This business uses deceptive business practices. I had my 2015 taxes done here. While my the…read moregentleman who prepared my taxes was a very nice man, he was not a professional by any use of the term. I have prepared my taxes on my own since I was 16, but since I was filing jointly for the first time, and I own my own business, I was feeling like I could use the help this year. I had met one of Jackson Hewitt's managers through my business, I decided to give it a try because the manager was a very good salesperson and seems like a very nice lady. I hope for her sake that she just follows Jackson Hewitt's guidelines, because as a company, they are shady, deceptive and unprofessional.
My main complaint is that they are evasive and deceptive about how much tax preparation will cost customers. I asked at least three times for an estimate, and each time, they deflected or ignored the question. I should have noticed the red flag, but I was nervous about making a mistake while preparing my business and joint return, plus everyone seemed so nice, and they made me feel comfortable. This is how scam artists work. I should have known better.
I had actually painstakingly prepared my records and had every transaction from the last year in an Excel spreadsheet. I had several hundred entries, however, I had every entry categorized. Plus it was a spreadsheet, you can manipulate and use math and a computer to sort and manipulate the data. It's what spreadsheets do.
The preparer (who was late to my appointment) took my spreadsheet and he spent 45 minutes formatting and printing it using Google Docs. Jackson Hewitt's computers don't allow their employees to open Excel documents.
I then sat across from this gentleman for 5 hours while he re-inputted every single line from my spreadsheet into their system. He had a couple of very simple questions about how I categorized each item, but in the end, I had already done most of the work needed for my return.
I imagine that if I had stayed home and used TaxAct or TurboTax, like I've done for the last 18 years, I could have gotten my taxes completely filed in 2 hours and saved $500. Instead, he basically did unnecessary data entry for 5 hours. During the appointment, I again asked how much I should expect to pay, his response was "We'll work something out."
Because I was filing jointly, I needed to come back with my husband to sign the return. This took over an hour as well. Finally it was time to sign the papers. Our bill for preparing our taxes came out to over $500. At this point, we felt like hostages...we'd pay anything just to get out of there...and fortunately, Jackson Hewitt was so kind as to allow us to pay just $50 extra to have their fee taken out of our return.
So yes, we could have stood up and left right then and there...and yes, we should have. However, since I'd already spent around 7 hours of my time working on this, I just wanted to get it done and over with. Obviously, this is how they stay legal. However, I'm of the firm opinion that what's legal isn't always right. As a consumer, I will never use a company like this again. They prey upon the vulnerable. I firmly believe that the attorney's general should investigate this office.
Stay away from this business and all other Jackson Hewitts. If you do need tax advice, go to a real, certified professional, not someone set up in a strip mall. Yes, taxes suck...and Jackson Hewitt is very friendly and nice, but to quote the Princess Bride, "Life is pain, Highness. Anyone who says differently is selling something."