At this time of year ….

Be very wary of “accountants” whom you may engage with to help you out of whatever state of panic and stress you find yourself in due to the dreaded self assessment deadline approaching (31st January 2024!)

A proper regulated accountant will send you a formal engagement letter outlining theirs and yours responsibilities and obligations.

A proper accountant will NOT ask you for your government gateway login and password - they do NOT need this in order to file your return. If you feel happy giving them these details then you may as well give them all your PIN codes and passwords - opening Pandoras Box!

A proper accountant will be using 3rd party HMRC approved software to do the return - thus any calculations etc they send you won’t be on a scrap of paper or from the HMRC website. The HMRC website is not the most user friendly one and has a limited use. A proper accountant pays for the right tools for the right job.

A proper accountant will not charge you extra than agreed or hold you to ransom for extra fees - this is part of what the engagement letter covers.

A proper accountant will happily show you their Professional Indemnity (PI) insurance and institutes practicing certificate or licence.

All of the above may sound obvious, but I know from experience that there are a LOAD of unregulated accountants out there who just damage our professions reputation.

We may not be the “Sexiest” profession but I for one am proud of my qualifications and the blood , sweat, tears (and beer) involved in getting my qualification.

Stay safe out there folks.