ComplaintsforBerkheimer Associates

• Initial Complaint

  04/11/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  In 2021 I filed my federal, state, and local taxes with ** ***** - our local tax collector is Berkheimer Associates. From September 2022 until April 2023, I have received 3 letters from them stating I still owned my Earned Income Tax (EIT). I also received a letter today about wage garnishment if I do not pay. Since September 2022 I have:- Emailed them my EIT and 2021 Tax Return 3 times to rectify (Sept 2022, Feb 2023, April 2023)- Called and spoke with a woman where we walked through my return and she said it was rectified in Feb 2023.The business is rarely ever open and getting someone on the phone took me at least a dozen calls of waiting and waiting. There are hardly any numbers to call and nobody gets back to emails. I have tried to email them through their website, but the site throws continuous errors about pages being down. I just want it to be resolved so that I can ensure my taxes, and money, are not just going missing.

  Business response

  04/18/2023

  April 18, 2023

  Dear *** *****:
  

  I have received your letter dated April 12, 2023 concerning the above named party.
  

  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The
  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.
  

  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has
  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.
  

  Sincerely,
  ******* *********

• Initial Complaint

  03/16/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  This is the third time Betkheimer tax service has said I owe a few hundred dollars for non payment. My taxes are prepared professionally and state and local taxes are paid. Now they have sent a letter to a new employee I’ve only worked at since 2021 stating not enough taxes were taken out- from 2019. They did the same thing to the employer I’m still working for since 2018, and had already garnished my wages from there that year. Despite my emails stating my employer had taken the taxes out correctly. This is theft and fraud, plain and simple. I want the garnishment taken off and money returned. Preferably with their same system of $25 per 9 dollars saying owed.  *****************************

  Business response

  04/18/2023

  April 18, 2023  
  

  Dear *** *****:  
  

  I have received your letter dated March 29, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain  administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  
  

  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or  complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  

  Sincerely,  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  03/01/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Back in the spring i had contacted Berkheimer to see what i owed on my account. We were in the process of moving and living with family at the time and i wanted to make sure all my accounts were paid off. The person i spoke to told me there was no balance on my account. The end of December i received a bill stating i owed $465.00. $440 for taxes and $25 failure to pay. This invoice stated i had 30 days to pay. Due to a lot of family medical bills i was unable to pay this full amount within the 30 days so i requested to be put on a payment plan which was confirmed and approved on Feb 08 2023. On this paper for installments it says a $5 fee will be added on to EACH payment. On February 20th we were able to pay off the full balance on the account and never needed to use the payment plans. However, the balance was for $552. I have been questioning where the additional $87 comes in from and they have told me there was another $50 fee added along with the interest charge for the payment plan. I'm not understanding how a company can charge a total of $112 in fees in not even 2 months. . Every person i have talked to has told me something different about the charges as well and no one wants to seem to reimburse me for anything. It's terrible this company can just keep charging stupid fees and getting away with it.

  Business response

  03/23/2023

  March 23, 2023  
  
  Dear *** *****:  
  I have received your letter dated March 15, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain  administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  
  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or  complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  Sincerely,  
  
  

• Initial Complaint

  02/20/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Sales and Advertising Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I moved to a county where Berkheimer is the local tax company in December 2018. Since then, they have garnished my wages a dozen times, including garnishment for years I was not a resident here or worked here. Sometimes I get a refund check, other times I finish a garnishment and immediately get another final notice before garnishment letter - even though I was just garnished and paid completely I pay my local taxes, I have local tax taken out of my check, I've never had to pay so much for local tax in my life. I've had thousands garnished in the last couple years alone. This company refuses to acknowledge that I am fully paid and continues to send garnishment notices.

  Business response

  03/14/2023

  March 14, 2023  
    
  Dear *** *****:  
  I have received your letter dated February 23, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain  administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  
  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or  complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  

  Sincerely,  
  

• Initial Complaint

  01/27/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Resolved

  More info

  I was sent a letter from Berkheimer Tax associates about a wage garnishment. I reached back out to them to set up a payment plan for the money that was owed. They approved a payment plan, and claimed they sent a wage cancellation letter to my employer. 6 weeks go by and they take 6 weeks worth of money out of my paycheck, despite promising that they sent a "garnishment cancellation letter". However, I reached out to them asking if they could fax it, and what ended up happening was they decided to fax my personal information, including personal emails between Berkheimer and myself about my personal financial situation, and I ended up getting into trouble at work. My complaint is that they released private information about me without my permission, private information that was confidential between myself and Berkheimer, and released them to my employer which caused me to get into trouble at work. I feel like this an obvious lack of oversight for confidential information. When I requested a call back from a supervisor, they basically told me that they have used this system for years and nobody has ever complained about them sending private emails along with the the wage cancellation letter. They told me that they didn't know that their system did this, which I believe is even worse, because who knows how much personal information they have shared along with their faxes. I really need someone to look into this. My complaint is that they took money that they said they weren't going to take from me, almost $500, and that they violated my right to privacy with my confidential information being shared. They did call me and try to say "my bad" but "my bad" doesn't get me right with my employer or return the money they took from me. I felt like they retaliated against me for asking them why they were taking my money after the promised to honor a payment plan.

