I just want my refund. Not looking for extra money, you can even keep the fees. Just mail me my check and stop this whole "verify online" crap. Especially when I give you all the info needed via customer service. Even if I was a thief, it's almost impossible to steal both online info, physical mail (especially those of us who live in apartments that require keys to get into the complex, and keys for the mailbox), and most of all, no information can be changed. This is the same crap paypal pulled with insane holds of 21 days. I'd be more than happy to enter into a class action lawsuit against them for this. They're holding refunds in order to make money off interest. I understand; it's a seasonal business, gotta make money where you can. But this is borderline illegal.

Business

Response:

February 18, 2016

Dear Mr. [redacted],

This is in response to your complaint filed

against Santa Barbara Tax Products Group (TPG) through the RevDex.com on February 12, 2016.

Your complaint stated that you were unable to

receive adequate answers regarding the hold on your account. You also stated

that you had an unpleasant encounter with one of TPG’s Customer Service agents.

Upon review of your record, a Refund Transfer (RT) was

chosen when your taxes were prepared through Turbo Tax. On February 9, 2016 the IRS funded your

federal return. Your bank rejected the

funds and declared the account “No Account / Unable to Locate Account”. You may contact your bank and provide them

with trace number: [redacted] for further details regarding the rejection

of funds.

If a taxpayer enters a bank account that will not

accept the refund, the transaction is rejected by the receiving bank. Often

times this occurs because the taxpayer has entered the wrong account

information or the account is closed. In these cases, the receiving bank

“rejects” the transaction, and returns the funds to the sender, in this case,

TPG. On February 18, 2016 the rejected funds were reprocessed and converted

into a check. The check will be issued within the next 24 hours. Please allow

up to 7 days for the check to be received at your address of record.

On behalf of TPG, I would like to formally

apologize for the manner in which your inquiry was handled by our Customer

Service agents. The customer agent you named has been reminded of their

obligation to always process customer inquiries in a respectful manner.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel

free to contact me at [redacted], Monday through Friday, 7am to 4pm.

Sincerely,

Compliance Analyst

Review: On 8/27/14, I received in the mail check # [redacted] in the amount of $17,428.15 regarding a federal tax refund in the amount of $17,494.00. Santa Barbara Tax Products Group failed to ensure the identity of the person filing or requesting the tax refund. This tax refund was fraudulently filed with the IRS. It appears that attempts to deposit the tax refund proceeds to another bank account were unsuccessful, resulting in the mailing of the cashier's check. The IRS has been notified of the incident, as well as the FBI.Desired Settlement: Santa Barbara Tax Prep Group must undertake a better process to identify those using its services for tax prep, filing, and refund products.

Business

Response:

Dear Mr. [redacted]

This email is in response to the complaint filed against Santa Barbara Tax Products Group (TPG) to the Revdex.com of San Diego on August 27, 2014 regarding identity theft.

TPG, on behalf of the Bank, provides a product known as the Refund Transfer (RT), through a network of tax preparation franchises, independent tax professionals and online tax preparation providers. The RT allows a taxpayer to have their tax preparation or tax software fees deducted directly from the tax refund amount instead of the taxpayer having to front any out of pocket expenses at the time of tax preparation. When your taxes were prepared online, a Refund Transfer (RT) product was chosen. When the taxpayer selects an RT, they direct the IRS to deposit their tax refund into a temporary account at the Bank. When the Bank receives the IRS refund (usually less than 21 days from the filing date), the Bank makes deductions from the refund to pay the online software user fees and account handling fee. The balance of the refund is then disbursed to the taxpayer by way of deposit to an account designated by the taxpayer (either a personal bank account or a prepaid card). TPG is simply a third party processor which serves as an intermediary between the IRS and the taxpayer.

The return was acknowledged and verified by the IRS, TPG has no reason to question the information provided. We have to assume that the application sent to us is sent by the taxpayer and that the sensitive personal and confidential information provided therein is their account information.

