Standard Terms of Business

The following standard terms of business apply to all engagements accepted by Kennedy Legg. All work carried out is subject to these terms except where changes are expressly agreed in writing

Professional obligations and practice guidelines

We will observe and act in accordance with the bye-laws, regulations and Code of Ethics of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) and accept instructions to act for you on this basis. In particular you have authorised us to correct errors made by HMRC where we become aware of them. We will not be liable for any loss, damage or cost arising from our compliance with statutory or regulatory obligations. These requirements are available at www.icaew.com/regulations.

We confirm that we are Statutory Auditors eligible to conduct audits under the Companies Act 2006. When conducting audit work we are required to comply with the Ethical Standards for Auditors which can be accessed on the internet at www.frc.org.uk/Our-Work/Codes-Standards/Audit-and-assurance/Standards-and-guidance/Standards-and-guidance-for-auditors/Ethical-standards-for-auditors.aspx.

Details of our audit registration can be viewed at www.auditregister.org.uk under reference number C004560267.

Professional indemnity insurance

In accordance with the disclosure requirements of the Provision of Services Regulations 2009, our professional indemnity insurer is Royal and Sun Alliance. 

If for any reason circumstances arise that may result in a claim to our professional indemnity insurers, you give us your permission to notify them.

Conflicts of interest

We reserve the right during our engagement with you to deliver services to other clients whose interests might compete with yours or are or may be adverse to yours, (subject to our confidentiality clause). We confirm that we will notify you immediately should we become aware of any conflict of interest involving us and affecting the company.

If a conflict of interest should arise, either between two or more of our clients, or in the provision of multiple services to a single client, we will take such steps as are necessary to deal with the conflict. In resolving the conflict, we would be guided by our (Code of Ethics) which can be viewed on the internet at the address above.

Investment advice

We are a Designated Professional Body as provided for by the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 and our regulatory body in this respect is the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA).

We are not authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority to conduct Investment Business If, during the provision of professional services to you, you need advice on investments, we may refer you to a Permitted Third Party (PTP), an independent or whole of market financial adviser who is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. The PTP will issue you with their own terms and conditions letter, will be remunerated separately for their services and will take full responsibility for compliance with the requirements of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. We are not able to review or comment on any advice given to you by them.

The firm may receive a commission from such an introduction, in which case we will advise you of the expected size and nature of commission at the time of the introduction or the exact amount when known.

Client money in connection with referrals to Permitted Third Parties

Please note that we are not authorised to hold client money in connection with referrals to Permitted Third Parties. In respect to any advice provided by Third Party specialists, the firm does not recommend any products of these Third Parties, nor will it provide any support or comments to clients who wish to make any decision relating to any Third Party products or services.

Commissions or other benefits

Commissions or other benefits may sometimes become payable to us in respect of introductions to professionals or transactions we arrange for you, in which case you will be notified in writing of the amount, the terms of payment and receipt of any such commissions or benefits. You consent to such commissions or other benefits being retained by us without our being liable to account to you for any such amounts. Under no circumstances are we liable for any advice provided by Third Party specialists.

Client monies

We may, from time to time, hold money on your behalf.  Such money will be held in trust in a client bank account, which is segregated from the firm's funds. The account will be operated, and all funds dealt with, in accordance with the Clients' Money Regulations of the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

In order to avoid an excessive amount of administration, interest will only be paid to you where the amount of interest that would be earned on the balances held on your behalf in any calendar year exceeds £25.  Any such interest would be calculated using the prevailing rate applied by Natwest Bank Plc for small deposits subject to the minimum period of notice for withdrawals.  Subject to any tax legislation, interest will be paid gross.

If the total sum of money held on your behalf exceeds £10,000 for a period of more than 30 days, or such sum is likely to be held for more than 30 days, then the money will be placed in a separate interest-bearing client bank account designated to you.  All interest earned on such money will be paid to you.  Subject to any tax legislation, interest will be paid gross.

We will return monies held on your behalf promptly as soon as there is no longer any reason to retain those funds.  If any funds remain in our client account that are unclaimed and the client to which they relate has remained untraced for five years or we as a firm cease to practise then we may pay those monies to a registered charity.

Fees

Our fees are calculated on the basis of time spent on your affairs, the levels of skill and responsibility involved, the importance and value of the advice provided to you, and the level of risk.  In addition we may charge disbursements of travel, accommodation and other expenses incurred in dealing with your affairs.

Unless otherwise agreed, our fees will be billed at appropriate intervals during the course of the year and will be due for settlement 14 days after the date of the invoice. If, for recurring year work, no specific fee is agreed, then our fee basis will be last year’s amount, plus an element representing inflation.

If it is necessary for us to carry out work that is outside the scope of the engagement currently in place with you, we will advise you of this.  Any additional work will result in additional fees being charged.  We would therefore like to point out that it is in your interests to ensure that the information you provide us with is completed to the agreed stage.

