It seems to me that you people have been scammed. Correct me if I have a wrong idea of what went on.
I'm guessing you used a tax preparer to do your taxes. They, in turn, used TurboTax Online to complete the tax filing. TurboTax gets their money from the refund. Of course, the preparer had any refund come through their business so they could collect their fee, and reimburse TurboTax for the filing before sending the remainder to you. TurboTax is not the culprit here... they fulfilled their obligation when the return was filed. The real culprit is undoubtedly the preparer. The preparer made sure TurboTax got paid but planned all along to keep the refund. Then it was simply a matter of putting you off until they could abscond with a lot of people's "refunds. The refunds were to go through their "business", right? I think there is a good chance they also made some fictitious claims on your returns to boost the refund. Don't be surprised if the IRS comes back at you for those "errors". Keep in mind that this is all conjecture on my part, but not beyond possibility.
Now for the recommendation:
I suggest you start with the Better Business Bureau to see what they have for that preparer. You should also "follow the money" to find out where they cashed the refunds. Definitely ask the IRS if they can help trace where the money is. Also, seek local, state, and federal law enforcement to see what assistance they can offer. I'm confident that TurboTax acted appropriately and even went one up by refunding their fee. to you. However, they may be able to help gather information on the preparer.
Most of all, remain calm when dealing with this problem. Naturally, you'll want your wheels to squeak a little to get attention. I think you'll find most people will want to be helpful if you can remain civil. I hope this helps you in you8r efforts to get this resolved. Good luck!
