Indiana Attorney General Todd Rokita has finalized a $2.9 million settlement for Hoosiers with software company Intuit over alleged deceptive advertising for its TurboTax program – and his office’s recoveries for Hoosiers have now surpassed $385 million since he took office in January 2021.
Rokita
“At my inauguration, I committed to the people of Indiana that my administration would serve with servants’ hearts,” Rokita said. “The work we have put into recovering funds on behalf of Hoosiers is just one manifestation of this spirit.”
The sum of total recoveries represents the work of four divisions: Complex Litigation, Consumer Protection, Litigation and the Medicaid Fraud Control Unit. Recoveries refer to money obtained via consumer settlements and court judgments involving civil penalties, restitution, contract or loan cancellation, costs and/or other financial recoveries. More than $44 million of the money recovered goes to Hoosiers in the form of restitution or canceled contracts. That is the case with the $2.9 million settlement with Intuit, which came in the form of an agreement of voluntary compliance.
In marketing TurboTax, Intuit advertised that it provided “free” tax filing online services but did not adequately disclose that the product was only free for taxpayers who did not need to file schedules. Only after the taxpayer entered extensive information did the product inform them that they had to upgrade to a paid service.
Additionally, Intuit failed to disclose to a subset of those taxpayers with incomes below a certain threshold that they were eligible to use an alternative – and truly free – product, regardless of the need to file schedules. Based on these facts, Rokita alleged that the advertising was therefore deceptive. Indiana’s settlement is part of a larger $141 million settlement with all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
“In my office, we not only exercise fiscal restraint and frugality, but we also work hard every day to give taxpayers a strong return on their investment,” Rokita said. “Hoosiers deserve total dedication from the people they elect to public office. As long as I am here, they can always depend on getting that from the Office of the Attorney General.”