When Do I Need An Accountant

4 years, 11 months ago by Oliver Atkinson

Different people will need an accountant at different stages of their new business life cycle. Business owners will need to weigh up the accountant’s cost with the benefits they bring to the business at each stage.

Writing A Business Plan

An accountant will be able to help with financial formulas, projections and reports to enable you to develop a professional business plan that could help with getting a loan or agreeing a lease for business premises.

Legal Structure

The decision to structure a new business as a sole trade, a limited company or a limited liability partnership is an important one with far reaching consequences for the level of personal liability and tax obligations in the future.

Finances

It is important to keep on top of invoicing and credit control right from the start to ensure healthy levels of cash flow. An accountant can help with getting systems in place and analysing performance to aid in decision making.

Book-keeping

As you get busier you need to keep track of the value of your time. If you find yourself spending too long with tasks such as book-keeping, invoicing or debt recovery it may be worth paying your accountant to take on some of these tasks. This will free up your time to make better use of your skills and focus on growing the business.

Statutory Obligations

An accountant will be able to liase with HMRC and Companies House on your behalf while keeping you up to date with the latest tax and payroll laws. Not only will this take away potential stress for you but applying the correct tax laws could save you money that can be used to expand the business.

Tax Investigations

While tax investigations can be stressful and expensive, an accountant can help with talking to HMRC. They can also offer tax investigation insurance to cover the fees you would have had to pay to respond to an investigation.

Applying For A Loan, Overdraft or Mortgage

An accountant can act for you and provide the bank with the financial information needed along with projections for the future to help with improving your application’s chances.