Ask Amy: Sibling has extreme wedding attendant anxiety
Recently the state revenue office informed us that our accountant made a very basic error – she entered the federal income instead of the state income on one of our state tax returns.
I emailed our accountant the letter from the state and asked if it was true that we owed nothing. She wrote back, "That's correct. Thanks for sharing!"
It definitely undercuts my confidence in her, and I feel helpless without the expertise to detect other errors.
And frankly, it irritates me that she didn't acknowledge making a mistake.
Ever since our costly audit, everything about taxes intimidates me, and I'm not sure what to do – ask for a different accountant, switch firms?
Or should I just hope she's learned from the mistake?
– Stress and Taxes
Dear Stress: This is a business relationship. Yes, people do make mistakes, but when someone you have hired makes a mistake, they need to admit it, make it right, and then work to restore your confidence.
Because this is a new arrangement, and your accountant has done none of these things, you should contact the firm and ask to be paired with a different accountant.
Interview this new person, and make sure they are strong communicators.
...continued
