$1,000.00 to answer a question! (PAH)

Dave Yates (PAH)

So, we call the accounting firm to inquire: Do we need to charge sales tax if we use the word "cleaning" - as in furnace cleaning?

No mention is made by the receptionist that we will be charged for obtaining an answer.

We got billed $1,000.00 and attached were several e-mails to the PA dept of tax along with two internet web site pages detailing the answer. Seems a tad excessive to me!

YOWSA! I just talked a customer through a no-heat call over the phone. He ran out of oil earlier today & the oil co delivery guy didn't think to bleed air out of the pump. Seems like I should be billing them!

<A HREF="http://www.heatinghelp.com/getListed.cfm?id=98&Step=30">To Learn More About This Contractor, Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A Contractor"</A>

Jim_47

Be careful Dave.

> So, we call the accounting firm to inquire: Do we

> need to charge sales tax if we use the word

> "cleaning" - as in furnace cleaning?

>

> No

> mention is made by the receptionist that we will

> be charged for obtaining an answer.

>

> We got

> billed $1,000.00 and attached were several

> e-mails to the PA dept of tax along with two

> internet web site pages detailing the answer.

> Seems a tad excessive to me!

>

> YOWSA! I just

> talked a customer through a no-heat call over the

> phone. He ran out of oil earlier today & the oil

> co delivery guy didn't think to bleed air out of

> the pump. Seems like I should be billing them!

> _A

> HREF="http://www.heatinghelp.com/getListed.cfm?id=

> 98&Step=30"_To Learn More About This Contractor,

> Click Here to Visit Their Ad in "Find A

> Contractor"_/A_

Jim_47

Oil run out

Be careful Dave!
I started to talk someone through a similar pump priming scenerio and decided that this may become a liability issue if the person on the other end of the phone tries this and something goes wrong. I could see it now.... "He said to do it!"

Tony_8

one time

I called a lawyer to reschedule an appt. (3 days ahead) and the secretary said the lawyer needed to ask me something. Put 'er on I says. Seems she lost some pertinent info and needed it repeated. Her mistake, but I got billed for a 10th of an hour. Told me it was because I called her. Should've not shown up and let her call me maybe ?
I bit my tongue and rolled it into the price of her next service call

Aidan

Not heating

A breakdown rescue service man here showed a stranded customer how to hot-wire his broken down car. The solenoid on the starter moter wasn't getting power, so a bit of wire connected between the solenoid and the battery terminal got it running.

The customer did it for himself the next time. The car had a manual gearbox. What happened next?


The car was in gear. The customer ran himself over with his own car. He sued. The breakdown company settled out of court. Be wary.

Unknown

My neighbor in NH is a lawyer

He was walking up the road one day, and as he passed my yard, I said, "Nice day, isn't it?"

Yes, he said, and 3 days later, I got a bill.

Noel

Dave DeFord

Being in the Biz..

I would say so too. It would seem to me that any compentent accountant would know this answer of the top of their head. For instance,any labor seprately stated on an invoice in the State of Michigan in not subject to sales tax. It would seem to me that furnace cleaning is purely labor. Not sure what the PA law is but $1,000 for that answer for an accountant that you seem to use on a regular basis seems way too much - If I still had my practice it would be a freebie.

steve gates

had a friend once send his lawyer a bill for wasting his time when he didn't keep the appointment time. said it never happened again.