I Think I Need To Change My Accountant

[eeyorebob]

I think he may be diddling me! I've had my suspicions but they've been getting worse lately

He seems to be dodging my calls and emails, he wont let me see my accounts. I am getting demands for the tax return from HMRC that he was meant to have sent off.

How can I find out?

 

[Robert Frost]

I'm not sure how you would find out, but if you are not happy you do need to change. Check with the Institute of Chartered Accountants for a good one, and you can also report your suspicions to them about your current one -

Talk to the tax man, explain the situation! they usually understand

 

[Gemma Rowlands]

Okay, well if he hasn't sent off your tax return when he should have done, it does sound as though something is wrong. Demand your documents back, go round to his place of work and talk to him. And definitely find somebody else to do the work for you. It might help to get in touch with HMRC to explain the situation, as they might give you a little more leeway if they know that you have been trying to get the information to them.

 

[Pete Brindle]

If you're not happy definitely change, you simply cannot be taking risks with something that is so important. Ask for your information back that you've given in, and if they won't give it to you then take things further, because they have no right to keep hold of your private documents!

 

[Mike Turner]

Have you been in touch with HMRC yet? If so, what have they said? You have to trust your accountant. Finances are one of the most important things ever, and if they're not done right you could get into big trouble. So find someone who you feel you can trust more. You won't regret it, really. And you can deal with things much better if people are being helpful rather than evasive.

 

[Branded Merchandise]

Hi,

I'm very late to this thread so obviously no help to the original poster! However just in case anybody else comes up with this problem in the future..

HMRC state that is is your responsibility to ensure your tax return is completed, even if you have employed an accountant to do so. As such, the first thing to do is:

1) Call HMRC and tell them of the situation.
2) Is your accountant part of a body? If they're Scottish, they'll either be ACCA or ICAS. Contact the relevant body and tell them of the situation.
3) Tell your accountant you have done the above and he'll probably get his act together!

If the tax return is late, you will most likely receive a penalty so there's no point beating around the bush, get on the phone to HMRC and tell them what's going on.

A useful thing to do (even if you have an accountant) is to write down the dates of when everything is due (tax return, VAT returns if applicable, accounts etc) Maybe put them in your outlook diary or something like that. If you don't know the dates, just ask your accountant to write them all down for you. As good as some accountants are, it is really useful to be aware of all these dates as essentially it is our responsibility as business owners to ensure these deadlines are met.

 

[Gemma Rowlands]

Hi,

I'm very late to this thread so obviously no help to the original poster! However just in case anybody else comes up with this problem in the future..

HMRC state that is is your responsibility to ensure your tax return is completed, even if you have employed an accountant to do so. As such, the first thing to do is:

1) Call HMRC and tell them of the situation.
2) Is your accountant part of a body? If they're Scottish, they'll either be ACCA or ICAS. Contact the relevant body and tell them of the situation.
3) Tell your accountant you have done the above and he'll probably get his act together!

If the tax return is late, you will most likely receive a penalty so there's no point beating around the bush, get on the phone to HMRC and tell them what's going on.

A useful thing to do (even if you have an accountant) is to write down the dates of when everything is due (tax return, VAT returns if applicable, accounts etc) Maybe put them in your outlook diary or something like that. If you don't know the dates, just ask your accountant to write them all down for you. As good as some accountants are, it is really useful to be aware of all these dates as essentially it is our responsibility as business owners to ensure these deadlines are met.

Just wanted to say thanks for posting this. It's good to know that there are things that you can do which would help if you ever find yourself in that kind of a situation! It can be so stressful especially with it involving finances, so it's great that there are steps to take.