Lifting the lid on accountants fees
Historically, accountants have charged large fees for preparing the accounts and completing the tax returns for businesses.
In these changing times are these high fees a thing of the past?
Elaine Clark, a Chartered Accountant and founder of the on line accounting practice CheapAccounting.co.uk believes that this is the case.
Elaine says:
"All businesses, regardless of size, must prepare accounts and submit a tax return to HMRC.
"The traditional view is that preparing these returns is a complex procedure resulting in sky high accountancy fees.
"However, two key factors have evolved over recent years that challenge this and as a result the fees charged by accountants should reduce dramatically."
The two key factors that Elaine refers to are:
Increase in the number of small businesses
There are nearly 5 million businesses in the UK. Small, non complex businesses account for 99.9% of this number.
In fact the growth of small businesses is at its highest level since statistics were recorded.
The accounts and tax affairs of these businesses are straightforward and simple. They do not demand many hours of tax advice. Most of the time is spent in what is generally known as compliance duties. For example preparing the accounts, filing the tax return and making sure that all deadlines are met.
The accountant's fee should reflect the level and complexity of the work required.
Advances in Technology
In all areas of life there have been huge advances in technology over the last decade.
At last the accounting profession is catching up.
Computer-based book-keeping packages have become easily accessible to business owners at an ever-reducing cost and ever-increasing ease of use.
This means that the quality and completeness of information made available to accountants at year ends is constantly improving.
Coupled with this, accountants now use accounts production software which greatly simplifies the preparation of annual accounts and tax returns.
Logic would dictate that the evolution of technology would have led to a reduction in accountancy fees.
Elaine concludes:
"The accounting profession is gradually waking up to the changes in technology and businesses over the last decade.
"This is very good news for the small businesses out there that should be able to benefit for dramatic reductions in their accounting fees. A great help in these tough times."
"Typically our clients have saved anything from £400 to over £1,000 in fees when they moved to our on line accounting packages. Take Sue Gabriel as an example. She saved £780 per year."
Sue said:
"I contacted CheapAccounting on the recommendation of a colleague. This was not my first Accountant and I was halfway through my company financial year with another, well known firm of Accountants. However, I was just not happy with the service that they were providing, all at a large cost too!
"So I decided to move across to CheapAccounting and I could not be happier. They made, what I believed would be a difficult transfer process, extremely easy.
"They made sure that all my accounts were correct and up to date during the transfer process, so that I could start entering subsequent entries with the knowledge that everything was correct going forward.
"The web based Accounts entry system is extremely easy to use and is so much easier and less time consuming than I was used to."