Where we have agreed that you will pay us on a standing order basis, we will discuss with you separately the amount and frequency of payments.  These standing orders will be applied to fees arising from work agreed in our letter of engagement for the current and ensuing years.  Where a scheduled monthly payment is not made any fees invoiced to you that are outstanding at that time will immediately become due for payment in entirety.

We reserve the right to charge interest on overdue accounts at the current rate under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.  We also reserve the right to terminate our engagement and cease acting if payment of any fees billed is unduly delayed.

In the event that we cease to act for you then you agree to meet all reasonable costs of providing information to your new advisers.

Retention of and access to records

During the course of our work we will collect information from you and others acting on your behalf and will return any original documents to you following our completion of the work carried out on your behalf. You should retain these records for at least seven years from the end of the accounting or tax year to which they relate.

Whilst certain documents may legally belong to you, we intend to destroy correspondence and other papers that we store which are more than seven years old, other than documents which we consider to be of continuing significance. If you require retention of any document you must notify us of that fact in writing.

Confidentiality

Where you give us confidential information, we confirm that we shall at all times keep it confidential, other than as required by law, by our insurers, or as provided for in regulatory, (including external peer reviews) ethical or other professional statements relevant to our engagement. This will apply during and after this engagement.

Consultants

From time to time we engage the services of specialist Tax and VAT consultants who are bound by our standard confidentiality clause.

Where it has been agreed in advance that a consultant be engaged to perform a specific assignment for a client, the consultant will issue their own engagement terms and invoice for the work done independently.

External review

As part of our ongoing commitment to providing a quality service, our files are periodically reviewed by an independent regulatory or quality control body. These reviewers are highly experienced and professional people and are, of course, bound by the same requirements of confidentiality as us.

Quality of service

We aim to provide you with a fully satisfactory service and your engagement team will seek to ensure that this is so. If, however, you are unable to deal with any difficulty through them please contact Paul Beer, telephone number 01305 264 573, email address: pbeer@kennedylegg.co.uk.

We undertake to look into any complaint carefully and promptly and to do all we can to explain the position to you. If we do not answer your complaint to your satisfaction you may of course take up the matter with the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales (ICAEW) by whom we are regulated for audit purposes.

Applicable law

The engagement letter and terms of business are governed by, and construed in accordance with, English law. The Courts of England will have exclusive jurisdiction in relation to any claim, dispute or difference concerning the engagement letter (including the firm’s terms of business) and any matter arising from it. Each party irrevocably waives any right it may have to object to any action being brought in those courts, to claim that the action has been brought in an inconvenient forum, or to claim that those courts do not have jurisdiction.

Persons who are not party to this agreement shall have no right under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any term of this agreement. This clause does not affect any right or remedy of any person which exists or is available otherwise than pursuant to that Act.

The advice we give you is for your sole use and is confidential to you and will not constitute advice for any third party to whom you may communicate it. We will accept no responsibility to third parties for any aspect of our professional services or work that is made available to them.

Electronic communication

Internet communications are capable of data corruption and therefore we do not accept any responsibility for changes made to such communications after their despatch. It may therefore be inappropriate to rely on advice contained in an e-mail without obtaining written confirmation of it. We do not accept responsibility for any errors or problems that may arise through the use of internet communication and all risks connected with sending commercially sensitive information relating to your business are borne by you. If you do not agree to accept this risk, you should notify us in writing that e-mail is not an acceptable means of communication.

It is the responsibility of the recipient to carry out a virus check on any attachments received.

Data Protection Act 1998

We may obtain, use, process and disclose personal data about you in order that we may discharge the services agreed under the engagement letter, and for other related purposes including updating and enhancing client records, analysis for management purposes and statutory returns, crime prevention and legal and regulatory compliance. We confirm that when processing data on your behalf we will comply with the provisions of the Data Protection Act 1998. You also confirm that any personal data you provide to us complies with the Data Protection Act 1998. For the purposes of the Data Protection Act 1998, the Data Controller is Paul Wellspring.

Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999

Persons who are not party to this agreement shall have no rights under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any term of this agreement. This clause does not affect any right or remedy of any person which exists or is available otherwise than pursuant to that Act.

The advice that we give to you is for your sole use and does not constitute advice to any third party to whom you may communicate it. We accept no responsibility to third parties for any aspect of our professional services or work that is made available to them.

Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and Money Laundering Regulations 2007

In common with all accountancy and legal practices, we are required by the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and the Money Laundering Regulations 2007 to:

• have due diligence procedures for the identification of all clients;
• maintain appropriate records of evidence to support customer due diligence; and
• report in accordance with the relevant legislation and regulations.

Use of our name in statements or documents issued by you

You are not permitted to use our name in any statement or document that you may issue unless our prior written consent has been obtained. The only exception to this restriction would be statements or documents that in accordance with applicable law are to be made public. In the case of reports for companies, to the fullest extent permitted by law we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the company and company’s directors as a body, for our work or for our report.

EU Services Directive

The information required by the Provision of Services Regulations 2009, is on display at our offices and a copy can be provided upon request.