We’ve agreed a fixed fee monthly package with you, for all the accounting, tax and growth support you need. So why are we now quoting you an extra fee?
Firstly, what are you already paying for?
This all depends on what we’ve agreed together for the services you need. It’s likely to be a fixed monthly fee, and the detail of what’s included will be in our fee proposal. You should have a copy of this, but let us know if you’d like us to resend it to you.
We have 3 main packages, SupportMe, GuideMe and GrowMe, depending on what you need, and the size of your business. We tailor these specifically to you, and can add on extras, and take services off too.
If you need additional services not included in your monthly package, we will quote you an extra fee.
Check out our blog how much does an accountant cost for more info on how we charge, and the sort of services we provide.
Have you asked for extra services?
You may have questions from time to time, and we’re always happy to answer these. We have a quick query service to answer things that are quick and easy to answer (generally under 10 minutes).
Sometimes what seems like an easy question could be quite complex to sort out, and needs care, expertise and knowledge to answer for you. We’ll quote you for this before we get stuck in.
We also have fixed fees for some extras, and these can include (but not limited to):
- Accountants’ certificate for a mortgage application or tenancy agreement
- Complex tax planning to help you limit your tax liability
- Company formations
- Business valuations
- Tidy up work in Xero
- Xero integrations (either setting them up, or correcting them)
- Investigating Xero apps at your request
- Converting your data to Xero, from another software
But why do we charge for these if you’re already on a monthly package? Some of these services may need an extra level of expertise and knowledge, so we will make sure that the right person is dealing with your query. More experience and qualifications means a higher hourly rate.
We also need to make sure we’re dedicating the right amount of time on your query. If we’re not charging the correct fee, and spending the right amount of time, you’re not going to get the right level of expertise.
We may be suggesting you need extra services
This could also come back to what seems to be an easy answer, but may not be.
Whilst we’re happy to answer your questions, if we feel that you need more help, we’ll recommend extra support from us, with an idea of what this looks like. We’ll also quote you for this extra support.
For example, you’re managing your own Xero, but you’re asking for help a lot on how to do things. We’re seeing a pattern, so we’ll get in touch with you to offer extra support. This may be weekly or monthly zooms or calls with us to answer all your questions, with extra help in the background to correct some of your entries.
We may also suggest that we take over your Xero data entry, to provide a service that means your numbers will be accurate and reliable.
We’ll recommend that we take over your bookkeeping to free up your time, and let you get back to growing your business. This also ensures the data is correct. We’ll be quoting you extra fees to cover your bookkeeping, or to support you to manage your own.
It may seem like you’re saving money by doing it all yourself, but it generally takes twice as long to correct transactions than to do it right the first time. Find out why you shouldn’t be doing your own bookkeeping here.
You’re asking for services that are included in your package
This often happens when you’re growing, and can cause frustration for you, if we don’t communicate this properly. When we quote for the services we’ve agreed you need, they’ll be based on certain criteria, such as accountancy fees, tax returns, bookkeeping and payroll.
These are all services that we quote based on volume. For instance, our SupportMe package includes one personal tax return, and one monthly payroll.
If you take on an additional director who needs a tax return, or ask us to complete your spouse or partners’ tax return, we’ll quote for the extra tax return.
If you take on more employees (yay!) we’ll need to process more payrolls each month, so we’ll quote for that too.
We monitor this monthly, and quote you before running your payroll. If you have a large payroll that’s likely to fluctuate, we’ll agree a variable payroll fee. This means our process will include a fee that we’ll charge each month for however many payrolls we process, and we don’t have to keep checking this with you. This fee will go up as well as down.
Bookkeeping is also based on volume, the more transactions we’re looking at, the more time we need, so we’ll quote you extra fees.
Check out our blog on why our fees may increase, for more info on this.
But why do we charge for these things?
You expect the right level of service from us, and for us to respond to you quickly, and get the work done efficiently. A growing business needs extra resource for the extra work. We’ll review the resources you need and allocate these as you need them, which may need additional people, experience and time.
If we don’t have the right amount of resource to give you, this extra work won’t be planned into our workload. The downside of this is that you’ll feel like you’re not getting the right level of service from us, and you’ll be frustrated.
Imagine booking a table in your favourite restaurant for 4 people. You arrive with an extra 6 friends, and your favourite restaurant of course accommodates you, and makes sure you have the best experience. When you come to pay, would you expect to pay just for the 4 people you’ve booked for, or the extra 6 too? I think you would.
We’re regulated by the ACCA, and recognised as pace setters and experts in our field, so you’d expect us to have very high standards. We don’t want your work rushed, or have any opportunity for errors, which we know can be made if we’re under pressure (we’re only human).
You’ve asked us to support you because you trust us to do the right thing, and making sure we charge correctly is one of those right things, and we’d advise you to do the same.
If you’d like a chat about our fees, give us a call. If you’d like to talk to us about becoming your accountant, go ahead an complete our Getting to Know you Form.
