Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How hard is it to change accountants?
A: Not at all. Just advise your current accountant and leave the rest up to us. We will correspond with your previous auditors and obtain all the necessary information we need. You don't need to worry about any embarrassment or handle this yourselves. Straightforward!
Q: Does it matter where we are based?
A: No. We are very happy to come and talk to you wherever you are located. Although many of our clients are based in SouthWest, we have others located all over the UK. As HMRC & accountancy are gradually moving online We can easily manage the affairs of your business or a company no matter where you are in UK.
Q: Will you charge me each time I have a question I need to call you about?
A: No. You pay a yearly all-inclusive fee paid monthly/yearly, rather than hourly to provide you with the best service and value. You receive unlimited and free telephone and email support. If your business issue requires the undertaking of specific extra work, detailed advice or additional Support Service, we will tell you in advance and agree costs. Private Tax Clients also benefit from fixed fees. Any extra work will be quoted in advance and agreed with you prior to commencement. You will never receive surprise bills.
Q: I've just had my accounts done and don't need an accountant until next year, so is there any need to contact you now?
A: We can't over emphasise the importance of tax planning at an early stage, not crisis driven advice. Ideally you do tax planning before the year even starts but after that, the earlier the better. The same is applicable to all areas of advice
Q: Will you come to visit us for an initial consultation?
A: Yes. It often helps to see your business, books and records, etc at first hand and we are always happy to invest our time without charge to show you what we can do.
Q: When and how soon can you come to see us?
A: When's good for you? Let us know and we'll do our utmost to help. If you need to see somebody urgently, we're always out and about and can arrange to see you very quickly.
Q: You seem to offer a lot. Are your fees expensive?
A: No! We offer fixed fees linked to the value of what we provide. We're not always the cheapest and as with many things in life the cheapest is often the most expensive in the long run. However, we are not expensive and we offer excellent value for what we provide. Most importantly we never undertake work without agreeing the fee arrangements in advance so you always know where you stand
Q: Do I have to sign up for a minimum term?
A: No, in the unlikely event that you’re not happy with our services, you’re able to move to another accountant whenever you want.
Q: How do you charge?
A: All fees are agreed up front and where practical, are fixed and are paid in equal monthly instalments over your financial year.
Q: I'd like to sign up. What do I do next?
A: Fill out our contact form or give us a call and we’ll arrange a meeting which you’ll find useful. At the meeting we’ll work out if we can save you tax, how we can stream line your accounting and give you a financial health check.Get in touch and we’ll sort it out for you. Call us on 0117 405 7288 or email us.
Q: Once I've signed up, what happens next?
A: Great, you’ve made a smart decision to work with SouthWest Accountancy! These are the next steps:
You’ll receive an online engagement letter to receive and e-sign
We’ll take some details from you to enable us to speak to HMRC on your behalf.
Fill out our online direct debit mandate
Q: I hate bookkeeping and filing receipts, how can you simplify it for me?
A: When you sign up for our accountancy services, we will include our add-on 'Accountancy Online' which converts those annoying bits of paper – receipts and invoices into online data! This will save you hours of work and hassle a month.
