Reliable accountant for small UK business?

[freelancesam]

I'm looking for a good accountant (or firm) that can take care of setting up and running the books for a small tech/consultancy business. I've read the free ebook at http://www.easyaccountancy.co.uk and they seem pretty good but in their words, an accountant should be carefully selected.

Has anybody used them or does anybody know of any other good (reasonably priced) accountants?

Thanks

Sam

 

[john1989]

@MyAccountantOnline and @kevin.doran are both respected members of the forum. Perhaps contact them for quotations?

 

[kevin.doran]

Thanks @john1989 - appreciated as always.

 

[Bob]

There is a big difference between using a firm such as Easy Accountancy and @kevin.doran and @MyAccountantOnline and indeed any of the other accounts that contribute to UKBF. The last filed accounts of SJD Group to October 2013, of which Easy Accountancy appears to be a part, showed turnover of £14 million. You would be a very small fish in a very big pond.

Having said that SJD had a good reputation for their work with contractors.

Strangely though, SJD was dissolved using a DS01 in December 2015 so not quite sure who runs it now. In fact it does seem that all of the SJD companies are being dissolved

Maybe the answer to that should be a new thread

 

[Ola1]

Where are you based

 

[MyAccountantOnline]

@MyAccountantOnline and @kevin.doran are both respected members of the forum. Perhaps contact them for quotations?

Thank you very much John

 

[UK Contractor Accountant]

Strangely though, SJD was dissolved using a DS01 in December 2015 so not quite sure who runs it now. In fact it does seem that all of the SJD companies are being dissolved

Mr Simon Dolan is off racing his team cars at Le Mans He sold Out

SJD Accountancy was acquired in 2014 along with accounting practice Nixon Williams by Sovereign Capital for over £100m.

That just leaves me to take -over the Contractor Accountant Crown

 

[john1989]

Mr Simon Dolan is off racing his team cars at Le Mans He sold Out

SJD Accountancy was acquired in 2014 along with accounting practice Nixon Williams by Sovereign Capital for over £100m.

That just leaves me to take -over the Contractor Accountant Crown

There was quite a long thread a bit since on the contractor forum complaining of more price hikes and a shoddy service from SJD.

 

[Ola1]

Learn a little every day, never considered a practice could be bought by an outside investor, interesting

 

[john1989]

Learn a little every day, never considered a practice could be bought by an investor, interesting

Why not?

 

[Ola1]

Well, it must be a complicated thing to do I suppose.

 

[freelancesam]

Thanks for all the info guys, got a meeting with a friends accountant (who's an old guy) if that doesn't go well, Kevin looks like a good choice!

Out of interest, when choosing an accountant, are older guys with 30-40 years experience any better than younger recently qualified guys (< 10 years)?

I fear that that older guys may not be up to scratch on the modern tech (clearbooks etc) but they may know more tips and tricks about tax? Or I may be making things up as I really don't know the industry.

 

[john1989]

Regardless of age, I think it depends on the accountant. There are crap and good accountants of all ages.

Some of those embrace technology, others don’t.

The accountant you choose should have good technical ability, be approachable and someone you can see an ongoing business relationship with. I’m 26 and have worked in accountancy since I left school at 16 … I would like to think I have the technical ability to advise small businesses competently and that my age wouldn’t be an issue to a prospective client or employer.

If the accountant is ‘too old’ they may be looking to wind down and / or sell the practice. That may leave you with an accountant not of your choosing and you then have to change accountants.

A recommendation is always a good start to choosing an accountant. But I would recommend speaking to 2 or 3 to see who fits you and your business the best.

 

[JDM2012]

I switched to RHJ accountants last August and been more than happy with there service. I am a small LTD company and they take care of everything for me, all queries are answered within a few hours by email and pricing is reasonable.

Definitely worth giving them a look.

