accountant or self submission?

[richb330]

Hi All, i'm looking for a bit of advise;

I started a Ltd company providing IT support & consultancy to 1 business last year. Turnover in year 1 was £8k with profits of £2.5k. This is supplementary to my 9-5 PAYE job.

I looked for an accountant when i started the venture and settled on a local guy who popped round for a chat. He's accredited and has a number of other clients on his books, so i'm happy that he's legit. He quoted me £500 for preparation and submission of the company accounts and corp tax and an additional £50 for self assessment. It seemed reasonable so I agreed.

During the year, i registered for VAT and was accepted for the flat rate VAT scheme at 9.5%, i’ve also recently submitted the Annual return.

With the alterations to the PAYE scheme earlier this year, i received an email from him saying that the fees were increasing to £600pa for the business tax, while self assessment remained at £50.

As i've earned less than I initially anticipated (i originally estimated i would turnover £15k in year 1 with around 5k profit) I asked recently if he would renegotiate the fees simply as I have very simple affairs, 1 client and very low takings. I appreciate that the work needs to be done if you turnover £150k or £1k. He agreed a 20% discount - £400.

Is this a good deal, or would you do yourself?
i’ve downloaded the Adobe template from HMRC and though it looks a little daunting, i’m sure i could make a good go of it..

Thanks for your help

 

[MyAccountantOnline]

Hi All, i'm looking for a bit of advise;

I started a Ltd company providing IT support & consultancy to 1 business last year. Turnover in year 1 was £8k with profits of £2.5k. This is supplementary to my 9-5 PAYE job.

I looked for an accountant when i started the venture and settled on a local guy who popped round for a chat. He's accredited and has a number of other clients on his books, so i'm happy that he's legit. He quoted me £500 for preparation and submission of the company accounts and corp tax and an additional £50 for self assessment. It seemed reasonable so I agreed.

During the year, i registered for VAT and was accepted for the flat rate VAT scheme at 9.5%, i’ve also recently submitted the Annual return.

With the alterations to the PAYE scheme earlier this year, i received an email from him saying that the fees were increasing to £600pa for the business tax, while self assessment remained at £50.

As i've earned less than I initially anticipated (i originally estimated i would turnover £15k in year 1 with around 5k profit) I asked recently if he would renegotiate the fees simply as I have very simple affairs, 1 client and very low takings. I appreciate that the work needs to be done if you turnover £150k or £1k. He agreed a 20% discount - £400.

Is this a good deal, or would you do yourself?
i’ve downloaded the Adobe template from HMRC and though it looks a little daunting, i’m sure i could make a good go of it..

Thanks for your help

It doesnt seem unreasonable to me but always difficult to say without knowing the full circumstances.

 

[Caspar]

Its whether you think you understand what is required. The accounts have to be in a set format and an abbreviated set sent to Companies House,. There is also a CT600 company tax return. The HMRC stuff needs to be sent electronically.

The new regime with payroll annoyed everyone as monthly returns now have to be made and although not everyone, most professionals I know had no choice but to charge more for this additional burden thrust on us.

I don't think you've got a bad deal in the reduction in price, considering you would have peace of mind that it was being done correctly. And the accountant has showed willing by reducing his bill in light of the smaller job.

Caspar

 

[VanillaOnlineAccountancy]

You will only find out if you have got it right some time down the line! The fee you have been quoted seems reasonable but it's hard to say without knowing your full circumstances.

 

[Bob]

If its a small LTD there is no harm in maintaining all things in EXCEL. We help a lot of small LTD who wants to keep things and only need an accountant at end of year to prepare the accounts and file tax returns; and also to ask a couple questions during the year. All this is for a small fee of £150 per year. You can read more about our services on:
REMOVED

To be honest Broadex, I found your site confusing. It wasn't clear whether a potential client was dealing personally with you and your firm, which I note is based on the Isle of Man, or if and how you were distributing the enquiries to "100s of qualified accountants" as per your website. I was also unsure of your fees as although online you state your one off fee for annual accounts and tax returns to be £180, the Paypal authorisation appears to take £280? Can I assume that the work is outsourced to India which I accept is becoming more common but is not clear from your site.

 

[kevin.doran]

The fees seem fair and it's good to see a bit of common sense taking over for a change re the slight reduction.

How's business looking for the following year?

 

[cheaper accountant]

To be honest with you I do think that you can receive the same service (i.e. completion of annual accounts, CT600 tax return, submissions, etc) for less, say around £150.

The fee should always reflect the size of your business and your turnover is clearly below £10k.

 

[Ola1]

Really ?

The fee should always reflect the size of your business and your turnover is clearly below £10k.

So take 2 companies,
Company A, IT consultant, uses free agent, up to date book keeping, 12 sales invoices for the year, bank account reconciled, profit before tax £1500


Company b, FCA regulated loans, mortgage broker, excel records, unreconciled bank accounts with several commission receipts from multiple 3rd parties, profit (estimated by money remaining in bank) £1500

Would these both attract the same £150 fee ?

I would do either for that amount but I am curious

 

[Ogs Logs]

Hi All, i'm looking for a bit of advise;

I started a Ltd company providing IT support & consultancy to 1 business last year. Turnover in year 1 was £8k with profits of £2.5k. This is supplementary to my 9-5 PAYE job.

I looked for an accountant when i started the venture and settled on a local guy who popped round for a chat. He's accredited and has a number of other clients on his books, so i'm happy that he's legit. He quoted me £500 for preparation and submission of the company accounts and corp tax and an additional £50 for self assessment. It seemed reasonable so I agreed.

During the year, i registered for VAT and was accepted for the flat rate VAT scheme at 9.5%, i’ve also recently submitted the Annual return.

With the alterations to the PAYE scheme earlier this year, i received an email from him saying that the fees were increasing to £600pa for the business tax, while self assessment remained at £50.

As i've earned less than I initially anticipated (i originally estimated i would turnover £15k in year 1 with around 5k profit) I asked recently if he would renegotiate the fees simply as I have very simple affairs, 1 client and very low takings. I appreciate that the work needs to be done if you turnover £150k or £1k. He agreed a 20% discount - £400.

Is this a good deal, or would you do yourself?
i’ve downloaded the Adobe template from HMRC and though it looks a little daunting, i’m sure i could make a good go of it..

Thanks for your help

It totally depends on how much free time you have, if you have the time to do it yourself keep your overheads down as much as possible.