How much do you pay

**Shane** · 23-07-07

Just wondering how much other guys with LTD companies pay their accountants for doing all their books, vat and payroll etc.

I pay £3500 all in per year but am feeling a little underwhelmed with the service at the moment so just wondering how it compares with others out there.

**Elaine** · 23-07-07

I think the key here is "for doing all their books, vat and payroll " - according to Dave we pay about £800 - but Dave does all the donkey work - puts everything on spreadsheets (another blog, facebook mystery to me) etc and the accountant does the checking and produces the legally required documents ..

it might be worth investigating getting someone to do this 'donkeywork' for you - should only take a couple of hours a month

ps - our local tax office runs day courses on paying staff etc which is very informative - Julie and I have just been on one, and we could do it nown - easy peasy

**Donk** · 24-07-07

I think it is a "how long is a piece of string question".

If your company has a turnover of less than £5.6 million you don't need an qualified auditor.

I do the VAT PAYE(where applicable) and CIS (contruction industry) and annual books for a small landscaper for £500/year (4 days work).

You should be able to get a local bookkeper to do all the routine work for £80-£250/ day. The number of days would depend on how many transactions you do per month and how tidy you are with the paperwork!

However a bookkeeper will not necessarily know the best way to optimise your tax liabilities.

So if your auditor is not saving you his fees in "tax optimisation" you should consider either finding a new one or getting in a bookkeeper.

**renegade** · 24-07-07

Hi Shane, I stick all my transactions through Quickbooks and do my own VAT returns and my annual accountants bill is well under £1000 including an annual meeting and handling my PAYE so unless you're getting some added value 3.5k seems a little high to me.

**hrbs** · 24-07-07

Hi Shane

As Donk says, you don't need to use a firm of auditors to do your year end accounts if you qualify as a "small company". Also to cut your costs further and to keep control over your business you should consider doing your own books or using a book keeping service and focussing your efforts on your business.

Affiliate marketing accounts are quite straight forward, no stock issues, consistent sources of income, no bad debts, and overheads are easily classified, so book keeping should be a few hours per month.

My clients typically pay about £500/£600 for full set of accounts, abbreviated accounts, corporation tax and personal tax returns. Regular accounts review and dividend documentation is also included.

PAYE: is relatively straight forward if you are a sole director or have a few employees and the costs can be almost met by the HMRC online filing incentive which is tax free and £100 for 2007/08 (was £150 for 2006/07).

I would suggest using an accountant with experience in AM and having them review your business over the course of the year (1 hour per month/quarter). This will give you a sounding board for your ideas, get an outside perspective on your business and make sure you are not making any costly mistakes as a result of changes in legislation, missing registration deadlines etc.

Regards
Keith
High Royd Business Services Limited
Small Business Specialists

HRBS Limited -
Fixed Fee Accountants and Small Business Specialists
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**D-Mac** · 24-07-07

I pay £2400 a year for bookkeeping, quarterly VAT return, personal tax return, corporation tax, PAYE, filing stuff with companies house, and any bother bits and bobs. I give him a (small) pile of invoices and receipts each quarter, he takes care of everything else.

I sometimes think I am paying above the odds, so I would definitely say 3.5K is a bit too high. Thinking about it, I reckon my VAT return takes him about half a day a quarter, and the other stuff takes perhaps 3 days a year, so that's 5 days a year for £2400, which is fairly reasonable I suppose.

**Wardy** · 24-07-07

Mine is well under £1k too as I do my VAT returns myself!

Cheres
Wardy

**DavidCartlidge** · 24-07-07

My Dad gets paid to do the 'donkeywork' - which is basically sorting out all the invoices / paperwork and balancing against the bank account. We do this in a format that suits the accountant who then, for < £500, does the annual returns - and payroll.