Letters: CCH Software making most of MYOB merger
3 Nov 08
Your article, “Attacking tax”, in the October edition of CA Magazine, provided a thorough overview of the business dynamics of the accounting and tax software sector. Unfortunately, it contained a couple of factual errors about CCH software that I would like to correct
Contrary to your correspondent's report, our new tax software product, CCH Personal Tax, part of our new ProSystem suite of products, has launched; it is already in use by over 100 practices in the UK. This is one of the first fruits of the tax and accounting software product range from the merger of CCH software and MYOB UK Accountants division earlier this year.
We are delighted not only with the general efficiencies our users tell us our software is bringing them but also our e-filing success rate. Statistics from HMRC show third-party software has an average success rate of 91.9 per cent. CCH Personal Tax has an average success rate of almost 100 per cent. In a year of frequently republished Specials and Exclusion listings, I feel this is all the more impressive.
It was disappointing to read in the article an attempt by individuals in the tax software market to spread falsehoods about our successful efforts to integrate our two businesses. While it is always sad if we ever lose a single customer, our business currently has a 99 per cent client retention rate. The important driver for CCH is to work in collaboration with our clients, to provide them with high-quality software and excellent client service.
I am not complacent about the challenges that face companies like ours during a time of rapid technological change. In the end the best products will be the ones that our professional clients wish to purchase.
Simon Crompton. Managing Director,CCH software
The Editor replies: I regret the error regarding the Personal Tax launch date and am happy to run this letter as a correction, and as an opportunity for CCH to respond to critical comments in the article from others in the industry.
Where were auditors in bank crisis?
Surely the auditing profession has yet again got a credibility problem?
How could the balance sheets of banks be signed off unqualified, loaded as they were with assets which could not be specifically identified or valued and eventually turned out to be worthless?
It would seem that auditors as well as banking executives no longer understand the difference between cash and debt — especially bad debt!? Seems pretty basic to me!
John Topping CA Bromsgrove, Worcs
LETTER OF THE MONTH
Credit crunch risk to bought-out pension schemes
How much worse can it get?
Events of recent times have brought to the fore just how interlinked our lives and destinies have become, regardless of where in the world we are.
We in the developed world, despite the credit crunch and market crashes, are still substantially better off than
80 per cent of the world’s population who do not know where their next meal is coming from and who do not have a roof over their head.
The situation could still get a lot worse for us, particularly if government interventions do not bear fruit and inject some confidence back into world economies.
While our politicians have taken steps to prop up the banking system and beef up savings protection, little if anything has been mentioned in the media about the potential failure of pension providers.
Outfits that have shifted their pension obligations in closed funds, mainly final salary schemes, to third party companies, who before the credit crunch saw an opportunity to steward the funds more effectively and at a profit, could soon be in severe trouble.
Will the politicians have enough resources to prop up and secure the pensions payable if these bought-out funds go bust?
It is appreciated that the regulatory requirements for life and pension companies may be more stringent than those for banks, but with such a substantial drop in stock market values and likely lower interest rates, will these insurance companies be able to meet pension commitments to scheme members?
At least those of us invested in SIPPs [self-invested personal pensions] identify how much we have in the kitty. The same cannot be said for those who are members of bought-out schemes, who have less transparency.
Tony Cormack CA Bonnyrigg, Midlothian