ComplaintsforNeil C. Hopkins CPA

• Initial Complaint

  05/08/2022

  Complaint Type:

  Product Issues

  Status:

  Answered

  More info

  We used Mr. Hopkins for the 2021 Tax Return. He let us know that he normally didn't meet his clients in person due to working out of his home, but finally obliged our request and met with us on February 26, 2022 at 11:00 AM. During the meeting we went over the documents and also asked about additional documents that we were not sure needed to be submitted through the portal. We also informed him that we had bought our first home March of 2021 and also supplied him with the paperwork. We reached out to Mr. Hopkins via text message to follow up on March 24th, 2022 at 6:24 PM and he responded letting us know that it was done and on his desk waiting for his review. The next time we heard from Mr. Hopkins was on March 26, 2022 at 10:39 P.M. via email stating that our return was in the portal and that we owed over $4,000 and he would send his bill for services in the following email. When we questioned him about why we owed so much he was not forthcoming with any of the information. When we still were not getting any feedback that would help us understand our tax return we did let Mr. Hopkins know that we would be seeking another CPA so we could better understand our return. Mr. Hopkins let us know that his "time clock" ended immediately once we stated we would be seeking another CPA and would no longer advise us any further and that we still owed him $273.25 for his services. On March 30, 2022 at 6:43 PM we emailed Mr. Hopkins because our return that he had completed was no longer in the portal. We let him know that we would not be paying for services that we did not receive to which he responded and let us know that he would hold our documents and see us in small claims court. In order to receive our documents back we paid the invoice and let Mr. Hopkins know we would be coming to pick up our tax documents. We picked up the documents on March 31st and they had been left on his front porch since 10:59PM on March 30 with items still missing which were later picked up.

  Business response

  06/15/2022

  Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2022/05/11) */ I was engaged by complainant to prepare his 2021 tax return. Complainant agreed to my terms of service as enumerated in the engagement letter....a CONTRACT. The contract states if the client decides to end the engagement for whatever reason, that I would be paid for my hourly billed services up to that time. I am ethically required to return the clients original documents immediately upon request. Our ethics code does not allow withholding of the documents for non-payment. The documents were returned promptly upon request. Client wanted additional advisory services after the date of engagement termination. This service was not provided as it was beyond the "new" scope of the engagement. Client paid for services rendered. I closed the file. I have attached the engagement letter which was agreed to by Mr *********. The form of acceptance came in the form of a checkmark on my secure portal. A screenshot is attached. Consumer Response /* (3000, 7, 2022/05/15) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) Mr. Hopkins went against the code of ethics when he threatened to withhold our documents and see us in small claims court. In order to get our documents back we were forced to pay for a service we did not receive. We tried to reason with him by saying that Mr. Hopkins would not want to pay for a service he did not receive. After being told by Mr. Hopkins that we needed to pay him for the hours that he put into our return, we paid in order to get our documents back (which were left on his front porch over night). When Mr. Hopkins was asked why our return was no longer in the portal, he informed us that his time clock stopped when we mentioned seeking another CPA. This here is another breach in the engagement letter. Per engagement letter, Mr. Hopkins was going to be "preparing and submitting the filing of the 2021 federal and/or state income tax returns." In order for this issue to be resolved, Mr. Hopkins should be refunding the money that was paid for a service that we did not receive. Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2022/05/16) */ I absolutely did not ever threaten to withhold taxpayers original tax documents! That is unethical. I never said I was keeping the documents. NEVER. I did NOT associate the documents with the small claims threat. They were totally separate and distinct. Taxpayer said he would not pay the invoice as per our contract. I simply told him I would see him in small claims court. I NEVER said, I am withholding your documents until you pay. Taxpayer's recount of the discussion is just flat wrong. As soon as he asked for his documents, I made them available for him to pick them up. There will be no refund. I have closed my file. Consumer Response /* (4200, 11, 2022/05/17) */ (The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.) When I told Mr. Hopkins I was going to seek another CPA and I wanted my documents for NOT receiving the advisory and services I paid for, he said pay the invoice and i'll see you in small claims court. It wasn't UNTIL I PAID the invoice that he then emailed me at 10:59pm that my documents were OUTSIDE and sat there OVERNIGHT. If I wouldn't have paid I wouldn't have gotten my documents back. Mr. Hopkins didn't offer to return my documents UNTIL I paid. My hand was forced to pay him for services I DID NOT receive in order to get MY documents back. Of course Mr. Hopkins closed the file because he got his payment, but here I am WITHOUT the return I PAID for. I had to pay ANOTHER CPA to do my return over, explain everything to me since Mr. Hopkins was unable AND unwilling to do so, and file again. I either want the return he prepared that I PAID for or a refund of $150.00 for the return and related schedules I DID NOT receive. Mr. Hopkin's office is COMPLETELY UNETHICAL. It must be nice to do business, NOT provide the good and/or service your end user pays for, and get PAID!

*Some consumers may elect to not publish the details of their complaints, some complaints may not meet BBB's standards for publication, or BBB may display a portion of complaints when a high volume is received for a particular business. ↩