Do internet searches under the name of the company you may want to hire, and put the word "fraud" or "scam" after the company name, (THIS IS A MUST) or after the name of the representative who will be working on your case. Many so called IRS problem solving companies are the subject of lawsuits and large amounts of consumer complaints. If they can't give you referrals, hang up the phone. Even though this is confidential work, if they can put testimonials on their web site, then those people should be willing to speak well of the company.

If you are told that there will not be specific person assigned to your case or a group is assigned, run the other way. This is a way to hide their "lack of responsibility". A team of $7.00 per hour accounting clerks will not benefit you. Be careful about references. Even bad accountants have a few people who are willing to say good things about them. Discuss exactly what you will be paying for, and what results you can expect with the person who will be actually working on the majority of your case. Do not let a sales consultant sign you up! This is professional legal representation not auto repair!

Your representative must have at least one of three credentials: a CPA (certified public accountant), an EA (enrolled agent), or an attorney. However, they must also possess the accounting, tax skills, and representation experience necessary to be effective. Someone who has passed the CPA exam or the Enrolled Agents exam has shown the technical ability. Many ex-IRS collection division employees are given the EA title when they leave the IRS, without HAVING TAKEN THE EXAM! I would not hire such a person or an attorney unless they can show you they have done a large number of tax returns and representation cases, to overcome not having passed the exam. There will always be a licensed person supervising the case otherwise they won't be able to negotiate in your behalf. I am saying that the person doing the tax work, filing out the IRS forms, being responsible for due dates, etc. must possess the above.