New Freeagent Accountant needed - recommendations?

[Mojito]

Vote Maslin

There was a CUK member who fairly regularly recommended us on here, but then NLUK told him off for doing so and haven't seen him on here since!

I'm the aforementioned consumer of Chris' services and (as per previous posts and NLUK's censure) am a very happy bunny. FreeAgent is a great tool and the service wrapper round it - "you need to submit your VAT return TOMORROW Mojito" - keeps me on the good side of the legalities. I met Chris at the start of the engagement but have not needed to since, contact via email mostly, phone occasionally.

[Maslins]

Hello,

Just following up on this thread to find out if anyone has specific recommendations for a first-time contractor. I'm looking for an accountant who uses FreeAgent. There is a list of accredited accountants on the FreeAgent website but I haven't come across any reviews for any of them yet. Maslins in the only one that seems to be active on this forum that uses FreeAgent. Any recommendation will be very helpful.

Thanks

There was a CUK member who fairly regularly recommended us on here, but then NLUK told him off for doing so and haven't seen him on here since!

We're small compared to the likes of SJD...so I guess it's inevitable that they get more recommendations, though also more complaints. Doesn't mean they're better or worse, just more commonly used.

[Dan@OrangeGenie]

Hello,

Just following up on this thread to find out if anyone has specific recommendations for a first-time contractor. I'm looking for an accountant who uses FreeAgent. There is a list of accredited accountants on the FreeAgent website but I haven't come across any reviews for any of them yet. Maslins in the only one that seems to be active on this forum that uses FreeAgent. Any recommendation will be very helpful.

Thanks

We're FreeAgent accredited

[sravs]

First time contractor seeking FreeAgent accredited/certified recommendations

Hello,

Just following up on this thread to find out if anyone has specific recommendations for a first-time contractor. I'm looking for an accountant who uses FreeAgent. There is a list of accredited accountants on the FreeAgent website but I haven't come across any reviews for any of them yet. Maslins in the only one that seems to be active on this forum that uses FreeAgent. Any recommendation will be very helpful.

Thanks

[Alan @ BroomeAffinity]

If you're a low maintenance client as you say, then I'm sure you could negotiate a "bespoke" arrangement. We have a couple of clients we deal with this way: annual accounts, ct and SA returns. We jump into their system every couple of months to check things are ok and we deal with their occasional adhoc questions. I think the fee is £500 plus vat. You'd probably need to look at a smaller specialist who are more likely to be willing to work in this way. As Maslins rightly points out, most pay-monthly firms won't work this way.

[Paul WSS]

Thanks for the replies so far.

TheCyclingProgrammer - thanks for the recommendation, it's frustrating that your accountant doesn't have a phone number on their site, I'd rather ring when it's convenient for me, rather than wait for a call back during the working day. May well try them tomorrow though.

Alan @ BroomeAffinity - that year-end only approach is something I am considering. Maybe I've made bad choices in previous accountants, but I've not generally received any pro-active advice during the year, and my accountants tell me I'm a low-maintenance client, so it grates slightly that I'm paying the same as someone who is regularly on the phone to them. I am told that the ratio of easy clients to those that take up lots of time and effort is why Rodliffe are stopping the service which they sold me as being most suitable for me! I would like to have someone retained to take a quarterly look at what I'm up to, and to nag me if I forget to do something, so wonder about a 'pay by use' approach. I suspect I'll end up with a monthly payment approach though, as by the time you add an end of year service to a few enquiries during the year, the cost won't be much different.

Maslins - I've seen the list of accountants on the FA website, but it's very difficult to tell how good any will be. Having been burnt at the last accountant change, I want to get this one right!

TheLordDave - sounds like we are in the same boat. Freeagent was so easy compared to the SJD spreadsheet, especially as it tracks invoices and expenses, so no more double entry and keeping separate records.

Decisions, decisions!

[TheLordDave]

I was with you for over 2 years Craig. Filling in a spreadsheet every month. Although I notice you now have a portal.

[Craig at Nixon Williams]

I'm in the same position, after using the 30 day freeagent free trial I really like it. It makes things loads easier than some of the spreadsheets the big names use (nixon williams and sjd, although these may have been modernised since i used them).