It is unfortunate that your information was stolen and misused. It is recommended that you follow the instructions the IRS and local authorities provide you in restoring your identity. I hope that this satisfies and clarifies our role in the tax filing event.

Respectfully,

Senior Compliance Analyst

Santa Barbara Tax Products Group

Review: The company received my refund and charged me instead of the tax person that used their product. My return was submitted without my knowledge and approval. I called TPG and received very rude treatment on the first call. Tried asking for a lead/supervisor. After explaining my situation was told to send in my tax return, ID card, SS card and I would be contacted after they completed an investigation of my claim. Made the comment, I was not comfortable sending so much info with identity thief and computer hacking on a all time high. Was given a lecture and hung up on. finally I requested my refund be returned to the IRS. Do not know what will happen, but I am almost sure things will turn out badly.Desired Settlement: Receive my refund

Business

Response:

Street

[redacted] FL

RE: Case [redacted]

July 21, 2015

Dear [redacted],

This

is in response to the complaint filed against Santa Barbara Tax Products Group

(TPG) to the Revdex.com on July 18, 20155 regarding identity

theft.

Please allow me to

discuss who we are and what products we offer to taxpayers in order for you to

gain a better understanding of our role in processing your tax return

refund. [redacted], N.A. (Bank)

offers tax related financial products through a network of tax preparation

franchises, independent tax professionals and online tax preparation

providers. Santa Barbara Tax Products

Group is a third part processor for the Bank and is providing a response on

behalf of its partner [redacted], N.A.

[redacted] N.A. provides a product known as the Refund Transfer

(RT). The RT provides the taxpayer a

method of having their tax preparation fees deducted from their tax refund

without paying any out-of-pocket costs.

When the taxpayer prepares their taxes through [redacted], they can

choose to deduct their fess from their refund.

When the taxpayer selects our bank product, they direct the IRS to

deposit their tax refund into a temporary account at the Bank. When the Bank receives the IRS refund

(usually less than 21 days from the filing date), the Bank makes deductions

from the refund to pay the software user fees and deposit product fee. The balance of the refund is then disbursed

to the taxpayer by way of deposit to an account designated by the taxpayer

(either a personal bank account or prepaid card). TPG is simply a third party processor which

serves as an intermediary between the IRS and the taxpayer and has no direct

access to the tax preparation event or the transmittal of the return to the

IRS.

The return was

acknowledged and verified by the IRS, TPG has no reason to question the information

provided. We had to assume that the application sent to us was sent by the

taxpayer and that the sensitive personal and confidential information provided

therein was your account information.

From

your inquiry, it appears that you may be a victim of identity theft. It is

recommended you take immediate steps to protect your personal information.

File a report with the local police.File a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission or the FTC

Identity Theft Hotline at 1-877-438-4338 or TTY 1-866-653-4261.Contact one of the three major credit bureaus to place a ‘fraud

alert’ on your credit records: Equifax, 1-800-525-6285Experian, 1-888-397-3742TransUnion, 1-800-680-7289Close any accounts opened without your permission or tampered

with. It is also recommended you

take these additional steps:

Respond immediately to any IRS notice; call the number provided.Complete IRS Form 14039, Identity Theft Affidavit. Use a fill-able

form at IRS.gov, print, then mail or fax according to their instructions. For your convenience, I have also

included a copy of this form.Continue to pay your taxes and file your tax return, even if you

must do so by paper.As a courtesy, the legal processing

fee of $25, and the 34.99 bank fee will be remitted back to the IRS for

processing. This may take several days to several weeks and is dependent on IRS

processing times. Please feel free to contact me at

877-908-7228, Monday through Friday 7 am to 3 pm, for further details relating

to the refund and return transactionPlease feel free to contact

me at 877-908-7228, Monday through Friday 7 am to 3 pm if you have any further

concerns or questions regarding this complaint.[k1] Respectfully, [redacted]Compliance

Analyst

[k1]Redundant. Keep one or combine.

