If you find yourself in a situation where you feel like your accountant is doing the bare minimum, it might be time to find a new accountant. You might not realise it but there is a possibly that you might not be getting good value for money and it might be a good idea to start looking for a new accountant.
Here are some key reasons for why you should change your accountant.
Your Accountant Doesn’t Understand Your Business Properly
It might not be essential for your accountant to be a specialist in your industry; however, it is crucial for them to have a reasonable understanding of your business. This means that understanding the pressure points you might face, and what your challenges and peak periods are likely to be.
Accountancy is a job that requires a lot more than basic number-crunching and compliance. If your accountant doesn’t have any appreciation of how your business works, you will most likely only receive generic and basic advice. To get the best value for money you need more than just the basics. An excellent accountant should be able to identify opportunities for your business, and to help you maximise profits. A one-size-fits-all approach won’t help you achieve this.
If you are unsure about whether an accountant offers a customised service, all you have to do is ask.
They Don’t Help You with Saving More Money
An excellent accountant is ideally placed to spot potential money-saving opportunities. As you focus on generating bigger profits, your accountant should be helping you find new ways to maximise what you have.
On top of providing, you with the basic services such as calculating tax and making returns, your accountant should be helping you to save money. This could include business cost savings as well as ensuring you are tax efficient.
If your accountant doesn’t know your business well, they won’t be able to do this effectively. However, for many accountants, this is a core and fundamental part of the service and something you should expect to benefit from and is a real sign you should change accountant.
They Fail to Keep Up to Date with the latest Legislation
Legislation that is implemented by the government in regard to accounts, taxation and business can change rapidly and as a layperson, there is no easy way to stay abreast of all developments. The best part of having an accountant who is high quality is that you shouldn’t have to worry because they’ll let you know about anything new legislation that has the potential to impact your business.
They Fail to Use Technology Properly
As a business owner you might not see technology as a being a top priority but if your accountant isn’t giving you any suggestions of what types of new technologies are available and how they can help improve your business operations, you might end up wasting time, money and energy. It’s no longer necessary to make appointments to receive an update or for your accountant to telephone you to pass on small details. The use of cloud technology and secure portals means it’s possible for you to communicate effectively from different locations.
If your accountant isn’t making use of technology, you could end up missing out on crucial deadlines and communication of super important information might be delayed. Having to take a trip to drop off documents is an unnecessary inconvenience when you could just scan and upload them to the cloud instead.
You Are Unsure of How Much Money You Will Be Charged
Regardless of what type of package you have negotiated with your accountants, the costs should be completely transparent. Your accountant should not have any hidden fees that catch you by surprise, or extra costs that they have failed to tell you about at an earlier date.
It is important to make sure that your accountant includes all their costs in any quote they give you. It is crucial to make sure that you don’t end up with a bigger invoice than the one you were expecting to receive. If the invoice is much bigger than you expected than this is a major sign that you should change your accountant.