Take the fee test
Health check

Adviser health check

Ten yes or no questions about the adviser and the engagement letter you already have. It ends with a list of points to raise with your adviser, each linked to its question page, and to a script where one fits. Never a score, a grade or a verdict on any firm.

This check suggests questions to raise with your adviser. It is not an assessment or rating of any firm.

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Could you work out your fee from your engagement letter alone?

This check suggests questions to raise with your adviser. It is not an assessment or rating of any firm.

Nothing you answer is stored or sent anywhere. Privacy notice

How it works

Answer each question from your engagement letter and your own experience, not from the proposal you were sent. Yes, no or not sure are the only answers. When you finish, the check lists the points worth raising with your adviser, with a link to the question page that explains each one. Where a script on this site fits the point, the list links to that too. Nothing you answer is stored or sent anywhere.

What the result is, and what it is not

The result is a list of questions. It is not a score, a grade, a traffic light or a rating of your adviser, and a long list does not mean your adviser has done anything wrong. A good engagement can still have a term that was never written down. The list tells you what to ask about, and the answers tell you where you stand. If an answer is not sure, that is itself the point to raise: the engagement letter should let you answer every one of these with yes or no.

The ten questions

  1. Could you work out your fee from your engagement letter alone?
  2. Is your fee worked out on the credit you actually receive, not the credit claimed?
  3. If the claim is reduced on review, does the fee come down too?
  4. Is help with a tax authority review included, and is it written down?
  5. Did the people who did the technical work check the claim before filing?
  6. Did you see the full claim and its workings before it was filed?
  7. Is your adviser named on the claim, where the form allows it?
  8. Does your contract renew automatically for future years?
  9. Are there exit fees, or charges to get your records back?
  10. Do you know whether anyone was paid for introducing you to your adviser?

Each question has its own page in the questions to ask section, with what a good answer sounds like and what should make you ask more.

After the check

Raise the points in writing, one message, with the engagement letter beside you. The scripts section has wording for several of them. If the answers show a term you want changed, the how to negotiate fees guide covers how to ask. The managing an adviser year to year guide puts the check into the yearly cycle. If something has already gone wrong, start with the when things go wrong section instead.

KnowYourFees.org is published by Swanson Reed, an R&D tax advisory firm that competes with other advisers. This site does not recommend any adviser, including Swanson Reed.

© 2026 Swanson Reed. You may use the templates and checklists for your own business. Official material is used under the terms set by its publisher.