They say if their info center gives you wrong info and you owe more because of that mistake they won't charge you the fees but you do have to pay the wrong amount.

Has this ever happened to anyone?

No. But it's not surprising.

I fought them over $200 for three years before they told me that they weren't going to pursue it any further.  I still think that I was right.  It was a little odd to have someone from the IRS tell me that I was "way too anal-retentive and rule-obessed."

I still think that I was right.

And no, they didn't charge me any fees or interest.

I have heard that they cannot charge you additional penalties for following their bad advice, but can force you to pay the correct amount.

What I head was that this came about because the IRS used to operate like the ATF.  IE they gave people bad legal advice and then took them to court when they followed it.  And people sued them over it and won.  I don't know that this is true, but it sounds about right.

It does happen.   I believe only only advice you can hang your hat on is written advice from the national office.  There may now be a fee for, and limits on obtaining, such written advice.

As a business owner, I get to deal with a lot of stupid people.

The IRS searches high and low to find some of the most robotic idiots on the face of the earth.  (I had an uncle that worked there.)

I have had letters sent to me that state the following (paraphrased for shortness)

We have found that you have done something wrong.  This letter will not specify what you have done wrong.  Below you will see a list and your error will be one of the things listed.

In the future, we will send you another letter that will specify what you have actually done wrong once we actually figure out what it actually is.  (No date as to when to expect the future letter is given.)  In addition to the extra tax you owe, there will be penalties and interest starting on the following date:  (The date given may be before you recieved the multiple choice letter.)

I have been told things by IRS people that are 100% wrong when I was 100% right.  (I have CPA's that can show me the law proving them wrong.)

The only thing that has saved me from insanity, is the fact that I found a person that works in the problem resolution unit that not only has a brain, but is pleasant to work with.  Instead of acting like a robot, he will tell you, "Oh that means you probably haven't done anything wrong at all, your bookkeeper probably printed the numbers in the wrong column.  The form was recently changed and is very confusing.  It happens all the time."

That was years ago.  Software has made most such errors unlikely, however, there are often ridiculous rules that pop up from time to time.