Media Contacts
Mary Hawkes, Director, Yavapai County Branch
Office: 928-771-1471, mhawkes@arizonabbb.org
Felicia Overton, Director of Marketing & Community Relations
Office: 602-212-2237, foverton@arizonabbb.org
With the tax season here, most consumers are looking for ways to
cut their tax bill. Unfortunately, con artists are always looking for
filers who are eager to find tax breaks. The Better Business Bureau of
Central/Northern Arizona, along with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
reminds taxpayers not to fall victim to a variety of tax scams.
Here are a few:
• No taxes withheld from your wages. Illegal
schemes are being promoted that instruct employers not to withhold
federal income tax or employment taxes from wages paid to their
employees. These schemes are based on an incorrect interpretation of
tax laws. Employers are required by law to withhold employment taxes
from their employees. Employers who do not comply with the employment
tax laws may be subject to criminal and civil sanctions for willfully
failing to pay employment taxes.
• Big refunds…for a fee. These scam artists
approach you wanting to “borrow” your social security number or give
you a phony W-2 so it appears that you qualify for a big refund. They
may offer to split the refund with you. Keep in mind, that anyone who
promises you a bigger refund without knowing your tax situation is most
likely misleading you. Never sign a tax return without looking it over
to make sure it is honest and correct.
• Pay the tax and get a prize. If you have won a
prize and the promoter claims that you have to pay the income tax due
in order to receive it, don’/t believe it! If you have really won a
prize, you may need to make an estimated tax payment to cover the taxes
that will be due at the end of the year. But the payment would go to
the IRS, not the prize promoter. Whether you have won cash, a car or a
trip, the prize giver generally sends you and the IRS a Form 1099
showing the total prize value that should be reported on you tax return.
• Improper home-based business. This scheme
purports to offer tax “relief: but in reality is illegal tax avoidance.
The promoters of this scheme claim that individual taxpayers can deduct
most, or all, of their personal expenses as business expenses by
setting up a bogus home-based business. But the tax code firmly
establishes that a clear business purpose and profit motive must exist
in order to generate and claim allowable business expenses.
• Identity theft. Identity thieves use someone’s
personal data to steal his or her financial accounts, run up charges on
the victim’s existing credit cards, apply for new loans, credit cards,
services or benefits in the victim/s name and even file fraudulent tax
returns. For taxpayers, it pays to be choosy about disclosing personal
and financial information. And the IRS encourages taxpayers to
carefully select a reputable tax professional.
Before you do business with a company, check them out with the
Better Business Bureau. To obtain a reliability report on a company,
visit the Bureau’s website at www.arizonabbb.org or call 602-264-1721 or in Yavapai County call 928-772-3410.