 

[Jeremiah@RHJ Accountants]

Many thanks for the recommendation always appreciated

 

[David Griffiths]

Out of interest, when choosing an accountant, are older guys with 30-40 years experience any better than younger recently qualified guys (< 10 years)?

I fear that that older guys may not be up to scratch on the modern tech (clearbooks etc) but they may know more tips and tricks about tax? Or I may be making things up as I really don't know the industry.

You will find older accountants who have excellent IT skills and who are familiar with modern software. You'll find some who wouldn't know how to switch on a computer,

You'll find younger ones who have basic IT skills (as should anybody coming through the system more recently) but don't really buy in to cloud software and computing. You'll find others as IT savvy as you like.

Computers were in use in accountancy practices in the late 1970s, and Visicalc, the first spreadsheet, was released in 1980. Accountants with 30-40 years experience will have grown used to working with IT. I'm outside that range now but our office will be as modern as almost any other - hosted systems, paperless working, online portals, multiple monitors, voip sytems. It's not an age thing.

On the "tips and tricks" front, it shouldn't make any difference. Anybody who has been in practice for a few years should have enough training and experience to deal competently with your tax affairs.

 

[UK Contractor Accountant]

From my experience of taking over clients from other practices there are Accountants out there seem to just do the run of mill year end accounts and tax returns.

They do not seem to give or are not capable of giving any tax saving advice or are just want to do the minimum for the highest fee possible.

One client I took over from a well known high Street Practice forgot to claim loan interest relief on a let property because they never asked the client how they funded the purchase of the property.

 

[john1989]

One client I took over from a well known high Street Practice forgot to claim loan interest relief on a let property because they never asked the client how they funded the purchase of the property.

I think that's more negligence than forgetfulness.

 

[UK Contractor Accountant]

I think that's more negligence than laziness.

We got their fees refunded in the end and amended the Tax Return.

 

[freelancesam]

Thanks for all the advice guys, the reason I'm so wary is because my brother-in-law hired an unknown accountant to run his books, who after paying him around £5k over a number of years, failed to submit anything to HMRC and nearly ruined his business. It's taken him the best part of 2 years to get everything back on track

 

[john1989]

Thanks for all the advice guys, the reason I'm so wary is because my brother-in-law hired an unknown accountant to run his books, who after paying him around £5k over a number of years, failed to submit anything to HMRC and nearly ruined his business. It's taken him the best part of 2 years to get everything back on track

If you are a limited company you can check that you accounts have been submitted to Companies House here:
https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/

If you ask your accountant, they should provide both a copy of the tax return and submission receipt for the tax return - whether a Corporation Tax Return or Self Assessment Tax Return.

 

[UK Contractor Accountant]

Thanks for all the advice guys, the reason I'm so wary is because my brother-in-law hired an unknown accountant to run his books, who after paying him around £5k over a number of years, failed to submit anything to HMRC and nearly ruined his business. It's taken him the best part of 2 years to get everything back on track

Don't get any of those sorts on here!

Respected members of the Accountancy Professional only

 

[john1989]

Respected members of the Accountancy Professional only

I must have evaded the sensors!

 

[Clare@ClarityTaxation]

I think Accountants are pretty much like any other service provider - some are good, some are bad, some put in extra effort and some can't be bothered to do more than the bare minimum! I don't think age has much bearing on it, I've met young people who can't keep up with technology and legislation, and older people who are streets ahead (and vice versa).

I think the key is to go with someone who is recommended, and make sure you're happy with them. You should feel comfortable asking questions, no matter how daft you think they may be, and you should feel happy with (proactive) advice given - if you don't understand something then a decent accountant or tax advisor should be happy to clarify it until you do, not baffle you with technical terms. It's your name on the accounts and returns, and you're legally responsible for them, so make sure you trust the person who prepares them for you.

 

[UK Contractor Accountant]

I must have evaded the sensors!

They are on quite a lowish setting at the moment but with the tax return deadline looming will need to turn them up a notch - set to stun only mods!