Fuel receipts

[Inoff the Red]

I thought you were an accountant? Don't you agree that entering a wedge of receipts into the correct columns on a spreadsheet is repetitive donkey work? If you hand your accountant a cardboard box full of paper, you shouldn't be surprised if he charges you three times as much as he does the guy who emails him a neat spreadsheet.

 

I agree that dumping a box of paper on the accountant will incur an avoidable cost.

 

The point I was trying to make is that if a business owner doesn't want to do it themselves they need to be careful who does it and how its done. I have seen spreadsheets prepared that looked fantastic, but some of the formulae were wrong, some had been over written, where the totals didn't include all items in the column and, on one occasion, where the number of the month had been included.

[Inoff the Red]

I chucked in computerised accounts

 

We agreed he couldn't have done that with handwritten books

 

Don't think that the VAT inspector would have ignored the problem if you had manual books rather than a computerised system.

In the absence of the computer records, the inspector would identified one item that had been incorrectly treated and the given you his/her estimate of the likely total error. You would then be left with the problem of proving that the estimate was wrong.

 

The benefit of computerised systems that is often overlooked is the management information it can provide at the touch of a button and the build up of customer sales info that could be valuable for marketing purposes or, when the time comes to hang up your chainsaw, give your business some value.

[ArthurBottlesworth]

You might be right

But then think about the lazy inspector ....

 

I don't do anything wrong if I can help it

But I am fed up with smart arses trying to bully me

 

Currently closing three bank accounts

Smart alec last week accused me of incompetance because I don't know closing balances to the penny

How can I when they will calculate interest on day they are closed And they have fannied about for two months ....

He of course won't do the work just wants to act the pr**k

 

Maybe I'm just sour

[doobin]

I agree that dumping a box of paper on the accountant will incur an avoidable cost.

 

The point I was trying to make is that if a business owner doesn't want to do it themselves they need to be careful who does it and how its done. I have seen spreadsheets prepared that looked fantastic, but some of the formulae were wrong, some had been over written, where the totals didn't include all items in the column and, on one occasion, where the number of the month had been included.

 

Fair point. I am careful to present my information exactly as my accountant has asked for it.

[ArthurBottlesworth]

I just add up the analysis columns in analysis book

Yes slower than excel.....

But easy.....

And I use pencil/fountain pen

Much pleasanter to do than a spread sheet too.....