Hello my name is Robert Bowden and I am the director of Driver Accountants (and Bow Accountants - the non Driver side of the business)
Pre-accountancy I worked in a local printing firm as a gopher. 18 years old and on break year before Uni, having failed my maths A-level* I carried and I moved things. One evening that summer I bought the local paper and saw an advert for a trainee tax specialis
t and realised this would suit my dull personality and ocd for numbers at the time. I would at this point stress the maths A-level fail was due to breaking my leg 12 hours before the exam and not an inability to count properly. I've then personally worked in accountancy since the year 2000, doing my first 2 years in a top 5 firm (as from the paper) before spending the next 8 in a small firm managing a client base of 200 clients. I was approached by my then employer to start a business together, under his trading name. I purchased my client bank and an office in Kettering and began the process of trying to run an accountancy practice. In 2012 I took bought out a small firm specialising in HGV drivers, tore what remained of my hair out fixing the issues and clearing the backlog of work that existed and realised that most drivers do not want an accountant. Those that do want to talk to a human being, not someone in a suit behind a desk who has no idea of how a driver makes a living. I also also learned you never, ever call someone who does nights at 9.30 in the morning as you get a bollocking for that! Onto 2015 and my partner and I came to the conclusion we were moving in different directions and we split. I, changed my trading style on the business and the idea of Driver Accountants was born, initially under the banner of the main company as we investigated software and websites and then as a separate entity in the last couple of years. Driver Accountants nor myself have any desire to be the biggest firm around, but we do aspire to be amongst the best in what we do. We are not suited to everyone and firmly believe that not every driver should be self employed. But those that are deserve to be well looked after at a reasonable rate. We also stand by that the lowest tax bill and lowest legal tax bill are two different things. We pay our taxes we want to see you pay yours but not a penny more than necessary. The big companies that went taking driver's money with them did the industry no favours in terms of image. In April 2017 I will be taking my Class 1 and Class 2 licences as I do believe you need to understand the logic behind how something works in reality. That said I won't be building any walls to understand clients in the building sector as DIY is not a strong point. So here 7 years on from going self employed, still in the same office the tax laws have changed and tax is only going one way it seems. Sometimes it's not what you want to hear but it's what you need to hear that matters and the contacts we have built up allow us to advise on most situations. Including meeting the wonderful Carolyn Walsh who gives some of the most in depth IR35 information you would wish to read and members of HMRC who are as frustrated with the tax systems as accountants and taxpayers are. It's said tax doesn't have to be taxing, well sometimes it is!
