A KIRKLEES accountant says businesses should stop blaming banks for failing to lend them money – and work at making a better case for the cash.

Shafiq Khan (pictured), partner and head of Cleckheaton-based Clough Management Services, said many firms were criticising banks for starving them of cash after imposing stricter lending criteria.

But he said many business owners don’t help themselves because they fail to supply relevant information when they approach banks to borrow money.

Mr Khan, a member of the approval panel of the Business Enterprise Fund which fills funding gaps for businesses struggling to secure finance from traditional sources, said banks were still keen to do business with customers who could present a strong case and demonstrate that they can repay their loans.

But he said: “The days when business owners could walk into a bank and get immediate decisions on six or even seven-figure loans are long-gone.

“Nowadays banks leave no stone unturned and nearly every decision has to go past a team of credit controllers who can only base their decision on the information that’s given to them, so thorough preparation is absolutely vital. “

He said his work with the Business Enterprise Fund, brought him into contact with clients ranging from sole traders to companies with multi-million pound turnovers needing credit for all eventualities such as expansion programmes or covering cash flow during lean trading periods.