Five more simple tips

1. Know your alternatives - you shouldn't need to pay for your accountant to learn new things when you need help doing something that your accountant hasn't done before. It will often be cheaper and more cost-effective to engage a specialist who already has the necessary knowledge and experience.
2. If you need a bookkeeper (temp or perm) get one instead of paying accountancy firm rates for simple bookkeeping.
3. Ensure your accountant tells you what information they will require before they start work and then make sure it's available for them.
4. Get a commitment from your accountant to produce your tax return within a specified period of you supplying all relevant information.
5. Ask your accountant to tell you what issues they specialise in - some are better at arranging third party investments than in giving tax advice.