'Holy Jamoly,' Fidelity customer avoids huge tax penalty thanks to Call 4 Action
EASTON - An Easton woman says she ended up with a huge tax penalty all because of a mistake made by the company handling her retirement account.
During his years working behind the scenes for the Boston Symphony Orchestra, Kathleen Miller's brother put money away in the organization's retirement fund.
"He worked at Tanglewood in the summer, he loved it. He was a swell guy, I miss him still," Kathleen told WBZ-TV, remembering her brother before he passed away in 2016.
Arthur Ryan left his retirement savings to his sisters.
"Fifty percent to me and 50-percent to my other sister," Miller explained.
Many retirement accounts are subject to a required minimum distribution or RMD. When you turn 72-years-old you have to take a certain amount out of the account every year or pay a hefty penalty to the IRS.
"If you don't take it out, they'll take 50-percent of what you should have taken out," Miller said.
That's why she contacted Fidelity in November to make sure she had time to make her 2022 withdrawal before the December 31st deadline.
"Come to find out, it was never done. Some kind of crazy clerical error," Miller said.
Facing a fine that would have cost her hundreds of dollars, she immediately contacted Fidelity.
"They put me on hold listening to that horrible music and then they dropped the call and it would drive me bonkers." Miller told WBZ.
She called several times, and while some of the representatives tried to help her, none could figure out how to fix her problem.
After spending hours on the phone, she had an idea.
"Finally it dawned on me, and I said, I'm going to call that Call for Action and you guys were Johnny on the spot. You called me right back and I went holy jamoly, this was great," Miller said.
Shortly after we reached out to Fidelity, the company contacted Miller.
"The next day, don't they call up and now I have an account number, a case number and a case manager and a telephone number with an extension," she said.
In an email, a Fidelity spokesperson told us:
At Fidelity, we strive to deliver an excellent customer experience, and regret any frustration that resulted in this case. Ms. Miller will be compensated for any tax consequences specific to this transaction, as well as associated tax preparation fees. This type of matter happens very infrequently, and the positive outcome is an example of Fidelity always putting the customer first.
A few days after we spoke with a representative from Fidelity, Miller got a letter, explaining the details of the resolution and an apology for the inconvenience.
"It was a good thing that you did and I would recommend it to anybody, to call up that WBZ Call for Action," Miller said.
If you have a problem you need help with, email wbzcallforaction@cbs.com. Please be sure to include your name and phone number. You can also call 617-787-7070, Tuesday – Friday between 11 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.