Ask every firm the same questions and write down the answers. That is the whole technique. Firms differ most in the details they volunteer, so a fixed list stops the smoothest talker winning by default and gives you notes you can lay side by side afterwards. The questions below are grouped by topic. Copy the lot, or trim to what fits your situation.

If you are still assembling candidates to put these questions to, the pillar guide on finding a small-business accountant covers that stage.

Scope: what exactly would you do for me?

  1. Which filings and returns would you handle for my business, listed one by one?
  2. What does a normal year with you look like, month by month?
  3. What is specifically not included that clients often assume is?
  4. If HMRC writes to me, is dealing with that letter part of the service?
  5. Would you also prepare my personal Self Assessment return, or only the business side?

The answer to question three is the most revealing. Confident firms know their boundaries and state them; evasive answers here predict billing surprises later.

Qualifications: who regulates you?

  1. Which professional body is the practice regulated by, and under what name should I search the register?
  2. Does the firm hold a current practising certificate and professional indemnity insurance?
  3. Who would actually prepare my work, and what is their role in the firm?

Since anyone in the UK may call themselves an accountant, these questions are legitimate and a regulated firm expects them. Verify the answers yourself afterwards. How to check an accountant’s qualifications shows you where the registers are.

Communication: how will we work together?

  1. Who is my named contact, and who covers when they are away?
  2. What response time do you aim for on emails and calls?
  3. How often will I hear from you if I do not contact you first?
  4. How do you prefer to receive my records, and how much flexibility is there?

Question eleven separates firms that manage clients from firms that react to them. “You’ll hear from us when something needs doing” is a fine answer if they can describe when that is.

Fees: how is the price built?

  1. Is the fee fixed, per job or hourly, and what does it cover in writing?
  2. What kinds of work would fall outside the quoted fee?
  3. What would cause the fee to change at renewal?

Keep these questions about structure rather than negotiating in the meeting. You want to understand the model well enough to compare it with other proposals later, and comparing accountancy proposals covers that exercise. If it helps to read one firm’s answers to questions 13 to 15 before you ask them out loud, ours are written down on our fees page.

Deadlines and responsibility: who carries what?

  1. Which deadlines do you track on my behalf, and how will I know work is on schedule?
  2. How far ahead of a deadline do you need my records so nothing is rushed?
  3. If a filing were late because of an error on your side, how does the firm put it right?
  4. When you spot something in my figures that looks wrong, what happens next?

Question eighteen is uncomfortable to ask and worth asking anyway. Every practice makes an occasional mistake; the difference lies in whether it owns and corrects them.

Fit: is this the right home for my business?

  1. How many clients like me (same size, same structure, similar trade) do you act for now?
  2. What kind of client does the firm work with badly?

An honest answer to question twenty-one exists at every firm. A candidate who claims to suit absolutely everyone has not thought about it, or is not telling you.

Using the answers

Score each firm against the same notes within a day of the conversation, while detail is fresh. Bring the list physically. Preparation for the meeting itself, including which documents to carry, is covered in how to prepare for your first meeting with an accountant.

If you would like to hear how we answer this list, request a quote and put any of these questions to us directly.

Frequently asked questions

Will an accountant be offended by being asked these questions?

A well-run practice will not. These are the questions its engagement letter answers anyway, so you are asking the firm to explain its own paperwork. Irritation at reasonable questions during courtship tells you how the relationship would feel later.

How many of these questions should I actually ask?

Ask everything in the scope, fees and responsibility sections, then choose from the rest based on what matters to you. A focused half hour covers it. Reading the list to a firm word for word is less useful than a conversation that touches each area.

What is the single most useful question on this list?

“What is specifically not included that clients often assume is?” It forces a concrete answer about boundaries, which is where most accountant-client friction starts.

Should I ask these questions by email instead of in a meeting?

Scope and fee questions work well by email because you get the answer in writing. Communication and fit questions work better live, since how a firm answers is half the information.

Can I ask a prospective accountant about clients they have lost?

You can ask why clients typically leave the practice. No firm will discuss individuals, but the pattern (outgrowing the firm, price, service issues) is fair to ask about and interesting to hear answered.