Wealth & Finance Finance Awards 2015

www.wealthandfinance-intl.com 31 Centurion VAT Specialists Ltd Best Boutique VAT Consultancy Firm - UK Centurion VAT is a specialist and independent VAT boutique established in 1998. Liz Maher talks us through the firm and its dedication to its clients. Company: Centurion VAT Specialists Ltd Name Liz Maher [email protected] www.centurionvat.com Merlin House No 1 Langstone Business Park, Newport, NP18 2HJ 01633 415390 At Centurion VAT our approach is to deliver to our clients support from a highly experienced and senior team of VAT specialists. Such has been our success that we now consist of five highly skilled VAT professionals and were awarded Taxation’s Best VAT team in the UK 2013 against competition from the big four VAT practices Centurion VAT supports clients from across all sectors in the UK, both public sector and private and is very proud of its high level of client retention – some clients have been using our services since the company began. The finance industry is still evolving and with the increasing complex- ity of VAT and its management both in the UK, across the EU and beyond, there is the real need for businesses to be able to access expert teams who can offer in depth specialist expertise rather than being general tax practitioners. The firm has seen significant growth in the demand for our services, in- creasingly from companies looking to establish in the UK or trade across the EU. Centurion VAT invested in raising our digital profile as the last recession took hold and this has reaped the rewards of growth in client numbers and revenue. Our sector specific VAT training programme has also created a further platform to showcase the depth of our VAT knowledge and has led to us delivering courses across the UK and into Europe as well as for professional accountancy bodies including the ACCA, AAT and ICAEW Our ethos at Centurion is to live up to our logo of being “fast, friendly, efficient, expert” in all our dealings with clients and contacts. Being a small, highly experienced team we can move quickly to address looming VAT issues, which our clients may need to address. There is no delega- tion to “juniors” in our VAT team so clients are assured of continuous support from our expert team. Our clients look to us to alert them to issues on VAT they need to proactively manage across their operations. Those clients may be Universities, local authorities, charities or large corporates, but they all desire the same outcome – to effectively manage their VAT affairs to ensure maximum VAT compliance, reduced risk of unforeseen VAT assessments and maximum VAT recovery within the scope of often complex legislation. Our success, at a practical level, can be measured by our growing client portfolio which has increased 20% in our last accounting year. This has naturally led to increased turnover, but for our team, it’s the recognition we receive from our clients and peers which validate that the services we offer to the business community are valued and our expertise recognised.