I have been, wait I am sorry, I was part of the Crowdtap community for over a year. It was ok, kind of boring however you got free gift cards and got to sample some cool stuff from time to time. But wait..I did say free stuff right?? Hmmmm not so fast!!
See they tell you in their agreement that you are not an employee but instead a contractor of sorts...there fore anything over $600 you have to report to the IRS. Ok fair enough..I guess. But what they do not tell you is that it is not just cash / gift cards that is included in this total. What they also do not tell you is that the values placed on items you thought were free is ridiculous and you would of been better off buying them yourself...and what they also do not tell you is ANY of this beforehand.
So you go along tapping all year long thinking every thing is great...then you are slapped with a 1099!!!
There was a Mac n Cheese party - you got a couple boxes of Mac n Cheese, some paper plates and napkins. Just small packages.....the taxable dollar amount was a whopping $51!~!
3 cans of Tuna fish...$10
Some samples of Splenda $9.61
A few bars from Sahale and 2 nut packages $34
Bottle of Listerine $9.41
$45 for zep cleaner pack - mind you these were tiny sample size bottles!!!! And you had to give all away but two that you used to try
Banana Boat Sunscreen - $30....WHAT??? $30 for one bottle of sunscreen?!?!?
Brookside chocolate $39.42 (not the huge bag, not 10 bags..just one bag!!)
and many more (will update when I have more info) Now listen to this...almost 3/4 of this stuff you are supposed to give away...yes that is right they are sending you a 1099 based on items you were supposed to give out for free!!!!!!!!!!!! They also include in this taxable amount shipping!!!Now there are some that are great companies that give you a zero value (not many sadly)....this is how it should be. After all we are doing these companies a favor! We are getting their product out there and known!! Why should we be penalized for that???
Now here is the kicker: Comment on their Facebook page either complaining or really just looking for help in regards to this 1099....they HIDE your comments and no one responds to your emails!!!!
Here are a couple of posts that they hid from their time line:
https://www.facebook.com/Crowdtap/posts/1149550125062774?hc_location=ufi
https://www.facebook.com/Crowdtap/posts/1150774421607011?comment_id=1150805341603919&reply_comment_id=1150825828268537¬if_t=feed_comment
https://www.facebook.com/Crowdtap/posts/1150643414953445?hc_location=ufi
and one has been deleted. There are so many more that were hid that I can not access because I did not comment on them.
And just so you know..if you apply to a Sample mission..once approved you are stuck to it. They do not allow you to opt out once you are approved and you can not send the items back to them..opened or not!!!
So here is my final thought: First I am done with Crowdtap. Any business that operates in this manner...I want no part of. Not only are they operating in a fraudulent manner..not telling people they are being taxed on items then not how much.,,until it is too late. But then not to respond to any one of our concerns...NO THANK YOU!!!!
#ALLDONEWITHCROWDTAP
Update: So I sent the following rules straight from the IRS web site because Crowdtap refused to give breakdowns and was out right ignoring emails.
If
you are reporting a payment that includes
noncash
property, show the fair market value of
the
property at the time of payment.
If
you fail to provide correct payee statements and you
cannot
show reasonable cause, you may be subject to a
penalty.
The penalty applies if you fail to provide the
statement
by the due date (January 31 for most returns;
see
the Guide
to Information Returns
,
later), you fail to include
all information required to be shown on the
statement,
or you include incorrect information on the
statement.
“Payee statement” has the same meaning as
“statement
to recipient” as used in part M.
The
amount of the penalty is based on when you
furnish
the correct payee statement. It is a separate
penalty,
and is applied in the same manner as the penalty
for
failure to file correct information returns by the due
date
Intentional
disregard of payee statement require-
ments.
If
any failure to provide a correct payee statement
is
due to intentional disregard of the requirements to
furnish
a correct payee statement, the penalty is at least
$530
per payee statement with no maximum penalty.
Civil
Damages for Fraudulent Filing of
Information
Returns (Section 7434)
If
you willfully file a fraudulent information return for
payments
you claim you made to another person, that
person
may be able to sue you for damages. You may
have
to pay $5,000 or more.
I finally this morning..get a reply. Now all of a sudden magically my total fell below the $600 so I will not be receiving a 1099....ummm HA?? Sketchy enough for you? They said after researching they found my total to be below the threshold. I repeat #alldonewithcrowdtap
