Capital Allowances Claims Experts – Choosing the Right One.

Buyer Beware

Over the past few years there has been a steady increase in firms offering capital allowances claims services in respect of commercial property expenditure. Given the wide variety of suppliers it is therefore important for clients to understand that not all suppliers may have their best interests at heart. In other words you need to do some research to make sure you are dealing with a capital allowances claims specialist such as ourselves.

Marketing Led Firms

There has been a rapid increase in the number of websites offering capital allowances services. We have frequently been contacted by accountants, solicitors and business owners who are seeking a second opinion. In many cases the information they have been given by another provider is at the best misleading and in the worse cases just plain wrong. Having now had numerous conversations with business owners and their professional advisers we have become aware of several re-occurring themes which we think potential clients need to consider.

Overstating Potential Claims

In estimating the potential for a capital allowances claim we have come across firms who have overstated the potential capital allowances which may be available. In doing so, the customer is lured into engaging the company believing that their expertise must be greater than all other firms who have given realistic estimates. Of course when the resultant claim is produced it is far less than the original estimate but by that time the client is committed to paying the resultant fees.

We have even come across examples where clients have been persuaded to make a capital allowances claim where there was potentially little benefit in them doing e.g where they had little or no tax liability. In one case we were contacted by a business owner who had been persuaded to a make a claim which was of no benefit to them and was subsequently sued by the capital allowances company for non-payment of their invoice.

There is another scenario we have come across recently. This is where a company predicts a slightly inflated estimate of capital allowances with a high fee and when the report arrives the capital allowances in the report are even higher than estimated. When we have actually seen copies of these type of reports inevitably there is little detail of how the figures have been calculated.  A capital allowances claims specialist such as ourselves will provide a report with a lot of detail on how the figures in that report have been calculated.

Uncompetitive Fees

Although a capital allowances claim can have a long term benefit to a business it is important the payment of fees does not disrupt the businesses cash flow. We have seen fees quoted by other companies which would leave business owners out of pocket for one if not two years.

In contrast capital allowances claims specialists such as ourselves we ensure fees are tailored to the client’s circumstances. This means they will see a financial benefit in both the short and long term. In some cases we have had to tell clients, in their circumstances, it is not in their best interests to make a capital allowances claim. That is to say they should wait to see if their circumstances change which may mean a claim is possible in the future. We believe this is the only approach which should be taken as it establishes long term relationships and increases the reputation of our business over time.

Lack of Experience and Expertise

It is important the capital allowances claims specialist you appoint has the necessary experience and expertise to undertake the work. If the specialist makes a mistake or the claim is made on incorrect principles then it is the client who will suffer if HMRC investigate their claim.

Some new suppliers in the capital allowances claims market appear to have no specialist experience and in many cases are working just as introducers to other firms. However capital allowances claims specialists, like ourselves, generally come from professional tax, accountancy or surveying backgrounds (or a combination of these disciplines) and can therefore advise you on your commercial property expenditure tax relief.

Subcontracted Services

The last point to make here is that many firms do not actually directly employ the specialists who will undertake the capital allowances claims work. This means that in many instances the client does not know who will actually be undertaking the work and if they are qualified to do so. In contrast if you deal with us you will have a named contact who is a dedicated capital allowances specialist with all the required experience and knowledge required to deal with the complexities of compiling a capital allowances claim on your behalf.