Nigel Holland founder of Holland & Co Chartered Accountants from Widnes Cheshire

“Clients often come to us believing they saved money by using a cheaper, unqualified accountant. In reality, the fines, errors, and corrective work frequently cost far more than engaging a qualified professional from the outset.”

— Nigel Holland BA (Hons) FCA

Review of Your Former Accountant’s Work – Protecting You From Costly Errors

Many businesses and individuals only become aware of problems with their tax affairs after changing accountants. A detailed review of a former accountant’s work often uncovers errors, omissions, and weak compliance. These problems can lead to avoidable HMRC penalties, interest charges, and lengthy correspondence with HMRC.

We regularly take on new clients who have already incurred fines before we are appointed. In many cases, these penalties arise from missed deadlines, incorrect tax returns, invalid claims, or a failure to deal properly with HMRC enquiries. A structured review of prior accounts and tax submissions allows us to identify what went wrong and how best to correct it.

Where penalties have been issued, we prepare strong technical appeal letters. We understand when HMRC is likely to cancel penalties and when an appeal is unlikely to succeed. This allows us to give clear and practical advice while avoiding unnecessary costs. In many cases, penalties can be reduced or cancelled completely.

We will also correspond directly with the former accountant where substandard work has been identified. This sometimes leads to reimbursement of penalties or professional fees where the work falls below acceptable standards.

Many clients initially appoint unqualified advisers because the fees appear lower. However, the apparent saving is often misleading. Once penalties, interest, and corrective work are taken into account, the overall cost is frequently much higher. Clients often end up paying twice – first for the original work and again to correct it.

Qualified Chartered Accountants are regulated, professionally insured, and trained to anticipate HMRC scrutiny. This provides greater protection and reduces the risk of costly mistakes. A proactive review of a former accountant’s work can restore confidence and bring your tax affairs fully back on track.

Accountant Negligence Review Service

If you have suffered penalties, interest, additional tax, or disruption because a former accountant failed to act properly, we can help you put matters right and pursue recovery of your losses.

As Chartered Accountants, we can advise and represent clients in disputes with former accountants, although there are clear limits on what we can do legally. We manage the financial and tax aspects of disputes and, where necessary, liaise with solicitors.

This work is professional accountancy and tax advisory work rather than regulated legal activity. Many established accountancy firms provide this type of service.

How We Can Help

We can assist by:

Reviewing your tax history and accounting records
Identifying possible negligence by the former accountant
Quantifying financial losses such as penalties, interest and professional fees
Advising whether a claim appears reasonable
Drafting correspondence to the former accountant
Negotiating settlement of professional fee claims
Assisting with complaints to professional bodies such as ICAEW or ACCA
Acting as your representative with HMRC
Preparing appeals against penalties where appropriate

We can assist in preparing a claim and help you recover your losses. We can correspond with the former accountant and advise on the tax aspects of the claim.

Where appropriate:

We can assist you in preparing and pursuing a professional negligence claim and, if necessary, liaise with a solicitor.

What We Cannot Do

We do not act as solicitors and do not conduct court proceedings. If formal legal action is required, we will help you instruct a solicitor and provide the financial evidence needed to support the claim.

Typical Work Involved

Typical cases often involve:

Detailed file review
HMRC correspondence
Appeals against penalties
Loss calculations
Professional negligence letters
Settlement negotiations

This structured approach allows disputes to be resolved efficiently and often without legal proceedings.

Fees

This service is usually cost-effective because the work often leads to recovery of losses.

Typical fees:

Fixed-fee review: £200 – £400 plus VAT

This includes a structured review and written opinion.

Full case handling typically ranges from:

£300 – £1,500 plus VAT

Fees depend on the complexity of the case and the volume of work required.

Next Steps

If you believe a former accountant has caused avoidable penalties, costs, or disruption, we can review the position and advise on the best way forward.

Please contact us with: