It is a deeply frustrating algorithm. So, the background is that the company did a survey about reasons clients are unhappy and/or get their taxes done elsewhere, and apparently the number one complaint was that the tax prep process took too much time. Which, fair enough! If a client is missing documents and has trouble getting them, or a preparer is very busy, a return can sit on hold for a good while.

The trouble is that in trying to fix that problem, they have wildly overcompensated. *sigh*

As for people acting against their self interest, there's a saying (whose attribution I do not know) to the effect of: "Humans are not rational animals. Humans a rationalizing animals." I have never had cause to doubt those words.