Recently my favorite tax software, TurboTax, announced that their 2008 version will cost about 40% more, and would only allow a buyer to prepare 5 individual returns and 1 electronic filing. After that, each return prepared would require the software buyer to send an additional 9.95 to Intuit. What?
Of course, public response to this major policy change was not favorable. Lots of unhappy customers even before tax season. Amazingly, Intuit recently changed their MBA minds and decided to cancel the policy changes (not the price increase), and change their software.
I am proud of Intuit for listening to their customers and changing their changed policy. I have used Turbotax, Quicken, Quickbooks, and NAV for many years, and I agree that their customer service/support over the years has pretty much disappeared. I had not yet purchased my Turbotax software for this year, so I was not sure that they were actually limiting the number of returns one could prepare, but if it was true, I would have changed to Taxcut.
My feeling is that if I purchase their software, I should be able to use it as often as I wish, knowing, of course, that it is obsolete after one year. I certainly would not purchase Photoshop or Dreamweaver or similiar software if I knew that I could only use it one time or process one photo without extra fees.
I can understand Intuit charging a fee for every electronic filing, but even that discourages the IRS’ goal of getting everyone to file electronically. I read one comment from an American in Australia, where they are encouraged by the government to file electronically, FOR FREE, and that makes sense to me. The IRS would save money just in the cost of paper processing and error corrections.
Thanks, Intuit.
Now on January 20, TT did a $10 discount on their software, so I went out and bought a copy. Time to start getting my taxstuff in order. But when I arrived home, the daily mail included a FREE copy of tax software from TurboTax’ top rival, TaxCut. No, really! Including 5 free efiles. Now I have been using TT for many years, mostly out of habit I suppose, plus I have never been fond of Taxcut’s publishers, H&R Bloch. Their tax prep advertising usually contains enough confusion, uncertainty, veiled threats, exaggerations, and outright lies (We’ll save YOU $XXXX on your taxes! Guaranteed!) to make the IRS or even a Dick Cheney proud. But hey, the price is right on their software, so why not give it a try. Great marketing strategy! Maybe Turbotax will use it next year. Maybe I will plug my numbers into both and see who saves me more. Maybe I will return my turbotax. Maybe I will buy Taxcut next year. Hmmmmm.
Tags: income tax, IRS, ripoff, sales, selling, tax preparation, tax software, taxes, turbotax, unhappy buyers