Reply to: traditional accountants vrs online accountants

[Hobosapien]

Don't forget to factor in the upcoming Making Tax Digital changes:

No more delay on Making Tax Digital, VAT-contractors warned

Need to ensure compliant software is used and find out how much extra this will cost for the quarterly submissions. Starts with VAT processing but will cover the whole shebang soon enough. No more simple spreadsheet sent to accountant at year end. HMRC want the info toot sweet so they can charge the tax at the earliest possible opportunity and ensure payments on account are sufficiently high.

Yet another overhead for the humble one man band.

[northernladuk]

@NLUK, sweet enough already then?

You got it

[Dom at Fox Bartfield]

Coffee

White, no sugar. Thanks

@NLUK, sweet enough already then?

[northernladuk]

I’d never blantantly advertise you know that. Besides, I don’t have time when I’m making the tea

White, no sugar. Thanks

[Craig@Clarity]

Except advertising is against the T&Cs

I’d never blantantly advertise you know that. Besides, I don’t have time when I’m making the tea

[northernladuk]

*In the style of a standard advertising agency tone*

Other online accounting packages are available.....

Except advertising is against the T&Cs

[Craig@Clarity]

Agree with Alan, Freeagent is a must for contractors.

*In the style of a standard advertising agency tone*

Other online accounting packages are available.....

[Spoiler]

Just an FYI for anyone else in the same boat, i went for.

Qdos Insurance = Just insurance but not Tax investigation insurance, but still get contract review.

For clarity then, is "just insurance" including both PII and P&EL ?

[Cid]

Just an FYI for anyone else in the same boat, i went for.

Gorilla Accounts = £85 a month (plus LTD setup)
Qdos Insurance = Just insurance but not Tax investigation insurance, but still get contract review.
IPSE = Mainly for Tax investigation insurance.

[JB3000]

So i have managed to go freelance and secure my first contract.

I have spoken with a couple of local accountants and the costs seem to be unclear and every increasing.
a few hundred for this and a few for that and next thing we are talking about £3-4k a year.
Even then its not entirely clear that everything is covered.

at the same time i'm looking at online accountants such as Gorilla and SG.
i like the idea of a fixed cost all in.

if i'm operating a very simple business.
1 invoice out per month.
expenses will basically be travel in the form of either train tickets or mileage.

i don't envisage it getting any more complicated.
my questions is will the online accountants be as tax effective as the local red brick chap given such a simple set up ?

As Dom and Craig have already said the 2 most important factors will be the experience/qualifications of the accountant who you will be dealing with on a daily or monthly or quarterly basis depending on how much support you require.

Just as important would be the staff-client ratio. You could have the best accountant in the world but if they are dealing with 200+ clients you will just be another client in a sea of clients and will probably fall through the cracks.

Also, it would be very good if the accountant provides you with a portal like Free Agent so that you can also see your taxes, dividends, salaries, etc. Without something like Free Agent (or Xero) you are effectively in the dark with regards to your finances.

If a traditional chartered accountancy firm can provide all the above for a reasonable cost then there is no harm going with them. Otherwise you may be better off using an online firm. It is worth noting you can always change accountant especially if you are using something like Free Agent because all your data will be in Free Agent and you can move your Free Agent portal around from accountant to accountant.

[Chart Accountancy]

So i have managed to go freelance and secure my first contract.

I have spoken with a couple of local accountants and the costs seem to be unclear and every increasing.
a few hundred for this and a few for that and next thing we are talking about £3-4k a year.
Even then its not entirely clear that everything is covered.

at the same time i'm looking at online accountants such as Gorilla and SG.
i like the idea of a fixed cost all in.

if i'm operating a very simple business.
1 invoice out per month.
expenses will basically be travel in the form of either train tickets or mileage.

i don't envisage it getting any more complicated.
my questions is will the online accountants be as tax effective as the local red brick chap given such a simple set up ?

All accountants work online so the difference between a local accountant and the so known 'online' accountants should not be the criteria to choose an accountant. Many online accountants also offer a personal meeting. We offer an initial meeting with clients who are local in the areas where we have a physical office. Otherwise, the accounting service is provided exclusively online with communication via email and telephone. It is difficult not to be online in this day and age so an online accountant is a must!

[Alchemy Accountancy]

A couple of additional things that I would suggest doing when appointing an accountant, whether traditional or online:

1. Speak to the person that will be doing the work on your company, see whether you get on with them and check out their qualifications/experience (linkedin could be useful here). A lot of the time you will speak to a sales team who are incentivised only to sign you up.
2. The ownership of the firm. If the company is held for sale (private equity is heavily invested in the contractor market), then you aren't the customer - you're the product, and that drives a different set of behaviour from those managing the firm.

Hope this helps!
Craig

[Spoiler]

after looking at a few options, i think its going to be Gorilla for accounts and Qdos for insurance.

And IPSE+ ?!

[craigy1874]

Agree with Alan, Freeagent is a must for contractors. Check the client to staff ratio of a firm which will be an indication as to whether it's a sausage factory type practice or provides a more personalised service.

This is only helpful if you give ratios to allow him to compare - you got any?

[Cid]

after looking at a few options, i think its going to be Gorilla for accounts and Qdos for insurance.