Review: I flied taxes via [redacted] . The IRS sent my refund to [redacted] Bank and refund was processed by the Santa Barbara Tax Group Products. On Monday 2-15-2016.Rep#[redacted] advised that within 2 business days I could call and be told that my check was being mailed out . I submitted proof of identity on 2-15-2016 as well. Called on Thursday as advised was then told by Rep #[redacted] that authorization dept was behind and it would take longer for verification process he was rude asked for a supervisor transferred me to [redacted] who didn't answer I left message he has yet to return my call. I called back and was advised by [redacted] Rep#[redacted] that by 2-19-2016 the hold would be lifted and check would be printed . On 2-19-2016 website changed verification process time from 2-4 days to 7 days business days at that if I can't play with the IRS why can they ? I want my moneyDesired Settlement: I want my tax refund check and I want contact from the business by them correcting this known issue that other tax payers are dealing with as well they have my money just sitting in there account

Business

Response:

February 26, 2016

Dear Mr. [redacted],

This is in response to your

complaint filed against Santa Barbara Tax Products Group (TPG) through the

Revdex.com on February 19, 2016.

In your complaint, you stated

that after filing through [redacted], the IRS sent back your refund to TPG to be

processed. You spoke with TPG’s customer service for a number of days unable to

learn when your refund would be returned to you.

If a taxpayer enters a bank

account that will not accept the refund deposit, the transaction is rejected by

the receiving bank. Oftentimes this occurs because the taxpayer has entered

incorrect bank account information or the account is closed. In these cases,

the receiving bank rejects the transaction, and returns the funds to the

sender, in this case, TPG. TPG has nothing to do with the incorrect account

information entered by the taxpayer or the receiving bank’s decision to reject

the funds. Once TPG receives the rejected refund, the company has the option of

making another attempt to disburse the funds to the customer or simply

returning the funds to the IRS.

Controls are in place to protect

our customers from identity theft and fraud. TPG has requested that you provide

your valid personal ID to verify that you are the correct account holder. TPG

was able to verify your information and released the hold from your account. On

February 20, TPG processed your tax refund as a check and mailed it to you on

the same date. Please allow up to 7 days for the check to reach your listed

address.

We apologize for the manner in

which your inquiry was handled by our customer service agents. Customer courtesy is an extreme priority for

us and in this case, we apparently failed you.

All the customer agents involved have been reminded of their obligation

to always process customer inquiries in a respectful manner.

If you have any other questions

or concerns, please feel free to contact me at [redacted], Monday through

Friday, 7am to 4pm.

Sincerely,

Compliance Analyst

Review: It All Started On February 3rd 2016 When IRS Released The Funds To SBTPG. To my understanding a check was to be mailed as soon as their fee's were taken out etc well check printing machines were broken etc had that whole excuse till 2/5/16 when I spoke to a lady named [redacted] who told me that I called at the right time cause the machnes were up and running and to expect my check between 3-7 business days which it aint too bad but now its 2/16/16 and I called yesterday spoke to a lady forgot what her name was who told me to wait till today 2/16 and to call and check I haved called asking if theres alternatives overnight etc and there isnt I even got told my funds were to go back to the IRS.Desired Settlement: Get My Money Before The Month Ends Overnight Ill Pay For It

Business

Response:

February 24, 2016

Dear [redacted],

This is in response to your complaint filed against Santa

Barbara Tax Products Group (TPG) through the Revdex.com on February

16, 2016.

Your complaint stated that you have been in contact with TPG

trying to get updated on your refund timeframe. Since February 3, you were

unable to receive the answers you wanted regarding your refund.

Our sincere apologies, I agree that this should not have

happened. The information you were given

should have been consistent and your refund should have been issued in a timely

manner. I reviewed your case with the Manager and the team in order to clarify

procedures and provide further training.

We appreciate you bringing this to our attention and thank you for your

input and feedback.

Upon review of your record, TPG was able to verify your

information and mailed your check on February 5, 2016. Your account shows that the

check was cashed on February 20, 2016.

If you have any questions or concerns, please feel free to

contact me at [redacted], Monday through Friday, 7am to 4pm.

Sincerely,

Compliance Analyst