In our Small Business Survey, it was revealed that 49% of small business owners have lost money through Self Assessment submission errors, either by receiving fines or by paying more tax as a result.

The report, in which we surveyed 1,000 small businesses across the UK, showed that 41% of those surveyed had not lost money for Self Assessment submission errors, while 10% reported that they were not sure.

With the upcoming Making Tax Digital switchover, this is a concerning trend. The main worry for small business owners when it comes to the implementation of Making Tax Digital is that it will be more confusing than the current Self Assessment system, with 48% respondents citing this as their main worry of the new system.

Amongst other concerns were being worried they aren’t tech savvy enough to use it (13%) and believing it will create more work for them (11%). 23% said they were not concerned about the switch to Making Tax Digital.

Keeping your Self Assessment error-free

Many small businesses struggle with accurate record-keeping; one of the principal reasons many are faced with Self Assessment submission error fines.

If you want to keep your records more accurate, Pandle is designed to do just that. As a cloud accounting software built specifically for small business owners, we’re able to tackle the issues which are particular to you.

Lee Murphy, director of Pandle, said: “The survey does show that submissions are becoming easier to do, especially since the introduction of online filing with affordable/free software.

However, although submissions are easier the tax system is still too complex, meaning that business owners who do self assess feel that they are not claiming for everything they could be. This is confirmed in our survey results.”

Murphy added: “So for the time being at least, small business owners should still seek the assistance of professionals for their tax affairs, no matter how easy it seems to file.”

You can see the whole report here.

Have you been caught out by a Self Assessment submission error? Sign up to Pandle for free today to keep your accounts accurate..