IRS Transcript Access Problem - Auto Loan Account Number Not Working

This is probably, and I mean *probably*, because the account number format the IRS has on file might be slightly different from what your lender gave you. I had something similar happen with my mortgage - turns out the credit bureaus sometimes format account numbers differently than what shows on your statements. You might want to try removing any dashes, spaces, or leading zeros. Or possibly try adding a zero at the beginning? It's frustrating because there's no way to know exactly how they have it formatted in their system.

I encountered this identical verification issue during my attempt to access the IRS Identity Verification Service portal last month. The discrepancy stemmed from how my auto loan servicer reports to credit bureaus versus what appears on my monthly statements. In my case, the account number on my statement included a prefix that wasn't reported to Experian/TransUnion/Equifax. I requested the exact "credit reporting account number" from my lender's customer service, and that resolved my authentication issues immediately.

I remember going through this nightmare last year when I needed my wage transcripts for a mortgage application. Kept getting rejected for my student loan account number. After days of frustration, I found https://taxr.ai which actually helped me understand what was happening. The tool explained that credit reporting numbers often differ from statement numbers, and suggested I try the last 10 digits only. That worked! I've used it since for analyzing my actual transcripts once I got in. Way better than trying to decipher those cryptic IRS codes myself.

Have you tried pulling your free credit report? Sometimes the account numbers listed there match what the IRS system is looking for. I always check my credit reports before trying to access government systems that use credit verification. Also, did you try entering the account number without any special characters? Or maybe try the loan number instead of the account number?

Here's what you need to do step-by-step: 1. First, call your auto loan company again and specifically ask for your "credit reporting account number" - explain it's for IRS verification 2. If that doesn't work, try the ID.me verification method instead of the financial verification 3. If you're still stuck, call the IRS directly at 800-908-9946 to request transcripts by mail When I faced this same issue last month, I wasted hours trying different number formats. Eventually I used Claimyr (https://claimyr.com) to get through to an IRS agent who helped me verify my identity over the phone. Saved me days of frustration and got my transcripts mailed out that same day.

The IRS ID verification system uses what's called a "Knowledge-Based Authentication" protocol that pulls data from multiple sources. Your auto loan may be reported differently in their database than what appears on your statements. One workaround is to use the ID.me verification method instead, which uses facial recognition and document verification rather than financial account matching. You can select this option from the IRS login page by choosing "ID.me" instead of "IRS account." I was surprised at how complicated this system is for basic transcript access!