The Audit Defense Pledge — in writing
If our study loses ground at audit, we refund your fee.
That is The Audit Defense Pledge. If the IRS examines our study and knocks out part of what we reclassified, with our numbers reported correctly, we refund your study fee in the same share. Knock out half, we refund half. Most firms say audit defense is included and stop there. We write it down. Below is the exact list of what we do, the Pledge in full, our rapid-response promise, and what is not covered. It comes with every tier, with no upcharge. Refund of the study fee only, not your tax. 3-year term, 40-hour cap, and notice deadlines apply.
The Audit Defense Pledge
The pledge, in writing.
That is The Audit Defense Pledge, in plain words. If the IRS examines a study we produced, you reported it correctly, and the IRS disallows some or all of what our study reclassified, we refund part or all of what you paid for the study. Five conditions, one formula, no judgment calls.
- It is our Study. The Study being examined is the one we produced, in the form we delivered it.
- You reported it correctly. Our numbers went on your return the way we delivered them. You will give us a copy of the filed return so we can check this.
- You told us in time. You sent us the IRS notice within 15 days of getting it. If the IRS gave you less than 30 days to answer, you sent it to us right away.
- You worked with us. You gave us the records and access we asked for.
- You lost ground on the Study. At the Final Result, the IRS disallowed some or all of the Reclassified Basis.
We refund the same share of your Study fee as the share of Reclassified Basis the IRS took away.
- Say our Study moved $500,000 into shorter-life property, and the IRS disallows $250,000 of it. That is half. We refund half your Study fee.
- If the IRS disallows less than 10% of the Reclassified Basis, there is no refund. Below that line the Study did its job.
- If the IRS disallows 50% or more of the Reclassified Basis, we refund the whole Study fee.
Meet those five, and you get money back. We can never guarantee an audit result, so we do not promise one. We promise to do the work, and we put real money behind it. Refund of the study fee only, not your tax. 3-year term, 40-hour cap, and notice deadlines apply.
Rapid response
We start within 1 to 5 business days.
When you get an IRS notice, the clock can feel scary. It should not. The moment you send it to us, we acknowledge it and start the defense within one to five business days. That window is when we begin, not when the whole audit ends. The point is simple: get a study from us, and you are never alone when the IRS calls.
What you get
Included with every study, and what is separate.
Included, at no extra cost
Document and notice response
When the IRS asks for documents, we draft the written reply.
Written methodology defense
When the IRS asks how we built your Study, we answer every question in writing. We stand behind our method, the detailed engineering cost estimate approach described in the IRS Cost Segregation Audit Techniques Guide.
Our work-paper production
We pull and package the work papers behind your Study so the IRS can see how we got the numbers. How much detail this takes depends on the Study, so the time can vary.
Form 3115 support
If the audit changes your Study and you need to file a corrective Form 3115, we help draft the catch-up math.
Separate, quoted for you first
IRS Appeals conference
If your case moves up to the IRS Appeals office, that is a bigger job. We handle it as a new engagement and quote it for you first.
Tax Court
If the case goes to Tax Court, that is a separate engagement with its own quote.
State income tax exams
A state exam on the same Study is quoted per state.
Penalty abatement requests
Asking the IRS to remove a penalty is fact-specific work we handle on its own.
The fine line
What the Pledge does not cover.
We want this to be clear, not buried. The Pledge covers our work. It does not cover your tax, changes made after we hand off, or issues we never touched.
Your tax, penalties, and interest
The refund gives back what you paid us for the Study. It is not a payment of any tax, penalty, or interest you owe. Those stay yours.
You reported our numbers wrong
If our Study was correct but the figures were entered wrong on the return, that is outside what we cover.
You used our Study but changed the figures
If you or your preparer changed our numbers and that changed version is examined, we cover our version, not the rewrite.
Facts you gave us that were not right
Our Study is built on numbers and documents you supply. If something you gave us was wrong or incomplete, the Pledge does not cover the part of the result that traces back to it.
Positions we did not prepare
If the audit looks at parts of your return we never touched, those are not part of this.
Other issues on the return
If the exam moves into items that have nothing to do with the cost segregation Study, those are out of scope.
Late or missing information
If you do not meet the notice deadline in the five conditions, or key records are not shared, we cannot stand behind the result.
If your study is examined
How the defense unfolds.
Day 0 · You get a notice
You send us the IRS notice within 15 days of getting it, and copy your tax preparer. This is usually the first request for documents.
Day 1 to 5 · Rapid response
We acknowledge fast and start the work within one to five business days. This is the start of the defense, not the finish. Audits take time, but you are never waiting on us to begin.
Field exam · We defend
Every question about our method gets a written answer. Our Enrolled Agent reviews every response before it goes out, and represents you under a Form 2848 if you want us on record. We carry the study through the exam, within the 40 included hours.
If it escalates · We quote it
If the case moves up to IRS Appeals, we tell you and quote that work as a new engagement so you can decide.
The pledge, in plain words
What The Audit Defense Pledge means.
Here is our pledge in plain words. This is a summary, not the legal fine print. The signed engagement agreement is the full and controlling document. If the two ever differ, the engagement agreement wins.
- What is refunded. If you qualify, we refund the fee you paid us for the study, in the same share as the part of our reclassification the IRS took away. Under 10% disallowed, there is no refund. 50% or more, the whole fee. The refund is limited to that study fee. It does not include taxes, interest, penalties, or other costs.
- Who qualifies. The study being examined was produced by us, you reported our results correctly on the filed return, you told us in time, you worked with us, and the IRS disallowed some or all of the reclassified basis at the final result.
- Tell us in time. Send us the IRS notice within 15 days of getting it. If the IRS gave you less than 30 days to answer, send it right away. If we are not told in time to help, the Pledge does not apply.
- Correct reporting required. If our numbers were changed, entered wrong, or used differently than we delivered them, the Pledge does not apply to that changed version.
- Our work only. The Pledge covers the cost segregation study we produced. It does not cover other positions on your return or issues we did not prepare.
- Final result. Losing ground is measured at the final result: a signed Form 4549 or 870, an expired Tax Court petition window, or a final court decision. An ongoing exam does not trigger the refund. You can settle at any time without asking us.
- Who defends. Our Enrolled Agent handles representation before the IRS, under a Form 2848 you sign. Because we refund your fee if the study loses, we have money riding on the outcome. You decide every settlement, always.
- How long, and how much. Coverage runs 3 years from the due date, with extensions, of the first return that uses the study. An exam that starts inside that window is covered to the end. One pool of 40 hours per study. At 40 hours we stop and quote.
- Separate engagements. An IRS Appeals conference, Tax Court, state exams, and penalty work are not part of the included defense. We quote those for you first.
Buy a study with defense built in.
Every tier ships with audit defense and The Audit Defense Pledge, in writing. Start with a free savings estimate.