H&R Block confirms COVID relief payment issue that caused delays for some customers

H&R Block is telling customers not to worry after some reported seeing an odd account number listed on the IRS stimulus payment tracking website.

The IRS Get My Payment tool went live Monday, allowing Americans to track the status of their first- and second-round coronavirus relief payment. The tool tells users whether they’ll receive their payment by mail or direct deposit.

Tax preparation company H&R Block said Monday that some customers who chose a refund transfer in 2019 were seeing an account number they didn’t recognize listed as the destination of their direct deposit on the tracking site.

A refund transfer allows customers to avoid paying for H&R Block’s tax preparation services up front.

Those who choose a refund transfer can have their tax refund deposited into a refund account out of which customers can pay for tax preparation services and other fees before the remaining money is forwarded to them via check, deposit or an H&R Block Emerald Prepaid Mastercard.

H&R Block says relief payments may have been deposited into some customers’ refund accounts, causing a delay for some in receiving their stimulus payment.

The company urged customers not to worry, explaining that the payments were forwarded to customers using the same method customers chose to receive the remainder of their tax refunds. H&R Block said the money would arrive by end-of-day, though some customers were still reporting problems to the company on Twitter into Tuesday morning, Gray News reported.

In a statement to McClatchy News, H&R Block said it “understands stimulus checks are vitally important for millions of Americans. The IRS determines where second stimulus payments were sent, and in some cases, money was sent to a different account than the first stimulus payment last spring. We immediately deposited millions of stimulus payments to customers’ bank accounts and onto our Emerald Prepaid Mastercard on Monday), and all direct deposits are being processed.”

If a customer sees an account number they don’t recognize on the IRS Get My Payment site, H&R Block says to contact customer service at 800-HRBLOCK or @HRBlockAnswers on Twitter.

The IRS said stimulus payments started to arrive on Dec. 29 and paper checks were mailed starting Dec. 30, McClatchy News reported.

The $900 billion coronavirus relief package includes $600 direct payments for millions of Americans making up to $75,000 a year, lower than than the $2 trillion CARES Act, which provided $1,200 payments for individuals who met that same income threshold.

This story was originally published January 5, 2021 at 10:58 AM with the headline "H&R Block confirms COVID relief payment issue that caused delays for some customers."