FTC Accuses H&R Block of Deleting Tax Data to Discourage Customers From Downgrading

The company ‘deceptively’ marketed one of its plans as a ‘free’ plan when it was not, the FTC said.

An H&R Block tax preparation office on Flatbush Avenue in the Prospect Heights neighborhood of Brooklyn borough in New York City on Feb. 6, 2024. Michael M. Santiago/Getty Images

The U.S. Federal Trade Commission (FTC) filed a complaint against tax preparation company H&R Block for deleting tax data of customers who were seeking less costly options.

With the deletion of tax data, customers were forced to start tax return filing from scratch, thus creating “a significant disincentive to downgrading,” the FTC announced on Feb. 23.