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Just because the IRS says it's so doesn't make it so.

May 17, 2010

Peter Pappas reports on sneaky IRS collection behavior.

Remember, IRS notices are often wrong. Even dedicated, well-meaning IRS agents (and that's most of them in my experience) can be wrong when trying to collect based on an erroneous notice. And like any organization staffed by humans, the IRS does have bad apples.

If the IRS wants money, don't just assume they are right. At the very least, check their numbers against yours. If you use a preparer, give them the notice and get the preparer in touch with the IRS. Above all, don't ignore the notice; once the IRS thinks you owe them money, you have to convince them otherwise, or the leviathan will slowly but surely keep after you until it gets paid.