Services directive

This should indicate whether the firm is a sole practitioner, partnership, limited liability partnership, limited company or other legal structure that the firm has adopted.

For a sole practitioner, it should normally be sufficient to have the practitioner’s name, as principal, on the firm’s letterhead.

Postal address

These are required so that the client or potential client can request information about a firm’s services, or make a complaint.

Fax number or email address

Telephone number

Registered office (where applicable)

If the provider is carrying on a regulated profession, any professional body with which the provider is registered, the professional title and the member state in which that title has been granted.

This applies principally to registered auditors, insolvency practitioners and accredited probate firms. The suggested disclosure should also cover the requirement to disclose the ‘competent authority’ mentioned above.

For audit firms, the suggested disclosure is:

• Registered to carry on audit work in the UK [and Ireland] by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

There is no professional title for auditors set out in the Companies Act, so a firm could also describe itself as a firm of registered or statutory auditors.

For insolvency practitioners, the suggested disclosure is:

• Mr A is licensed as an insolvency practitioner in the UK by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.

For accredited probate firms, the suggested disclosure is:

• Authorised/Licensed by the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales to carry out the reserved legal activity of non-contentious probate in England and Wales.

If the firm is registered in a public register, the name of the register and the provider’s registration number or equivalent means of identification in that register.

This applies principally to registered auditors and accredited probate firms.

Although the searches on the UK audit register and the Irish audit register can be by firm name or location, firms should quote their Institute registration number in case there is more than one firm with the same name. A suggested disclosure is:

• Details about our audit registration can be viewed at www.auditregister.org.uk [for the UK and, www.cro.ie/auditors for Ireland,] under reference number [C00……].

Accredited probate firms should refer to the register available on ICAEW’s website. A suggested disclosure would be:

• Details about our probate registration can be viewed at www.icaew.com/probate, under reference number C00……….’

Although the Insolvency Service maintains a register of insolvency practitioners on its website, this is not a compulsory register so details do not need to be given.

Should you wish to add a reference, the web address is www.gov.uk/search-bankruptcy-insolvency-register.

If the activity is subject to an authorisation scheme, the particulars of the relevant competent authority.

This applies principally to registered auditors and insolvency practitioners. The authorisation scheme is the process by which you are authorised for the regulated activity of audit or insolvency. The suggested disclosure requirements that are needed have been built into those needed for a ‘regulated profession’, see item 19 below.

VAT number

This information only has to be provided if a firm has such terms. They are matters that would normally be set out in an engagement letter. Examples of relevant matters can be seen in the Engagement letters and privacy notices helpsheet.

The existence of contractual terms, if any, used by the provider concerning the law applicable to the contract or to the competent courts.

The existence of any after-sales guarantee, but only if this is not imposed by law.

It is unlikely that firms provide such a guarantee. If this is the case, there would be nothing to disclose.

The price of the service, where a price is pre-determined by the provider for a given type of service.

For the majority of firms it is unlikely that prices can be determined from a menu. If this is the case, there would be nothing to disclose.

The main features of the service, if not already apparent from the context.

For the vast majority of firms, the fact that you describe yourself as a firm of chartered accountants would be sufficient.

If the firm is subject to a requirement to hold any professional liability insurance:

(i) the contact details of the insurer, and
(ii) the territorial coverage of the insurance.

Members in public practice are required to hold professional indemnity insurance, as are insolvency practitioners and registered audit firms. A suggested disclosure is as follows:

• In accordance with the disclosure requirements of the Provision of Services Regulations 2009, our professional indemnity insurer is [name of insurer], of [contact address]. The territorial coverage is worldwide excluding professional business carried out from an office in the United States of America or Canada and excludes any action for a claim brought in any court in the United States of America or Canada.

We have discussed this wording with the main PII insurers who are content with this disclosure, which is required by law.

The Institute’s minimum policy wording includes an exclusion relating to the USA and Canada. If, however, you have extended your policy coverage, you can delete this part of the disclosure.

If your insurance is in ‘layers’ and/or you have multiple insurers, you should disclose the details of the insurer of the first layer and/or the ‘lead’ insurer. If you are not sure who to name, you should discuss this with your broker or insurer.

This is effectively the information required to be disclose about complaints that is set out in ICAEW Disciplinary Bye-law 11.

This requires firms to inform new clients in writing of the principal in the firm to whom they can complain and of their right to complain to the Institute if not satisfied with the firm’s explanation. If your firm belongs to any other dispute resolution scheme, you should provide details. The most usual place for this information is in the engagement letter but firms may also have details on their website.

Information on other activities undertaken by the firm that are directly linked to the service in question and on the measures taken to avoid conflicts of interest.

This information must also be included in any information document in which the firm gives a detailed description of the service.

This is a requirement to identify potential conflicts of interest and explain what the firm does to avoid them. Such conflicts may arise if you act for clients who have conflicting interests between themselves or if you provide different services to the same client that may produce conflicts.

An example of the former would be if your firm is acting for two clients who are in conflict about an activity and you have been asked by each client for advice. An example of the latter could be if you are acting as auditor but have also been asked for advice on the accounting disclosure of a specific transaction.

If you do not provide any possible conflicting services (ie, your firm only offers a single service such as the preparation of tax returns and no other services are provided), there would be nothing to disclose.

• If conflicts of interest might arise, you need to make some form of statement, for example:
  
  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 section 310 of the ICAEW Code of Ethics which can be viewed at www.icaew.com/ethics.

If the firm is carrying on a regulated profession, a reference to the professional rules applicable and how to access them.

For audit work, this is the Audit Regulations and Guidance which can be found at www.icaew.com/auditnews. There are also the International Standards on Auditing (UK) available at www.frc.org.uk.

For probate firms, this is the Probate Regulations which can be found at www.icaew.com/regulation/reserved-legal-services

For insolvency this is the Insolvency Regulations and Guidance Notes at www.icaew.com/insolvency and the Statements of Insolvency Practice (SIPs) at www.icaew.com/regulation/reserved-legal-services.

Any codes of conduct to which the firm is subject and the address at which these codes may be consulted by electronic means, specifying the language available.

For all members this would be the ICAEW Code of Ethics which can be found at www.icaew.com/regulations.

For auditors there are also the APB Ethical Standards available at www.frc.org.uk.

All of these are in English.

If the prices of services are not pre-determined then, for a particular service, either give the price of the service or, if an exact price cannot be given, the method for calculating the price so that it can be checked by the recipient; or provide a sufficiently detailed estimate.

This is very similar to the requirement in paragraph R330.4of the ICAEW Code of Ethics to confirm the fee arrangements with a client in writing. Usually this would be in the engagement letter.