We have never used a spreadsheet. We have launched an online portal recently - this is bespoke to ourselves rather than buying an off-the-shelf package. By doing this, it has allowed us to keep the workings of it relatively simple and the feedback that we have received from customers so far has been excellent.

Craig

[TheLordDave]

I'm in the same position, after using the 30 day freeagent free trial I really like it. It makes things loads easier than some of the spreadsheets the big names use (nixon williams and sjd, although these may have been modernised since i used them).

I always found it a bit of a mystery working out how much i had avaliable ect. Freeagent makes that a lot easier especially if you have multiple savings accounts to stash your corp tax and vat away.

But i do have the worry that i will mess something important up with regards to VAT and Year end books, so will be looking for an accountant on top of this. The maslins package looks interesting with the included freeagent licence.

Im just trying to work out if any of this adds any value to me as a business once you start needing more complicated accounting for plan b's ect under the same business account.

[Maslins]

Potential problem with a "year end only" service is that it can be too late to spot certain things...so it does depend on how confident you are that you're making the best choices with things throughout the year.

From our perspective, we used to have a cheaper "we won't help with VAT/payroll/personal tax" package, but it ended up a bit of a farce. People would attempt to DIY those bits, then either ask us loads of questions (it would've been quicker for us to do it for them) or make a hash of it and we'd have to fix it further down the line. We then had to decide whether/how much extra to charge as we were doing work over and above what was agreed, they'd then get miffed, and generally it wasn't working well for anyone concerned.

We therefore made the business decision that we either oversee everything (hence clients can hold us responsible for everything...to the extent they can of an accountant) or we'd rather not be involved. Sure, sometimes clients do need negligible handholding with a lot of the basics...but we're there if/when they need it. Not just for VAT/PAYE queries, but also things like mortgage references or running new business ideas by us.

Sure you'll find plenty of accountants who are happy to just do a year end service if that's what you decide you want. Do factor in cost of the software if you go this route...many pay monthly firms such as ourselves will include it as part of the fee.

Appreciate you're perhaps looking for recommendations here, but there's well over a hundred FreeAgent friendly accountants listed on the FreeAgent website.

[Alan @ BroomeAffinity]

If you're handling your own VAT and Payroll and also your day-to-day book-keeping, look for a year end only service. Typically, you'll get your accounts, CT return and maybe your own SA return done for c£500. The only problem I see with that is that any tax planning advice would be reactive and the year end already passed before the accountant looks at your books. I would recommend retaining someone before your year end and asking them to have a look to see if anything needs to be done before the year end.

[TheCyclingProgrammer]

I'm happy to recommend my own accountant.

Accountants for Small Businesses, Freelancers and Contractors - FreeAgent / Xero Friendly. Kent / London.

I used to pay my old accountant an annual fee (£550) to complete my accounts and do my CT return and he would answer the odd email if if had a simple question.

I pay my current accountants a monthly fee and they do all of the above but are always available by phone or email if I need to ask them something. They are also happy to give me advice relating to my personal tax matters as well as company matters.

It costs me more than doing it the old way but still only about £1k a year and I have advice on tap.

[Paul WSS]

Hi all

Since Rodliffe accounting decided to pull the plug on their 'Honestly Accounting' service with zero notice, I'm left considering whether to stay with them or transfer elsewhere. I've been using Freeagent and am very pleased with it, certainly easier than the spreadsheet my previous accountant used to use!

Does anyone have any experience of 3 Wise Bears? w ww.3wisebears.co.uk - Contractor Accountants | Accountants London | London Accountants.
I'm also considering Maslins who seem to have a good reputation on here.

If anyone has any other accountants who use Freeagent that they would recommend, I would be grateful.

I do wonder, as I do my own bookkeeping through Freeagent, and could easily do the payroll and VAT filing through it, whether I would be better off rather than paying someone a monthly fee, to pay an accountant when I need them - when I need to ask a question (rare), to check the VAT return, and to do the annual accounts. Has anyone gone down this sort of route at all, and if so, what is your experience?

Thanks for your help.

Paul