Edmunds.com Helps Vehicle Donors Survive IRS Audits

SANTA MONICA, Calif., March 26 -- As 2002 tax deadlines loom, Americans should be aware the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) pays close attention to the value placed on donated vehicles. Edmunds.com ( http://www.edmunds.com/ ), the premier online resource for automotive information, offers pricing tools that can help the vehicle deduction stand up to an audit.

"Taxpayers who itemize deductions on their tax returns can deduct, within limits, the fair market value of their contributions to qualified charities," according to the IRS press release entitled "IRS and State Charity Officials Urge Care When Making a Car Donation." The document goes on to warn, however, that "The fair market value of the taxpayer's car may be substantially different from the 'Blue Book' value."

According to IRS Publication 561 entitled "Determining the Value of Donated Property," "Fair market value is the price at which property would change hands between a willing buyer and a willing seller, neither having to buy or sell, and both having reasonable knowledge of all the relevant facts."

The Edmunds.com True Market Value(R) (TMV(R)) automotive pricing tools were developed to provide this exact information, serving as the industry's -- and taxpayers' -- best guide to market value pricing.

"The TMV is, in essence, what you would expect to pay or receive for your vehicle given current market conditions, and it should be useful in approximating the value the IRS expects you to claim," advises Jeremy Anwyl, President of Edmunds.com.

The IRS directs taxpayers to consider many criteria when determining the fair value of their vehicle, such as accessories, mileage and condition. The TMV Used Vehicle Appraiser ( http://www.edmunds.com/products/tmv/ ) asks for these and other facts about each vehicle, and then provides a valuation report that can be used to prepare tax returns and then kept with tax papers for use in the event of an audit. As with all tax matters, you should always consult a qualified tax advisor.

The Used Vehicle Appraiser presents each user with a set of three TMV(R) prices, corresponding to the three types of used vehicle transactions: dealer trade-in (what you should expect to receive from the dealer as a trade-in), dealer retail (what you should expect to pay a dealer for this vehicle), and private party (what you should expect to pay or receive in a private party transaction). Anwyl suggests that taxpayers take all three values to their tax advisor when determining their deductions.

Check http://www.edmunds.com/advice/selling/articles/42975/article.html for more information on donating your vehicle to charity.

About Edmunds.com, Inc.

Edmunds.com ( http://www.edmunds.com/ ) is the premier online resource for automotive information. Its comprehensive set of data, tools and services, including Edmunds.com True Market Value(R) pricing, is generated by Edmunds Data Services and is licensed to third parties. For example, the company supplies over 800,000 pages of content for NYTimes.com's auto section and delivers monthly data reports to Morgan Stanley. Edmunds.com was named "best car research" site by Forbes ASAP, is viewed by consumers as the "most useful Web site" according to the J.D. Power and Associates New Autoshopper.com Studies(SM) for both 2001 and 2002, and was ranked first in the Survey of Car-Shopping Web Sites as reported by The Wall Street Journal. The company is headquartered in Santa Monica, California and maintains a satellite office in Troy, Michigan.