Mixed Reviews for R&G Brenner Income Tax

For SEVEN YEARS this accounting firm dragged its feet, obfuscated its efforts, and just plain gave me the longest runaround I've ever been a party to in my entire life.I used them to file my personal taxes in 2016, provided all the accompanying documents, and they omitted a crucial 1099 that resulted in a "substantial tax understatement penalty" that accrued interest until it totaled a penalty of $2,268.I emailed back and forth with Jerry Collett, a Senior Tax Preparer, with proof that he omitted what I provided him for YEARS until he finally ghosted me and I had to reach out to customer service only to be told they had a three-year warranty limit. I get it now, Jerry's job was to slow play me until I became ineligible even though it WAS THEIR ERROR.I had to pay the penalty they caused out of my own pocket.NEVER USE R&G BRENNER UNLESS YOU'D LIKE TO GET SCAMMED.

If I could give R&G Brenner 0 stars I would this is the most crooked corrupt tax service agency ever. I received a letter from the VP of RG Brenner warning me not too except services from a certain individual I had previously used at there company. But the real crooks are Sophony Jean Louis, Lisette Campas & Lois Larena. Sophony prepared my taxes filed them with the IRS remotely. Never quoted me a fee, sent me copies of my return, ignored my calls , emails & texts for 2 months!! The 3 times she did return my call she would hang up on me when she gets caught in lie. I requested several times to recurve a copy of my return to no avail!! When I suspected foul play I contacted the Long Island office & spoke with Lisette Campas who rudely told me they already received payment there nothing she can do to help & hung up the phone. This made me furious & I called back several times & was forwarded to voicemail. I then contacted the IRS website & was informed that my Federal & State taxes had been deposited in my account( to date those funds are not there). After further investigation Sophony put someone else account number on my taxes. There a third party involved Republic TRS tax consultants & it appears that they are working with R& G brenner to fraudulently overcharge people for there service s $648 was my fee deducted without my approval. Then deposit my money in Republic bank & keep my Federal return. I contacted Lois Arena R&G manager who ask for my address stating Republic Bank would cut me a check. I complied then he sent me another nasty email stating that no one inmy office wants anymore t do with you if you contact us again with your threats I will have you arrested. Now they have my money are refusing to give to me which is tax fraud yet there threatening too have me arrested f leaving messages stating I’m going to report them to the FBI & police!! They even blocked me from email them, the phone lines are dead. Republic TRS bank is a scam & when you call there phone number inquiring about your refund the automated system is useless. The one time I did reach a live person she hung up on me. This is a complete scam donot solicited R& G brenner the charge high fees & fraudulently keto your money. I guess they hope I drop dead due too COV19 before the IRS opens & I can report there fraud!! I will get my money back!!!Sophony u scam the wrong one this time!! Louis Larena should be in jail!!

After being a 17 yr client I found out that I am not valued. To extort a $95 filing fee increase is unconscionable. To do it under the guise that it's the clients fault because they have been under charged every year is absurd. To not forewarn clients PRIOR to scheduling an appointment that your company has out of the blue decided to adhere to Industry Standards is poor business practice. You wait for a client to walk in, submit all the documents and then hand them the Industry Standard line and then it's too late, the client feels cornered. Pay up or walk out without your taxes being filed. To add insult to injury General Manager Louis Arena chose to ignore our Tax Preparer for over 45 min which left us sitting in the office. What should have been a 1hr appt at most turned into over 2hrs. Calling customer service was of no help as well. They too refused to listen to reason and again quoted the you have underpaid!, we are moving to Industry Standards; which in the face of all that happened means nothing to a 17yr client that is being preyed upon.

***For all who left good reviews, I implore you to double check your tax filings or have another professional do so. If R&G Brenner made a mistake that causes you to owe interest and penalties, they will not refund you for that nor your preparation fees.***Dennis Grogan made a mistake on my 2018 return. It was quite an egregious oversight, though I understand accidents do happen. What really has me concerned for other clients is that it was only my own thorough review of my return months after it had been filed that caught the mistake. In addition, the company's response was extremely lackadaisical, uncoordinated and downright rude. I reached out to Dennis several times over the course of a month questioning the discrepancy with no response. It wasn't until I contacted corporate that I received a response. The issue was resolved through an amended return, which resulted in me owing additional taxes as well as interest due to the original error.As a follow up to my lack of faith in RGB's return preparation, I requested that a new preparer review my previous three years returns to see if there are any other issues. His process let me with even less faith, as I received a call saying "someone asked me to look these over, what specifically do you want me to look for?".To add insult to injury, the company's management was incredibly rude throughout this ordeal. Here are a few email excerpts from Louis Arena, General Manager (keeping in mind that I was the one who found their error months after they had submitted a faulty return on my behalf):- "Your current tax return was amended, as you stated, therefore that issue has been corrected and no refund is merited. I am not even going to entertain the premise that we should pay for a 3rd party to redo the work we have done that is correct. If there is something specific with the prior year returns you want to review with us please let me know what that is."- "The tax liability and interest is your responsibility, so there is nothing for R&G Brenner to do. In prior emails you were insisting that you were going to find another CPA firm to do your taxes. I strongly encourage you to find that firm and take your business elsewhere. Too much time and effort has been extended on this issue"Although the company refuses to refund my preparation fees or interest penalties and reimburse me for a third party review of previous years returns (which I still worry could have similar issues lurking), my biggest concern is that ***hundreds or thousands of other R&G Brenner clients who don't review their own returns may have similar undiscovered issues in their returns and may owe a lot of taxes, interest and penalties to the IRS (which R&G Brenner will not reimburse).***Consumer Beware

Herbert Waldhauser has been my accountant for a number of years and my only regret is that I did not meet him sooner. He is always equally up to date and knowledgeable on all the tax laws. Moreover, I think I am most impressed with his fluency in tax code changes. Lastly, his bedside manner is both patient and warm. 5 stars all the way!Joey Grover

I went to R & G Brenner based on a recommendation from a friend who also recommended I speak with Kimberly Leed. My friend was accurate with her assessment. I was more than satisfied with Kimberly’s professional and friendly attitude. Better than all of that she was very knowledgeable of the tax codes and necessary preparation of my tax returns. I was in a very scary situation walking in but I walked out with a solid resolution, feeling at ease and confident that I had chosen the right person/company to handle my problems. I highly recommend the services of this company.