  Business response

  02/10/2023

  February 10, 2023  
    
  Dear *** *****:  
  I have received your letter dated February 2, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain  administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  

  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or  complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  

  Sincerely,  
  

  Customer response

  02/27/2023

  The only response that I got was the message that was posted on BBB which said that they would reach out to me personally, which they have not. I am not satisfied with this outcome, I'm not satisfied with this being closed, I'm not satisfied with you not reaching out in any other way besides a message through BBB which is like impossible to read on your website

  Business response

  04/28/2023

  3/23/23  
  

  Dear *** ********:  

  I sincerely apologize you felt that you received treatment that was not  satisfactory from our company. Any complaint on your part shows a need for  improvement on ours. We take your feedback very seriously. We have initiated  additional procedures as a result of your experience with our office.  
  

  If there is anything I can do to assist you in the future, please feel free to contact  me at (800) ******** ext. ****.  
  

  Sincerely,  

• Initial Complaint

  01/25/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Unresolved

  More info

  I am receiving letters about unpaid taxes from 2018, this is the first time I've been contacted about this issue but I'm being told my wages will soon be garnished. I paid all my taxes in 2018 including local taxes. all emails I have sent to the company have been ignored.

  Business response

  02/08/2023

  February 8, 2023  
  
  Dear *** *****:  
  I have received your letter dated January 31, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain  administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  
  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or  complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  

  Sincerely,  
  

  Customer response

  02/08/2023

   Complaint: ********
  
  I am rejecting this response because: *********** in question has not reached out to me in any way nor have they tried to fix my problem 
  
  Regards,
  
  *****************************
  

• Initial Complaint

  01/20/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Service or Repair Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I have received 2 wage garnishments due to their inability to send any tax bills to taxpayer's correct residence. Not only did they send it to the wrong address, they garnished my wages because of a mistake they made in 2016! I have never received any certified mail from Berkheimer's and I had to pay fees almost doubling the amount of the original tax. It was a tax for Lehigh County - Allentown SD for $33.73 and they put another $100 fee on top of it. Two $25 fees and one $50 fee, totaling almost $150 because they **** at their jobs or it's a racket. I pay a lot of money in taxes and for them to come at me 9 years later for $33 and then slap on $100 fee, absolutely insane. I will gladly pay any taxes that were missed. They have to actually make a good faith attempt to notify me though. They're lecherous thieves or completely and utterly inept. Thankfully they don't do anything important like function as a tax administrator for an entire state..

  Business response

  02/08/2023

  February 8, 2023  
  
  Dear *** *****:  
  

  I have received your letter dated January 30, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain  administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  

  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or  complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  

  Sincerely,  
  Annette G
  

• Initial Complaint

  01/05/2023

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Berkheimer erroneously took a wage garnishment after they were informed several months ago by the issuing school district that everything was updated and since i did not live in that district in 2021 that i was not responsible and they had updated on their end and sent the information to Berkheimer in September. Now here we are 3 months later and Berkheimer just took over $300 that they were not entitled to take! I am expecting 100% of my money take from my pay to be refunded to me immediately.

  Business response

  01/12/2023

  January 12, 2023  
  
  Dear *** *****:  
  I have received your letter dated January 9, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain  administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  

  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or  complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  

  Sincerely,  
  Annette G
  

• Initial Complaint

  12/29/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Order Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  Berkheimer sent bills in both my married name and maiden name, and I had to call to get the wrong account deleted. They send bills for accounts that I have already paid, and they charge ridiculous fees like $50 WAN fees and late fees, collection notice fees, amounting to over $95 when the original charge was a $5.50 per capita bill. I have submitted complaints to the State Attorney General, and nothing was done about Berkheimer. They are a terrible company that charges exorbitant fees and I am not sure how their practices are legal. I would like to have the fees removed from any actual balance that I do owe.

  Business response

  01/06/2023

  January 6, 2023  
    
  Dear *** *****:  

  I have received your letter dated January 6, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain  administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  

  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or  complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  

  Sincerely,  
  Annette G
  

• Initial Complaint

  12/27/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Billing Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  I received a delinquent notice from Berkheimer stating I owe them back local taxes for ********** for 2019. I didn't move to ********** until September of 2019 in which my employer started taking out local taxes. That being said I have been paying and did pay local taxes for 2019 the 3 months and 10 days I lived there. They are attempting to charge me for a full year. On top of the fact that the address they were supposedly sending these letters to isn't even the correct address. They also did a wage garnishment on me for a per capita tax foe 2020 I never received any notice or explanation for of $79 when the tax was only for $15.50. I only was made aware because I received an email from wage garnishment services. Again, the address they have been sending things to is incorrect. They did all of this 2 days before Christmas 12/24/22 stating i need to rectify this by 12/27/22 yet their offices are closed until 1/3/23 so I can not get any information or response to get all of this removed.

  Business response

  01/09/2023

  January 9, 2023 

  Dear *** *****:  
  

  I have received your letter dated January 5, 2023 concerning the above named party.  Berkheimer Tax Innovations is a duly appointed local tax collector and the complaint at  issue pertains to the collection of local taxes and confidential tax information. The  taxpayer is afforded certain rights and remedies, including the right to certain administrative appeals, under Pennsylvania’s Local Tax Enabling Act, Local Tax  Collection Law and the Local Taxpayers Bill of Rights that he or she may evoke.  
  

  However, with that stated, it is Berkheimer’s position to resolve any disputes or complaints from a taxpayer amicably where possible. In this regard, Berkheimer has  made additional contact with the taxpayer to address the concerns contained therein.  
  

  Sincerely,  
  Annette G
  

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