I've heard it was a good company so I don't know what is going on
I paid them to go back and fix my taxes that I didn't have filled out this was in late 2021 early 2022 and I've heard nothing from them I called and left several messages and they have still not bothered to call me back I just left another message waiting to see if they call me back this time I hope so because I don't want to have to name any names but I will
CT
Cassie T.
Don't walk away from TRA, RUN!
Please run, don't walk away from Tax Relief Advocates, TRA!!
I feel compelled to share my experience with Tax Relief Advocates (TRA). I initially reached out to them in April 2024 after hearing their glowing media campaigns on various radio stations. They promised a significant reduction in our tax liability and assured us that the process would be swift and efficient. After paying them $5,000, we saw no reduction in our taxes and, instead, accrued additional interest and penalties.
After nine months of no progress, little communication (none if I didn't chase them), and no resolution, we made the decision to sever ties with them. These past nine months have been incredibly costly—both financially and emotionally. TRA’s persistent failure to deliver satisfactory customer service or results led to our decision to end the relationship.
Unfortunately, our experience has been nothing short of frustrating and stressful. Despite voicing our concerns multiple times, we received no meaningful response. We were lied to on several occasions and, on many others, calls went unreturned, or scheduled calls were simply missed. It was clear that they had no respect for their clients.
I strongly recommend exploring other firms before considering TRA. Don’t be misled by their promises. Don’t tie yourself to a company that offers poor customer service and fails to deliver on their commitments. Don't go there!!!
AH
Anthony H.
Based on the ads on IHeart alone
Based on the ads on IHeart alone I would not use this company. In my opinio, thae are inane and intellectually insulting. Grrrr...
JF
Jamie F.
Worse than the IRS
Worse than the IRS! When you are at your lowest, scared about what is going to happen, this company promises to throw you a lifeline. For a nominal fee, upwards of $1000, they will do their "research" to see if you are eligible for an offer and compromise with the IRS. Once they deem you eligible, you then have to pay thousands of dollars for them to do their work. Then you wait, and wait, and wait and wait. Eventually, when you finally put the pressure on them to get this done, they will tell you that you are not in fact eligible. Then, and here is the kicker, the money back promise goes away. They will return a portion of your money, but not all of it as they need to be reimbursed for the "work" they did. Such a scam. They will have someone "fight" with the board on your behalf, but the board will say, sorry we did this work and you owe us for it. I would love to find others who have been scammed by this company so that we can look into a class action lawsuit against them. They need to be stopped before they hurt more people. I know I could not afford to lose what they have taken. Additionally, during all of this time I have been waiting, the penalties and interest (which they promised would be stopped once they took my case) kept piling up. This company is a FRAUD. I would also be interested in reaching out to news outlets about this company, and others like it (as I am sure they exist). They take money knowingly without living up to what they promise.
LU
Luanne
Don't walk RUN away!
Don't walk, RUN away from this place. Their tax practices are shady. I asked for a review of my past taxes as a citizen working abroad and they sold me a "TAX INVESTIGATION" package which cost a total of $1,600.
After the "investigation" my redone tax returns showed I owed $3,000 more than I already owe. And they just deleted numbers from the sale of my property which would have made my tax return fraudulent and triggered an audit with the IRS.
When I called them out on it, they apologized for the "mistake" -- the whole process was high pressure and unprofessional. Their local Irivine, CA rep Cynthia Wicks rushed through all our phone calls and the emails from the people redoing my taxes sounds and communicated with language nuances that made me think that they were outsourced labor.
P.S The use of the words "tax investigation" is BS. I was never under any kind of investigation in any way, shape or form. This was just their high pressure tactic to induce a false sense of urgency to their process.
JP
Jeff P.
For any potential customer…BEWARE!
For any potential customer who is interested in working with TRA, I would highly recommend that you read the customer reviews, as well as the customer complaints. You will see a visible pattern of all parties who’s been sold on a service for a “discounted” nominal fee and who’s been guaranteed a positive outcome for lowering their tax debt “by 90%”.
You will also see the common practice of paying for a service that leaves most customers having to take the reigns and do the majority of phone calls and emails to their assigned “case managers” to get any information. You will also see the common TRA responses that “ensure customer satisfaction” and that an associate has already been in contact with them regarding their concerns/complaints/issues - Note the timelines of when the customers contracted with TRA, their financial investment involved, and the general consensus of TRA not doing the job they sold the customers. Then look at the generic responses from the TRA Customer Service Team which states all has been taken care of and they’re apologetic for the customer’s confusion over the agreement. You’ll also come across them saying that they always suggest their customers call the customer service line if they’re experiencing any problems - Paying no attention to the initial customer complaints of placing several phone calls and emails in with zero response from TRA.
We all have our own unique experiences with TRA, yet you’ll see that the common ground is always the service they were guaranteed is not the service they’re receiving. And the financial obligations, for one of the “excellent five customer options”, is a major problem for the customers who haven’t qualified for what they were guaranteed and sold on. Sure they offer a money back guarantee…less the initial deposit which is based on used car lots sales tactics, and often times less 20% of the “service rate”.
All experiences are different, yet so similar! Protect yourself and do your research. Read Reviews!
LM
Lisa M.
Do not use this predatory service
Do not use this predatory service. They are the most inept company I have ever had the displeasure of working with. Two years ago they promised resolution or my money back. They promised if I did not save at least the fee amount, then I would be refunded. Well after two years of completely dropping the ball (including filing tax returns late and an utter lack of communication at every turn) the “solution” they offered is the exact same payment plan I already had through the IRS to begin with, that I conveniently abandoned at their suggestion, putting my financial fate in their hands. Now, I have paid them thousands of dollars in fees and they will also have offered to charge me to set up this payment plan that they conveniently told me to abandon. This company is incredibly unethical, predatory and inept. While it would not make the last two years of headaches go away, if they had stuck to their initial promise of a “money back guarantee” (literally the only reason I trusted them with a substantial amount of money to begin with) it would at least help bandage the wounds. At this point, this company holds the same trust as a Nigerian prince.
BE
Bernd
Fraudulent company
Fraudulent company. Stay away.
They will charge you $1000 for an initial 'investigation' which is 4 times the typical rate for this service.
They will promise the moon, telling you what great work they do, with thousands of clients, and expert staff.
Then they will ask you for a ridiculous sum to do any actual work for you.
But at the first sign of actual workload, they will stop contacting you.
They will let you get stuck at their callcenter, even the sales team becomes unresponsive.
In my case I tried to book further services with them, and they still were too convoluted to get the deal sealed in.
These guys want money for NOTHING.
They have zero interest in doing any real service for you.