Surrey firm in £1.2m court action
A Surrey accountant is being sued for £1.2m in a negligence action
A Surrey accountant is being sued for £1.2m in a negligence action
Mervyn Smith, from Sutton in Surrey, trading as Mervyn Smith & Co, is
facing the claim from Duncan Rushmer, a businessman who faces losing his home
because of his financial problems.
Smith prepared audited accounts for Rushmer’s firm, Audio Visual Asset
Management, and at one point asserted the company had made a profit of £1.6m on
a turnover of just £1.5m, according to a High Court writ.
Rushmer says he was persuaded not to wind up the company because of cashflow
difficulties, as he intended, and that although he queried the large profits
shown by Smith, Smith assured him of their accuracy.
Rushmer increased his borrowings from the Royal Bank of Scotland, the Co-op
Bank, and First National Bank as a result of figures produced by Smith.
According to the writ, Smith breached his duty of care; failed to warn
Rushmer of substantial inaccuracies in the accounts; and knew that the context
in which Rushmer had discussed the accounts was his concern about its cashflow
and whether to wind down its activities.
Smith said this week: ‘I wouldn’t dream of discussing something in the press
which has no basis.’
In the past decade, the professional services industry has transformed significantly. Digital disruptions, increased competition, and changing market ...
View resourceIn recent months, professional services firms are facing more pressure than ever to deliver value to clients. Often, clients look at the firms own inf...
View resourceIn a world of instant results and automated workloads, the potential for AP to drive insights and transform results is enormous. But, if you’re still ...
View resourceThe first phase of Making Tax Digital (MTD) saw the requirement for the digital submission of the VAT Return using compliant software. That’s now behi...
View resourceThe amount of tax saved by businesses through HMRC’s Patent Box scheme has increased by 23% over the last five years, from £1.14 billion in 2017/18 to...
View articleUK Chancellor Jeremy Hunt has hinted at the possibility of further tax cuts in the upcoming spring Budget, during his time at the World Economic Forum...
View articleThe legislation, which introduces a global minimum tax of at least 15% for multinational enterprises, aims to limit tax competition and ensure large c...
View articleThe upcoming tax changes in 2024 will significantly impact businesses and individuals in the UK. Accountants play a crucial role in helping clients na...
View articleAccountants must stay vigilant, adapt their tax strategies to evolving regulations, prioritize transparency, and foster collaboration with tax authori...
View articleAs the government prepares for re-election, PM Sunak promises to control spending in order to bring forth tax cuts next year Read More...
View articleThe Office for National Statistics revealed that the UK economy shrank by 0.3% in March after the economy grew by 0.1% in the previous three months Re...
View articleAs the Spring Budget approaches, dissenters of the UK government’s increasingly complex contractor legislation are baying for change. HMRC has already...
View article