Benham & Williams

One star only because there are no negative stars!

A similar but worse situation really to the other 1 star review.

We engaged Benham and Williams in good faith and as we were in the same building as them a discount was offered to file our company accounts.

Communication was awful and a period of around 4 months of us having to chase for updates ensued, it appeared little was being done.

Eventually after around 6 months the accounts were actually completed BUT accompanied by a bill that was inflated by more than £1400. This covered the first 4 months of our trading so wasn't even a full years submission.

Paul Benhams inability to commit to a timely manner lead to costs being incurred of which we are today issuing a Statutory Demand for Bankruptcy against him personally as he trades as a sole trader and it turns out is not a qualified accountant at all.

As per Adrians review (for full clarity I do not know Adrian but would love to have a chat) it is best to avoid all together and seek professional services from a registered accountant who actually come in far cheaper than Benham and Williams charge you in the end.

They get 1 star because I can't give any less.
I was with Benham and Williams for just over a year and they are incredibly difficult to deal with.
They do not give you any information you ask for, ingnore phone calls, emails and if you call the office to speak to someone they always say no one's available.

I had to go through a bit of a battle with them getting all of my bookkeeping/paperwork from them. When I called and insisted I speak with Paul Benham or I would be left with no choice but to turn up at his office and wait for him to speak with him directly I was put through.
When I asked how long it was going to take to get the rest of my paperwork Paul said "what's the date today" to which I responded "the 30th of September" Paul's response was "how about the 30th of September 2017" and then he put the phone down on me.

It took months to get everything back from them and I was only sent all of my documents after I had been to the police to discuss what my options were within the law and what I needed to do to get my documents. I then sent Paul Benham an email stating he had 1 week to give me my documents or I would be pursuing him/his company on charges of theft and failing this I would begin court proceedings against them immediately. The remaining documentation was received within the week.

Paul Benham is not a nice man to deal with, he's stroppy, speaks down to you and gives off the general impression that he just doesn't have time for you.

I would advise everyone to avoid this firm at every cost they really aren't worth the hassle that they will cause you chasing them for every little thing which is sometimes quite impossible to do.