Wrong account for direct deposit?

I purchased unlimited e-filing and another preparer in town using the same software does not e-file. For a small fee I e-filed three returns for her yesterday. The three returns were for the parents and their two children. They all wanted direct deposit. I mistakenly put the daughter's bank account # on the parent's return for direct deposit. They have the same bank. The parents are getting refunds which total over $2,500. Of course I recognized my mistake about two minutes after I e-filed the return! I called the local bank and they didn't seem to want to help much...and said the funds would most likely be deposit in the daughter's account. Do you think the people at the practitioner's hotline can change the account #s? I called the software vendor and they said the clients would most likely get a paper check a few weeks later because the account # will not match the SS#s on the account. Thanks.

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Reply to
RM
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Be careful! Helen said that we (EROs) could not e-file for other preparers but could for the taxpayers. The Bank

*should* send back the deposit to the IRS and then the IRS would send the parents a check. Missy Doyle

Reply to
mytax

Not a chance.

It will probably be 10-12 weeks before they get the check. What will happen is the direct deposit will be attempted and since the SS# and the account # don't match, the bank will kick it back to the IRS. The IRS will issue a paper check. Learned from experience on this one. Always, always, always check the account numbers again before hitting that "send" button.

Reply to
clj1219

Efiling for another preparer is allowed, as long as that preparer is also an ERO, but for various reasons chooses not to do the work. In such a case, if I did it for another ERO, my name and address would appear nowhere. ChEAr$, Harlan Lunsford, EA n LA Wed 9 Mar 2005

Reply to
Harlan Lunsford

Carol; are you saying that in your misbegotten adventure, the bank and IRS actually DID check/verify social security number(s) on the account? IMWTK.

ChEAr$, Harlan Lunsford, EA n LA Wed 9 Mar 2005

Reply to
Harlan Lunsford

This answer agrees with my experience on this subject. The bank should reject the funds transfer when the SSA number and account number don't match.

-- Alan

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Reply to
A.G. Kalman

I don't know if they _can_, but I do know that they _won't_. I made the same mistake on a client's return once. There was no way to rectify it through IRS (or at least none they would tell me about).

I wouldn't bet on that. In the case of my client, the refund was deposited into the wrong account, despite the mismatch.

-- D.F. Manno snipped-for-privacy@spymac.com "The work goes on, the cause endures, the hope still lives and the dream will never die."

Reply to
D.F. Manno

ahh but they CAN, and do. Of course it took about 20 minutes phone time with the IRS to clear a similar sanfu up, the taxpayers' refund was deposited into an account in outstate area they they never had. Irs sends out a nice form to claim the refund, but they did mention that 10-12 week turnaround. The state of MN was far easier to deal with. Explained problem and voila, paper check sent in 5 days and bank debit reversed on the spot... But then MN has only 3 million e-files to contend with, and with a $5 fine per return for Paid Preparers sending in paperfile you can bet we push EF for MN on our clients, or pass along the $5 fine to them via fee increase! When you explain to them you have to charge them NOT to do work, LOL... Dave

Reply to
traalfaz2

one reply was.....

Explanation is in order. IRS cannot change any figures or bank numbers because it's not they who are issued the refund. IRS merely processes the return and then certifies the refund which then goes to their parent, the U S Treasury where the refund is issued. ChEAr$, Harlan Lunsford, EA n LA Sat 12 Mar 2005

Reply to
Harlan Lunsford

Unlikely or impossible that they check social security numbers, but very likely that they match the full name on the transaction with the full name on the bank account, which is customary with this type of ACH transaction. It should bounce because they don't mach.

Reply to
Sam Rogers

I really should have added that my experience was limited to Wells Fargo and Citibank.

-- Alan

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Reply to
A.G. Kalman

Don't know if the SS #s were verified, as in our case the account we had listed was no longer active. I'm sure the IRS does some sort of verification because of the requirement that a jointly filed return have a joint account to deposit the refund into. In our little misbegotten adventure, the bank knew who the refund was supposed to be sent to, and knew their new account number, but could do nothing to redirect the deposit. That turned out to be a costly learning experience for us (we eventually refunded the filing fee to the client).

Reply to
clj1219

The IRS doesn't check anything. The bank may check.

Reply to
Arthur L. Rubin

This may not be the same thing (and it probably isn't unique) but a person of my acquaintance always pays his taxes with a check made out to "Infernal Revenue Service." They're accepted and cashed every time. Stu

Reply to
Stuart A. Bronstein

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