Mileage Audit

[SueBaby]

Client has over $200,000 in a sch C. He said his miles as doing painting and wall covering business was over 100,000. He could only prove 79,000. That is what I put.

He got audit and they said having that much money he needed MORE miles. He got audit for LESS miles! The auditor also said your tax preparer did not need to put anything on the right hand of the Sch C (it messed her up). So how in the Sam Hill where was I suspose to put the repairs, supplies, office expense , rent of machines?

I could not go with them I am tied to this chair till the end. So what can I do to help these people with a 'weird' audit?

[thomtax]

Did these observations come in writing? Or is the client saying that this was said. It sounds to me as if he could be using this to try to get someone to prepare the return the way he wants it.

I don't understand the statement that you could not go with them, that you were tied to the chair.

LT

[SueBaby]

Did these observations come in writing? Or is the client saying that this was said. It sounds to me as if he could be using this to try to get someone to prepare the return the way he wants it.

I don't understand the statement that you could not go with them, that you were tied to the chair.

LT

I had 8 people in my office that day could not get away. He got a letter to show up at the Monroe office for the audit. He told them I could not make it. On the average I have about that many people or more a day.

Futhermore, he is scare of a letter from the IRS and an audit really freaks him out. We had to do business over the phone to try to help him. If only I could talk to the woman, but he said she doesn't need me to talk with her nor see her. It is just weird to me.

[Burke]

SueBaby, you have waaaay too many clients for you to handle efficiently.

[JohnH]

I don't think your client is telling you the truth about any of this, or else he's confusing some other type of audit with a tax audit. He has some reason for trying to mislead you.

[SueBaby]

SueBaby, you have waaaay too many clients for you to handle efficiently.

Two tax preparers=one retired and one died and I am handling theirs plus mine this year and it has not been easy at all. More people more problems. I have appointments in June and July for extensions. Next year I have to have someone helping me or I will have to turn away alot.

[SueBaby]

I don't think your client is telling you the truth about any of this, or else he's confusing some other type of audit with a tax audit. He has some reason for trying to mislead you.

I hope not. I don't have the time to be mislead or confussed not now. If so one less client.

[geekgirldany]

I have not been on that many audits but something does sound strange about this. The last one I had the auditor was willing to work with me for a time. This is after the taxpayer had called the auditor and said I could not see him now. He asked to come to their home and they told him to come on by. I then called the auditor back and set a time after the tax season. It was in May.

Why don't you try calling the auditor and asking if it could be done after the 15th. Surely she will work with you. I actually think they have to according to the taxpayer rights to select a convenient time for both the taxpayer and the auditor.

[Mike Mac]

How many hours do they drive??

Some of my clients amaze me with their initial attempts at claiming miles. If they have a mix of highway and city miles, how many hours would they have to be on the road to
get 100,000 miles in a year? Enough hours to not leave too much time to do any painting or wall covering.

[JohnH]

True, but that's only 20 hours a week if he drives an average of 100 miles an hour. And that's allowing 2 weeks off for vacation. So that would mean he's only spending half his time driving, not counting starts, stops & traffic signals.

[SueBaby]

Some of my clients amaze me with their initial attempts at claiming miles. If they have a mix of highway and city miles, how many hours would they have to be on the road to
get 100,000 miles in a year? Enough hours to not leave too much time to do any painting or wall covering.

He went to TN, Ar, Ms, and Tx and he lives here in La and does work too. He says he gets 1 week off at Christmas but works all the time otherwise. He has so much work until he turns people down because of travel off.

[ecb34691]

Does this guy really have a tax home? We had a client that was in the same situation but doing installation of window safety film for kindergartens all over the country and claimed 49,000 miles and IRS disallowed all because he didn't have a tax home. He was claiming trips like FL to CA, etc.

[JohnH]

Oh, then my math is all wrong.
I assumed he took 2 weeks off per year.
The extra week of work/drive time clears up all the ambiguities.

[thomtax]

Enough hours to not leave too much time to do any painting or wall covering.

Very good point. I still say the client's story does not make sense, unless he went in with a convincing sob story about how he had this many miles but this ole ogre of a taxpreparer would not let him take them. And he just didn't understand why she did things the way she did. This might elicit a response that, put into a different context, comes out like what they are telling you.

LT

[SueBaby]

Does this guy really have a tax home? We had a client that was in the same situation but doing installation of window safety film for kindergartens all over the country and claimed 49,000 miles and IRS disallowed all because he didn't have a tax home. He was claiming trips like FL to CA, etc.

yes, it is in La.