Accountant recommendation threads inc local requests

[Fred Bloggs]

Hi Kolata

I would have expected something like that to have been covered by your accountant to be honest. A review of your personal tax in March just before the end of the tax year should be a given to ensure that you've declared dividends up to the high rate threshold (or at least considered it) so that you don't miss out.

It's definitely wise to have a good understanding of everything that relates to you but there are also some key areas that your accountant needs to cover proactively also.

Martin
Contratax Ltd

I've been doing this since 2003 and I've never experienced or heard of anyone else experiencing anything remotely like that. Even paying well >£100 a month I've never heard of that happening.

[ContrataxLtd]

I've been doing this since 2003 and I've never experienced or heard of anyone else experiencing anything remotely like that. Even paying well >£100 a month I've never heard of that happening.

Good to know we're doing something our competitors aren't then (in a good way of course).

Martin
Contratax Ltd

[Darren at Fox-Bartfield]

Service

I've been doing this since 2003 and I've never experienced or heard of anyone else experiencing anything remotely like that. Even paying well >£100 a month I've never heard of that happening.

Standard policy, quarterly financial health checks as well as tax review before the tax year end which we do for all clients not just for contractors.

[kolata]

What is the difference between chartered accountant and just an accountant?
Which do I need?
My current one is chartered accountant.

[northernladuk]

What is the difference between chartered accountant and just an accountant?
Which do I need?
My current one is chartered accountant.

Give Gorilla Accounting a call and see how you get in with them. I've been with them over a year and am very pleased. They do proactive checks every quarter on the account pointing out what might be missing etc. They alsonuse FreeAgent which isn't great port. There are a couple of us on here with them. Up to you if you mention CUK or myself but have a chat and see if they can answer your questions and provide the service you are after.

[ContrataxLtd]

What is the difference between chartered accountant and just an accountant?
Which do I need?
My current one is chartered accountant.

A Chartered Accountant has qualified with ICEAW and will be either ACA or FCA, an accountant may have qualified with a different a accountancy body (ACCA, CTA, AAT etc.), may not be a qualified accountant or simply may not want to pay to use the term Chartered Accountant.

Ultimately you need someone who's advice you can trust, provides you with the service you want and meets your accountancy needs. Ring a few, take recommendations from friends/colleagues and then see who you get on with best.

Martin
Contratax Ltd

[Darren at Fox-Bartfield]

Accountants

What is the difference between chartered accountant and just an accountant?
Which do I need?
My current one is chartered accountant.

It means regulated by a governing body being ICAEW. There are other regulatory bodies within the UK but the main ones being ICAEW and ACCA. In theory gives added protection and assurance to clients. Not all qualified guys have the contractor specific experience or training which is a specialised field.

IPSE gives the assurance over the contractor experience and knowledge side of things but recommendation is the best form of advertising. We have both the regulatory side of things and the IPSE accreditation in place, best of both worlds as well as Freeagent included in the package as do others on the forum.

As Martin says, contact a few and see which one you prefer.

[Morris Edwards Accountant]

There are many good accountants out there who are qualified by experience and do not hold formal qualifications however this can be risky as there are many accountants out there who are not qualified and you just do not know how good they are. You cannot go wrong with an accountant from ACCA, ICAEW, ICAS or any other professional body as you will know they will have been trained to a high standard.

[ContrataxLtd]

There are many good accountants out there who are qualified by experience and do not hold formal qualifications however this can be risky as there are many accountants out there who are not qualified and you just do not know how good they are. You cannot go wrong with an accountant from ACCA, ICAEW, ICAS or any other professional body as you will know they will have been trained to a high standard.

I wouldn't make such a sweeping statement around here to be honest, I think there are a fair few contractors on here who have been burnt by completely trusting their accountant who was regulated by one of those professional bodies and they ended up losing a lot of money.

By all means it's a good place to start (coming from someone who is both ACCA & CTA ) but you need to ensure more due diligence is done on an on going basis too to ensure the advise you receive is correct and that you fully understand what is going on with your company.

Martin
Contratax Ltd

[cojak]

Yep, just google Darren Upton and see what happens...