IT support for accountants and professional services firms.

Lanmark provides managed IT support for accountants, tax advisers, consultants and business support firms: multi-factor authentication including for HMRC agent accounts, controlled client data, Microsoft 365 backup and 24x7 security monitoring on Lanmark Total.

£55 to £65

per user a month (or per device, if fewer) on Lanmark Total, ex VAT. A 25-user firm pays about £55 per user. 12-month term.

Book a free IT review See what it costs

What is different about IT in an accountancy or professional services firm?

The work comes in waves, the data is other people’s finances, and a missed deadline is not an option.

Deadlines and peaks: Year end and the January self assessment rush are when IT failure costs most. Support has to be fast and planned around your calendar.
Client financial data: Tax returns, payroll data, identity documents and bank details. Access has to be controlled and email handled carefully.
Practice and tax software: Practice management, tax, accounts and payroll systems sit alongside Microsoft 365. Tell us which you use.
Staff in the office, at home and on client sites: Secure remote access and managed devices, so staff can work anywhere without opening gaps.
Insurance that may not cover cyber: Professional indemnity policies often exclude cyber. Insurers also ask about your IT controls when you apply.
The fear of switching mid-season: A handover can be planned around your peaks, with the new provider running alongside the old.

HMRC is adding multi-factor authentication to agent accounts now

HMRC says all remaining agent services accounts will be activated for multi-factor authentication automatically between 28 September 2026 and 15 October 2026. Many agents chose an earlier date in July or August.

HMRC recommends an authenticator app as the main method with one additional method as a backup, a separate sign-in for each member of staff who needs access, and more than one administrator on the account.

That is a small change that lands on every person in the practice at once. We can help your team get ready: authenticator apps on staff phones, separate sign-ins for each person, a second administrator, and a call to the service desk when someone is locked out.

HMRC guidance for agents

Professional indemnity is not cyber insurance

ACCA has said that many professional indemnity policies now exclude cyber losses, and that firms should check whether they need a separate cyber policy. Your broker is the person to ask.

When you apply, insurers commonly ask about multi-factor authentication, backups, patching and an incident plan. An IT provider that has put those in place, and can tell you what is running, makes the application straightforward.

What your cyber insurer asks of your IT provider

Which IT controls support your obligations?

We do not give professional or regulatory advice. We help you put in place the IT controls that sit underneath your obligations:

Individual accounts with multi-factor authentication, including on HMRC and client systems.
Access controls that match who should see which clients.
Microsoft 365 backup, so email and files can be restored.
Staff phishing training, because email is how most attacks arrive.
Monitoring: on Lanmark Total, a security team watches your environment 24x7x365.
An annual IT plan and budget, on Lanmark Total.

Microsoft 365 backup

What does it cost?

The price per user is published, with no hidden fees. Priced per user or per device, whichever is fewer. A practice with twenty staff, many part-time in tax season, and fourteen computers is charged on fourteen.

Fully managed

Lanmark Total

£55 to £65

per user, or per device if fewer, per month, ex VAT. A 25-user company pays about £55 per user. 12-month term.

24x7x365 threat detection and response, by a security operations centre
Identity threat detection and response for Microsoft 365 sign-ins and accounts
Unlimited support, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
A named senior technician
Microsoft 365 backup
Annual IT plan and budget
Asset and lifecycle management
Vulnerability assessments
Security awareness training

Most clients choose Total, whatever their size.

Book a free IT review

Monthly allocation

Lanmark Core

About £40

per user, or per device if fewer, per month, ex VAT, for a 25-user company. 12-month term.

A fixed number of support hours each month, agreed for your team size
Service desk Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm
Asset and lifecycle management
Named technician optional
Security, backup and training as add-ons

For teams who want a set amount of support each month.

Prepaid hours

Lanmark Flex

From £1,250

for 10 hours, ex VAT. 20, 40 and 80 hour packs from £2,300, £4,200 and £7,600. No contract.

Support within your pack, Monday to Friday, 8:30am to 5:30pm
No named technician
Asset and lifecycle management optional
Security, backup and training as add-ons

Often chosen by very small teams, and by larger organisations with their own IT team who want expert engineers to call on for complex problems.

On every plan: TekFix AI, an AI support app on every device, 24/7, and SmoothSwitch onboarding. 24x7 support is available on request. All prices exclude VAT.

What do accountants and professional services firms ask about IT support?

What is changing for HMRC agent accounts?

HMRC is adding multi-factor authentication to agent services accounts. HMRC says all remaining accounts will be activated automatically between 28 September 2026 and 15 October 2026, recommends an authenticator app as the main method with one more method as a backup, and recommends individual sign-in credentials for each member of staff. Organisations with several staff should have more than one administrator.

Can you help our team get ready for HMRC multi-factor authentication?

Yes. We can help set up authenticator apps on your staff’s phones, separate sign-ins for each person and a second administrator, and talk your team through it. Check HMRC’s guidance for agents for the full detail.

Can you support IRIS, Sage, Xero, Digita or CCH?

Tell us which practice, tax and accounting systems you use. We go through your specific systems with you at the first meeting and talk through how we can help.

Does our professional indemnity insurance cover a cyber attack?

Not necessarily. ACCA has said that insurers increasingly add exclusions for cyber to professional indemnity policies, so a separate cyber policy may be needed. Check your own policy with your broker.

Can we switch IT provider without risking deadlines?

SmoothSwitch starts with a free IT review and a free 30-day trial with Lanmark running alongside your current provider, so the handover is checked against live tickets. We would plan the timing around your peaks.

Is there support outside office hours, for example at peak times?

The service desk runs Monday to Friday. 24x7 support is available on request.

Do you give professional or regulatory advice?

No. We help you put in place the IT controls that sit underneath your obligations. What those obligations are is a matter for your professional body, your own advisers and the regulator.

Where to go next

Book a free IT review.

We look at what you have, what it costs and where the risks are, and tell you plainly if you do not need to change anything.