SmartPA - Edinburgh

Kenneth Benson

Stay Away from SmartPA - Misleading Promises and Unfulfilled Guarantees**

I regret ever being a part of this company. I would give them zero rating if I could.....

I became a franchisee because I was promised a guaranteed monthly income of a minimum amount. Despite my reluctance due to the exorbitant £18,000 cost, a personal call with the CEO assured me of this guaranteed income. They even introduced me to their broker who facilitated the loan and assured me with their cash flow forecast that I would have enough income to cover loan payments and management fees.

However, after joining, SmartPA didn't keep their promise of the guaranteed income. It took numerous emails, calls, and constant chasing before I received any promised marketing work, which was still considerably lower than promised. Even then, the work wasn't consistent, and getting paid was always chaotic. I had to chase payments regularly, often past the 30-day invoice period.

My training, which was supposed to take a few weeks as promised, ended up dragging on for 2 years. At one point, I literally begged the training department for a simple meeting to understand exactly what was required. Despite copying directors on all emails, nothing was done until a new head of training took over and assisted me.

After completing the training, they still couldn't guarantee the promised income. To make it worse they cancelled the head office work abruptly.

Current CEO was absolutely callous and inconsiderate when I tried to negotiate.

The directors had no issues threatening me with legal action using their 'top notch'' lawyers, and gloated about their 'watertight' contracts, when I raised complaints and expressed my frustration

Even though I have expressed I am in dispute with them currently and absolutely no income from SmartPA, they still insist on charging me management fees

They have tried unsuccessfully to remove my trust pilot review

I would not recommend at all

Katie Handley

Not the best investment decision I made, its left me with unaffordable debt, stress, and declining mental health. The franchise was misrepresented and advised that you would have a guaranteed income of £6 k per year in the form of a bonus client to help you get your business up and running. This was never the case and was only partly honoured. After months of chasing for what was guaranteed in the contract with no avail , I decided to leave. I am now in dispute with this company to retain some money back for the loan they recommended for a mis sold franchise. DO NOT BUY A FRANCHISE

Charleen Hunter

DO NOT BUY A FRANCHISE
They promised to give a bonus client to guarantee income to cover your monthly cost - which never materialized and I wasn’t making enough each month. I raised it but nothing came of it. And then Covid happened so definitely wasn’t getting anywhere with it.
The worst decision to join this franchise and I still had to pay back the 15k loan with no business.
Believe the negative reviews …I know first hand.

Helen Duce

Fantastic service! The EA team were up to speed quickly and managed a complicated on boarding. They are providing support across 2 time zones, with two teams handing over seamlessly. They have totally transformed my working day, ensuring I am now super productive and able to focus while not missing important emails and meetings. Highly recommend them.

Jo Jones

I want to give a shout out to Smart PA – they've been awesome! We've been working with them since October 2022, and they've seriously been a lifesaver/timesaver. The support we have received from them has made everything so much easier. Super professional and always on point. If you need some extra hands, I can’t recommend them highly enough.

Kristin-Anne Rutter

We were in an urgent situation of not having admin support due to sickness. I was impressed by the responsiveness and professionalism of the rapid and effective mobilisation of support. The support itself was excellent.

Kenji Farre

Poor experience. After several months of working with them, they kept making the same mistakes with their tasks. After raising this as a concern they said they would switch PAs but they never did. Finally, once you terminate the contract they still make you pay for 60 more days even if you don't use the service.

Nathania Body

We have been using the services at Smart PA for nearly over a year now and are extremely happy with the services provided. Our dedicated PA is very efficient and is quick to understand new processes. Our collaboration contributes greatly to the smooth running of our business. We are very happy!