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Tuesday, July 31, 2001

Q: We received our tax relief check yesterday. According to the letter we received a few weeks ago, we are to receive $600. Our check was for $476.55. Why? Do you have a phone number that I could call to speak to a human regarding this matter?

ELAINE GOLDBLUM
Mt. Lebanon

A: Here's an answer you won't like, Elaine. What can you do to correct what you think is a mistake? Nothing now, Elaine. There is no number to call, no address to write. That's according to William Cressman of the IRS.

On the surface, that sounds terribly unfair (and there may be a degree of unfairness in this), but remember, this is a prebate, not a rebate. That means that you are not getting money back that you already paid; you are getting money ahead of time that you might qualify for when you file your 2001 tax return.

So, although there is nothing you can do now, there will come a time when you can claim the corrected and full amount to which you are entitled. That time will come when you file your 2001 tax returns. If you figure you have money coming, that's the time to say so.

One thing is certain here. A mistake was made. The amount stated in the letter and the amount on your check should be the same.

"An error in the processing of the 2000 tax return that results in you getting less than you are entitled to will not hurt you," says Cressman, because you will have the opportunity to claim the additional amount on your 2001 tax return. In the event that there is an error which causes you to receive more than you are entitled to, you will not be expected to repay this."

I am not suggesting it is not important to find why a mistake happened and to make sure your records and the records in the IRS computer match. The point is you cannot get a different check issued on the basis of this error so, although you can and, at some point, should call the IRS toll free number for an explanation, I wouldn't bother doing it right away. The lines are jammed.

Q: I got my letter from the IRS. It says I get 0, but I don't understand why. I am a widow. I had taxable income. I paid taxes. Where do they come up with 0? Is it because I am a widow?

NORMA DUPRISKY
Butler

A: No, Norma, it's not because you are a widow. That has nothing to do with it. As you know, I went over your tax return with you and it sure did look like a mistake to me.

Your letter from the IRS says you have 0 coming back. Based on the information you gave me from your 2000 tax return, I figure you should have $142.50 coming back. Why don't you?

Although not every mistake or apparent mistake can be investigated, Cressman of the IRS investigated your return and explained it this way.

"Either the taxpayer left line 51 of the 2000 1040 blank by mistake, or when the IRS copied the information from the taxpayer's tax return and put that information into the IRS computer, an error was made."

Since you read me the figures from your copy of your tax return, Norma, my guess is that the IRS made the mistake.(Cressman says if you had e-filed, you wouldn't have to worry about mistakes like that. Your figures go right in the computer.) Cressman says it really doesn't matter who made the mistake.

"If a mistake is made," says Cressman, "that mistake stands as far as the amount [of the check] you will receive this year. You will claim the correct amount when you file your 2001 tax return. Remember, it's really based on that year [2001] anyway."

Yvonne Zanos is KDKA-TV consumer editor. She can be reached at 412-575-2234, zanos@kdka.com, or go to www.kdka.com and click on Consumer Action and follow prompts, or write c/o KDKA-TV, One Gateway Center, Pittsburgh 15222.