Claiming a refund from my accountant

[cannon999]

If my accountant has made a number of errors over the last year (I'm getting rid of them this month) am I able to reclaim some of the money that has been paid for them? Or not pay them the 1 month notice? I have all the errors documented via emails.

[northernladuk]

You could be entitled to it but good luck getting it. They aren't going to just hand it over. You could report them to whatever body it is and/or go small claims but we can't be talking a lot here. Is it really worth it?

Change accountants and forget the whole affair IMO.

[ladymuck]

If going to small claims I suspect (IANAL) that you would have to prove material loss as a result of their errors? You could, as NLUK suggests, report them to whatever body they are a member of (ACCA, CIMA, etc) and see if they have any compensation claims processes.

You could also try saying to the firm that you will not pay any final instalment due because of the errors and see what they say. Getting money back is going to be difficult, I suspect. It's always easier to withhold funds but make sure your move to the new accountant is complete before you withhold any payment.

[Lance]

If my accountant has made a number of errors over the last year (I'm getting rid of them this month) am I able to reclaim some of the money that has been paid for them? Or not pay them the 1 month notice? I have all the errors documented via emails.

Sure. You invoke the clause in your contract of service with the accountancy firm, where it says you will be refunded based on the quality of their work.

You have that clause don't you??? No?
Oh well. In that case, no you can't.

[BolshieBastard]

If my accountant has made a number of errors over the last year (I'm getting rid of them this month) am I able to reclaim some of the money that has been paid for them? Or not pay them the 1 month notice? I have all the errors documented via emails.

As with any shoddy service dispute, you should have been raising it with your acountant at the time and not storing them up. It's why you cannot go into a restaurant, order a meal, eat it all then say the beef was tough as old boots so you are only willing topay half the bill.

If you havent been bringing these issues to their attention as and when, you could still complain and ask for a reduction in the bill. Whether they give you one though is another matter.

[GhostofTarbera]

If my accountant has made a number of errors over the last year (I'm getting rid of them this month) am I able to reclaim some of the money that has been paid for them? Or not pay them the 1 month notice? I have all the errors documented via emails.

No probably not, but if it makes you feel better fire away for the sake of a few quid, or just move on with your life as do short


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[jamesbrown]

If they're not preparing your EOY accounts and you need to pay another accountant to do that work, you may be able to a get a refund, because that is the bulk of your annual payment. Monthly payments are best viewed as staged payments for this EOY work (the RTI, VAT and other interannual stuff is small in comparison). There's no harm in asking. However, most likely, it's completely discretionary w/r to your T&Cs. Many accountants don't like to burn bridges, so you may get a refund.

[TheCyclingProgrammer]

This is a negotiation to be had with your accountant (assuming you have no contractual basis for such a claim) and nothing more. If you're not happy with them it would be easier to simply move (and negotiate any early termination fees with them).