Accountant recommendation threads inc local requests

[NCo]

New Accountant recommendation

Hi everyone,

New poster here. I hope I am not violating any forum rule - I looked up the guidelines and did not find any restriction.

I have been a contractor for 4 months and looking to switch an accountancy firm. My current firm has never onboarded me, and I constantly need to be active and find out for myself what can be done to be more efficient. One example is finding out and asking for use of home, another was the possibility if adding a wife as a shareholder. Another reason would be under par communication and hidden leaving fee which I was not told about when joining.

I am not originally from the UK, so while I am picking up the tax system I am looking for a more active firm, that can have a 15 minute chat and suggest a working plan for the next year.

Looking for any firm that can provide a package which includes insurance (preferable), has great communication, and doesn't have any silly leaving fees. Not fussed about paying a premium and I'd usually opt for 'Elite' package if such exists.

Thank you in advance.

[northernladuk]

Hi everyone,

New poster here. I hope I am not violating any forum rule - I looked up the guidelines and did not find any restriction.

I have been a contractor for 4 months and looking to switch an accountancy firm. My current firm has never onboarded me, and I constantly need to be active and find out for myself what can be done to be more efficient. One example is finding out and asking for use of home, another was the possibility if adding a wife as a shareholder. Another reason would be under par communication and hidden leaving fee which I was not told about when joining.

I am not originally from the UK, so while I am picking up the tax system I am looking for a more active firm, that can have a 15 minute chat and suggest a working plan for the next year.

Looking for any firm that can provide a package which includes insurance (preferable), has great communication, and doesn't have any silly leaving fees. Not fussed about paying a premium and I'd usually opt for 'Elite' package if such exists.

Thank you in advance.

Have you read the first post in this thread?

[NCo]

Have you read the first post in this thread?

Yes, I have.

None of the suggested firms offer insurance as part of the package, which is my preference - as I'm sure you read in my post before posting your comment.

[ladymuck]

I'm not sure that many accountants are licensed to sell insurance products. I could be very wrong, of course. It's just not something I see as natural bedfellows.

[northernladuk]

Yes, I have.

None of the suggested firms offer insurance as part of the package, which is my preference - as I'm sure you read in my post before posting your comment.

Why do you want them to do that? I'd prefer to go get my own directly from the specialists rather than as a bundled package I have no control over.

And as many people do this then the standard package from an accountant generally wont include insurance. They might sell it separately so might as well get your own.

[Maslins]

I'm not sure that many accountants are licensed to sell insurance products. I could be very wrong, of course. It's just not something I see as natural bedfellows.

It's something clients do ask about. I think main reason is from their perspective if they can get everything they need relating to their Ltd Co from one supplier, it makes their life easier.

We can get clients a discount off QDOS's rates, nothing fancy about that, just a typical affiliate type deal where the client gets the benefit. We did have a brief discussion with QDOS re us actually (re)selling their insurance, but seemed like it was going to be more trouble than it's worth. Even though QDOS would still be the end insurer, if we're the one selling it, we'd (understandably) have to jump through a lot of regulatory hoops. Only way that made sense to us would be if we charged a mark up to cover the extra admin hassle for us...which begs the question would it really be in the client's interest. We figured no.

I imagine some of the big players in the accounting industry will be big enough to have their own in house insurers. Others will be re-selling insurance, potentially with a mark up.

[Michael at BI Accountancy]

As with Maslins above, we've looked at grouping insurance in with the packages. These I believe are known as "group policies" which happen to have more pitfalls then taking out your own separate insurance. Speaking to some agencies they won't actually allow these type of setup.

Check the likes of Qdos, Kingsbridge for an insurance quote, you'll probably find spending a little extra time to source insurance direct will save you in the overall cost.

[NCo]

Thanks everyone for the great input.

As Maislins said, it is more a matter of convenience, but I see the benefit of choosing my own accountancy firm and insurance.

Funny, I have indeed been in contact with Maislins and BI (inquired about the possibility to be get Michael as my accountant per feedback I read here) to get quotes, and both have answered! Talk about great start!

I have also started reaching out out to insurance companies. Since there isn't an insurance sticky (perhaps an idea), looking through I can see recommendations for LH, QDOS & Kingsbridge.

1. Anyone else worth contacting?
2. Is their IR35 insurance apples to apples?
3. QDOS' online quote has many more options for IR35 insurance (which reflects in the price range) than others. Is there a minimal package you guys can suggest? (For example, Jury service, etc.)

https://www.contractoruk.com/forums/...t=Larsen+Howie

I really appreciate the constructive responses, thank you.

[ladymuck]

I have used Caunce O'Hara for years for my insurances. Last time I did a comparison against Kingsbridge, they were still better value. However, I only use them for PII and employers liability and not the wider range of insurances you can get as I still have IPSE for the time being for other useful things

[barely_pointless]

wish I'd seen this thread a few years ago..

was with SJD, totally cowboys , loading up a directors loan to make it balance, not telling me, forgetting to do a payroll year on year, missing VAT, incorrectly calculating VAT, just basically a call centre with a few spreadsheet jockeys, even calculated VAT on a loan repayment lol.

Anybody got any recommendations, and I don't want to hear about QDOS, they're almost as bad as SJD

Based SE London, interested in any recommendations (contracting since 2015, prior to that used a north london firm in finchley, you probably know the one, great service, but needs face to face.

cheers

Barely_Pointless