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100 get tax scare in their mailboxes

A county official says that an ex-H&R Block Mortgage employee erroneously informed 100 people they owed money and offered services.

By VANESSA DE LA TORRE
Published January 26, 2006

CLEARWATER - The letter from H&R Block Mortgage was terse and appeared official enough to set off a series of calls from panicked homeowners to county officials.

"Your property taxes are delinquent as of April 1, 2005 . . .," it began. "Accordingly, Pinellas County Tax Collector has placed a Tax Lien against your property."

Then came the amount due in back taxes, often in the thousands, followed by a 110-word explanation of tax delinquency and a warning of penalties. But what sealed the scare came next:

The name and address of Diane Nelson, Pinellas County tax collector, printed smack in the middle of the letter.

Nelson had no idea that an H&R Block Mortgage employee who is no longer with the company had included her office title in the message, which was sent to 100 homeowners, said chief deputy tax collector Carlos Thomas.

"It appears it has the weight of official notification, which in fact it doesn't," Thomas said. "It's really a disservice to folks. They were reasonably upset when they thought their property was in jeopardy."

Residents started calling Nelson's office last week, asking why they were getting a letter that, after a brusque start, offered that H&R Block Mortgage could help them pay their taxes, give them cash and "consolidate credit card debt" by using their home equity.

One Safety Harbor man faxed a copy of his letter to the Tax Collector's Office. It claimed that he and his wife owed $5,738.38 in back taxes from 2004.

"IF YOU CANNOT PAY YOUR TAXES, THERE ARE OTHER OPTIONS AVAILABLE," wrote Joseph Locicero, an H&R Block Mortgage senior loan officer. "It doesn't matter if you have poor credit or no credit, are behind on your mortgage payments, have outstanding credit card debt, receive social security, or have filed bankruptcy."

The couple, who didn't want to be interviewed for this story, did not owe any back taxes, according to county records.

Nelson's office asked its attorney to step in. "We wrote asking to cease and desist, that this letter is wrong, this is bad and we're asking you to stop," Thomas said.

On Friday, the county received an apology and explanation from H&R Block Mortgage.

"They blamed it on an employee whom they claimed to have let go," Thomas said.

The employee, Joseph Locicero, could not be reached for comment.

Linda McDougall, a company spokesperson, confirmed his termination on Monday.

"Mr. Locicero is no longer with H&R Block Mortgage," said McDougall. "The former associate acted completely on his own. . . . We would not send out this type of letter."

So for now, no hard feelings.

"We've seen this before," said Thomas. "I know (Nelson) had recognized it, didn't appreciate it and went into action accordingly. And we will be looking out for that in the coming year."

Times researcher Caryn Baird contributed to this report.

[Last modified January 26, 2006, 01:01:17]