In years past, critics blasted the help line of the IRS noting in many cases those answering the phones gave out the wrong information to bewildered taxpayers. Have things gotten better since then? Noted consumer advice expert Clark Howard says the answer in a word - NO!

"The IRS has no clue how to answer questions from taxpayers who call but it's not the IRS's fault. Congress has made the tax code so impossible to understand, that even things that might seem like routine questions, you can so easily be sent on the wrong path. Even accountants disagree about what the right answer is to a question even after they research it. So there is no chance that you can ask the IRS a question that might be complicated about taxes and have any assurance you're going to get the right answer."

Clark warns by the way, even if the IRS gives you the wrong information - you are still at fault if you make a mistake on your return!

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