Do I need an accountant?

Yes, every business should have an accountant.  Well you would expect us to say that!

We would like to qualify this statement though!  A business should have the right accountant.  By this we mean, an accountant that can help a business achieve its objectives, that is tuned in to its needs and that can help the business owners achieve their personal objectives.

How much does an accountant cost?

The perception is often that accountants are expensive, especially qualified accountants, or those with larger firms.

Accountants do not have to be expensive.  We work to the ethos that we ought to save each of our clients their accountancy and tax fee twice over, each year.  We would therefore argue that an accountant will save you money and not cost you anything.

To give you an idea of annual fees we have included 3 examples (all amounts exclude VAT):

These amounts relate to annual accounting and tax work (including advice and support throughout the year)

• A small sole trader business should expect to pay from £350 per annum*
• A small limited company should expect to pay from £700 per annum*
• A larger business that wants to outsource book keeping and VAT, wants management accounting, annual accounting and tax work should expect to pay from £3,600 per annum*

*It is impossible to give a business an accurate quotation prior to a meeting to discuss the requirements.

Is it easy to change accountants?

Yes, a signed document called a 64-8 is required by HMRC.  We require a letter of engagement signed from each client also.  We will manage the handover from your existing accountant to us, which is all done promptly and professionally.

However, a word of caution.  It will take your new accountant some time to understand your business, therefore, expect some intensive attention from your new accountant in the early stages of your relationship with them.  This is a good chance for you to work with your new accountant and get to know them.

Why are Resolve Business Solutions different from other accountants?

In a nutshell, it’s not what we do, it’s the way that we do it.

We approach accountancy from a new angle.  Accountancy should be fun, interesting, good value and our clients should feel special.

We regularly receive the comment “you are not what I expected a form of accountants to be like”.  This is our key strength.

How do Resolve Business Solutions set their fees?

There is no rocket science here at all and we are happy to be transparent with our clients in this area.  We feel that this helps us to build a relationship of trust with our clients.

This is the process we follow:
We establish the things that the client must have (for example, annual accounts, tax return) and work out how long these services will take.

We listen to the client to establish the things the client would also like to have (for example, monthly meetings, support with some buy to let properties in a personal portfolio).

We add in these additional services to the “must haves” to come up with an overall time requirement.  We then look to the team to see how cheaply we can service this work and then work out a total annual cost.

We call this a fixed fee method.  This means that we do not deviate from this fee.  We do not charge fees monthly based on timesheets.  If we are required to do a piece of work that is over and above the services for which we have quoted, we agree this in advance with the client.

Are there any clients I can speak to find out if Resolve Business Solutions are any good?

Yes, referrals from within our client base are the source of 60% of our new business.  We are happy to let prospective clients have the details of a number of clients they can contact to discuss our services.

What are the other benefits of becoming a Resolve Business Solutions client?

We provide complimentary fee protection insurance for all of our clients with an annual accounting and tax fee of more than £700.

We offer all our clients an incentive of £75 in cash for every business they refer to us that becomes a client.*

We offer the chance to take advantage of our relationships with business partners in areas such as:

• Money lending
• Banking
• Human resources
• Marketing and PR
• Financial advice
• Training and development

* Providing the new client has an annual fee of more than £500.

Will I be able to speak to a partner if I want to?

This is something that can often be frustrating for clients of other larger firms.

We have already stated that service is a key word for us.  If you want to speak to a partner then you will of course be able to speak to Paul or Tracy.

What is the Resolve Business Solutions policy on getting back to clients?

We will respond to all emails within 24 hours.

We will respond to phone calls and messages within 48 hours.

How much should my accountant save me each year?

Accountants do not have to be expensive.  We work to the ethos that we ought to save each of our clients their accountancy and tax fee at least twice over, each year.  We would therefore argue that an accountant will save you money and not cost you anything.

What happens if I get an Inland Revenue investigation?/

Most of our clients are covered by our fee protection insurance policy.  This provides support in the event of an investigation either by paying our fees or by paying for an ex inspector to take on your case and fight it.

This should provide our clients with total peace of mind.

Can Resolve Business Solutions help me with things other than accountancy and tax?

Yes, we have a number of services that we can offer to our clients.  Examples include:

• Setting up or starting a business
• Running a limited company effectively
• Running a partnership or sole trader business effectively
• Developing a franchise
• Buying or selling a business
• Book-keeping/VAT
• Financial management
• Audit
• Payroll
• Turning around a struggling business

Which book keeping package should I buy?

This question really does need to be answered with a detailed knowledge of client’s requirements and business.  However, following these basic principles can mean that you do not get the wrong solution!

Keep it simple
If a business is starting up and does not have either stock control requirements or significant sales invoice processing, often an excel based solution will be enough to satisfy the business and HMRC requirements.

Think about the time required to maintain a system
Sage Line 50 is an excellent system, however, it will require maintenance of customer and suppliers, the nominal ledgers, and understanding of VAT and the reporting capabilities of the system to get many of the benefits form it.  Packages such as these should only be considered if there is someone that can become trained and efficient in using it.

Think of the bigger picture
Often a business in a growth phase will outgrow it’s book keeping system quickly.  Taking a longer term view and ensuring that a system will still be useful in 2 or 3 years for a business is important in making a decision.

We are members of the Sage Accountants Club and will pass our software discounts (often up to 25%) on in full to our clients.

We can offer training on almost any software including Quickbooks, Sage and MYOB.  We are business partners with a company providing more specialist training on these packages that can write a more structured course, tailored to your needs.

How do Resolve Business Solutions prices compare with others in the market?

We are normally in the middle.

We find we are cheaper than larger practices in Cambridge and Norwich.

We find we are more expensive than accountants that operate from home or form small offices and have limited support.

We differentiate on the basis of approach and service.