Last updated on April 13th, 2015 at 02:16 pm
Being based in North Wales, in the Conwy Valley area we are aware that some businesses can be flooded after heavy rain (or in the case of last winter, when the snow melts). Did you know that according the the Environment Agency, most businesses can save between 20 and 90 percent of the cost of lost stock and moveable equipment by having a flood plan and implementing this in the event of a flood.
A flood plan for many small businesses can be a simple written document that lists the important contacts for your business (such as suppliers, any firms that look after your building, and senior staff), it should also include a map that shows the locations of service shut-off points (water mains, electricity, gas and anything like oil supplies if you use them for boilers etc) along with any other items that need to be moved or protected- do the office computers need to be moved to a higher location for example. Ideally there should also be a check-list so that people can follow a simple list of instructions in the event of a flood.
Assuming that your business has flooded your first priority must be safety, both your own and your staff’s. Don’t try to re-enter your premises until you are sure that they are safe (has the mains electricity been turned off for example – if not you could risk being electrocuted), remember that even if a building looks safe there may be structural damage and it might collapse so you need to get it checked. Continue reading
Last updated on July 9th, 2024 at 12:08 pm
If you employ people as a small business there will come the time that one of your employees suffers a bereavement and no doubt you will be sympathetic if it is a family member but would you be so sympathetic if the death is of a pet?
You may think that “it’s only a pet” and even suggest that the member of staff “just gets another one” but before you do stop to think for a moment.
For some people pets can be a friend, a companion, comfort or even family – I know couples that can’t have children and dote on their pets, treating them as the family that they can’t have. How do you think these people would feel if you suggested they just get on with it and get another pet? Continue reading
Last updated on April 13th, 2015 at 02:17 pm
As a small business owner you (or your Accountant) will be producing annual accounts and I thought that I’d produce this very brief guide to what you should look at when reviewing your accounts.
Although it’s tempting to leap straight to the profit and loss account I would suggest starting the review by looking at the balance sheet. This is because if there are errors in the key areas of bank, debtors and creditors in your balance sheet then it is very unlikely that your profit and loss is correct.
This needs to be reconciled so that you know that any difference between the closing system balance and the bank statement balance is made up of clearly identifiable transactions that have not cleared through the banking system so are not on your bank statement.
Check this list of uncleared transactions for things like possible duplicate entries, especially if they have not occured in the last few days of your accounting year. Continue reading