Moving provider without disruption

Changing accountant or company secretary feels risky, which is why people stay with providers they have stopped trusting. The risk is real but manageable, and it comes almost entirely from one thing: nobody establishing the true position before the handover.

Start by finding out what has actually been filed. Not what you were told was filed — what the register shows. This is public information and takes minutes to check. It is common to discover something outstanding that nobody mentioned.

Then identify what records exist and where. Statutory registers, share certificates, board minutes, accounting records and access to filing portals. The gap between what a provider says they hold and what they can produce on request is where handovers go wrong.

Agree the handover date in writing, and be explicit about who is responsible for anything falling due either side of it. A deadline landing in the week of transition, with both parties assuming the other has it, is the single most common failure.

Finally, expect any catch-up work to be quoted separately from ongoing fees. If a new provider folds an unknown quantity of remedial work into an annual figure, they are either guessing or absorbing a risk they will recover later. You want that cost visible.