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E-Trade Tax Hold, How to Get them to Lift It?

In 2005, the state of California put a 10 day hold on one of my E-Trade accounts in a dispute about taxes. The hold expired, back in 2005, but E-Trade has still not made the account available to me. I didn't even realize there was a hold until I went to check my positions in the account, and couldn't. The positions show up properly in my monthly statements, and since I wasn't going to sell anything, I never logged on to my account. There is no one to talk to at E-Trade. They will not allow customers to talk to anyone in the legal department, you must contact them by mail. The Franchise Tax Board has already sent them three letters explaining that there is no hold (they did this even though they told my attorney that the hold expired automatically, after ten days, more than a year ago). I don't know what to do next. I suppose that I could sue e-Trade for the value of the stocks in the account, but this seems ludicrous to have to resort to this. I wonder if I can sue for court costs as well as the value of the securities. As soon as this is resolved, it's the end of my relationship with E-Trade, I've already closed my money market checking account with them in frustration.

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Reply to
SMS
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I suggest you ask your new broker for a suggestion. I am thinking when the ACAT order came thru to E-trade, that would shake things loose.

Reply to
DF2

Have you filed a complaint with NASD?

Seth

Reply to
Seth Breidbart

You're right, it's like pulling teeth to get in contact with their legal department. But I have able to get a phone number for someone in their California legal department for a case I'm working on. If you want to email me directly, I will be able either to give you a number or make a call for you: stu (at) lexregia (dot) com. Stu

Reply to
Stuart A. Bronstein

It may not help, but you could try contacting the SIPC with a complaint.

Steve

Reply to
Steve Pope

Thanks, but I finally solved it.

I did a reverse search on the address in Virginia that they gave me, and found a phone number for their offices. When you call that number, they won't connect you to any department, you must give a name, or dial by name or number. So I found the name of their chief legal counsel, and dialed that name, and reached a secretary. I told her that the customer service person gave me the number! She actually helped me. I faxed her the information, and that afternoon someone from the proper department called me and left a message, and I faxed him the same information. By this morning, he had contacted the FTB, and he lifted the hold....only about a year or so late. What's ironic is that it took only a few minutes for them to solve the problem, once it was explained to them, but without being able to talk to someone there, I'd never have gotten it solved. The customer service people are forbidden from putting you in contact with the proper department. You have to resort to other means to actually get anything done. My accountant should have taken care of this, but they were not creative enough to find a way to contact E-Trade. Today I'll go open an account somewhere else, and pay the rip-off E-Trade transfer fee.

Reply to
SMS

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