Omni Financial: Worse Than Worthless They took my money and accomplished nothing Broomfield Colorado
What else do you need to know? They took thousands of dollars and fees and although they could generate a nice invoice showing lots of busy-ness, nothing was accomplished. Months and months went by without any contact from them. They routinely ignored emails and phone calls. They changed staff like a musical chairs game. They made no effort to interact with my accountant until I almost physically made them do it.
They didn't knock a penny off my actual amount due, though they take credit for reductions in the amounts claimed by the IRS solely as a result of my accountant's filing of amended complaints that they did virtually nothing to make happen. I had to pay him and them and they did nothing. When I discharged them they behaved with contempt and refused to answer my follow-up calls and a faxed letter about my credit balance.
Jersey
New York, New York
U.S.A.
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Rexraider
Denver,Colorado,
U.S.A.
Regarding Omni, from an Ex- TOP Employee!
#2UPDATE EX-employee responds
Thu, August 21, 2008
About 3 years ago, I took a job with a company in Broomfield, Colorado, called Omni Financial, Inc. (legally, the name is Sierra Financial Services, Inc.). They sounded like a very responsible company and even had various displayed business and charity awards. As a young JD, LLM, and CPA, I wanted to get into the world of tax, and Colorado not being the center of the tax world, this I thought would be a good start. They very much loved my resume, and my knowledge of the tax system, and within about 3 months, I was "promoted" to Senior Associate, given a staff of 3 or 4, and a caseload of almost 120 "clients." Herein, began the worst 1 year of my life, and I want to relay this story to all those people that are considering Omni Financial's services. I cannot be more plain ... they run a tax scam, and if you don't believe me, please ask your tax collector, examiner, etc. about Omni Financial. Chances are they have either worked with Omni or heard of them. First of all, NONE of Omni's employees are required to have proper licensing credentials ... as only a FEW associates actually have degrees (including college degrees), and some cannot even assemble complete sentences. They hire ANYONE without so much as a simple background check. The few that do have credentials (a la, me) were not allowed to practice law, accounting, etc. We were simply licensed conduits to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) or the States ... see, almost all States and the IRS only allow licensed attorneys, CPAs, or EAs to practice before it, and represent taxpayers ... that is why Omni has you sign a Power of Attorney (POA). The few licensed employees that had an idea of what they were doing were given the bulk of the work because we could actually resolve tax conflicts effectively for clients. Omni's "sales" staff are 100% unlicensed, and a lot of them have violent felony convictions. Ask Omni to visit its Colorado Sales Department ... it is more reminescent of a meeting of street gangs. These are the people that are calling you to ask for your money. Second, Omni charges by the hour!!! They "salesperson" that calls tells you they think they can finish the case within a certain retainer, but he/she just pulls that out of thin air (some of those people couldn't tell you what IRS stands for, let alone quote a retainer). READ your agreement carefully ... Omni charges by the hour (hundreds of dollars per hour) for EVERYTHING (calls, billing you to bill you, filing, and etc.) and they "VALUE" bill (what that means is that they can bill you 4 hours for something that takes them 1 hour to do because the activity is considered to be "valuable"). Your initial payment is pretty much used up by the time you do the initial call with your associate, and his/her staff. Then, each few weeks, you will inevitably get a call from your associate and/or his/her staff to request more money (additional retainer) ... the higher retainer each associate hits each month, determines his/her commission for the month. Associates can hit $10,000, $20,000, $30,000, or even more per month. At $30,000 per month, the associate is making about $130,000 per year, which is a sizeable salary. For the client, if they are lucky, they get an honest, LICENSED associate, who knows what to do and negotiates the cases. The unlucky clients will be churned until they are literally bled dry of money and then their cases are closed. Now, it is not all Omni's fault. I have run into dozens of clients that simply refuse to cooperate, and stall and stall, until they have no time left, and the IRS takes it all ... those irresponsible clients thought that hiring someone would magically make their tax problems disappear, but they were kidding themselves. But I do emphasize that, clients are paying top dollar for the work of people that are probably less educated than themselves, with a few licensed individuals to cover. So, what advice do I have for those people that do seriously need tax help, and are WILLING and ABLE to help themselves? Find a good and solid TAX ATTORNEY that is practicing LAW, in your State (go to Martindale Hubble's website). NOT a Tax Accountant or Enrolled Agent, because you will want protection of the attorney-client privilege, and a lot of accountants don't really understand tax law. You will pay $150 or more per hour (I have never heard of a Tax Attorney taking a case on a flat rate, or contingency), but you will be ensured peace of mind. If you have a small case, then talk to the IRS or State yourself, as they are bound by law in what they can/cannot do. However, if the matter turns more serious, very much consider seeking the counsel/advice of a Tax Attorney. He or she is bound by his/her professional ethics and regulated by the State in which he/she practices. Most of my colleagues will consult with you for free, and give you an idea of the most appropriate manner resolve your tax conflicts. I wish you all luck in your dealings with the tax authorities, but I would seriously reconsider hiring Omni to do so. If you're truly committed to resolve your tax conflicts, with the assistance and counsel of a good Tax Attorney, you will get it done. Good luck!