Self Employment - confused

yeovilmac

Thats kind of you to say, Savvy Sue.....

One thing I would be wary of is getting specialised courier insurance. It costs an absolute fortune and in your situation, it simply isn't worth it.

I had a quote for a Focus estate in 2003 when I started as a courier and it was £1,600 per annum. Couriers are just behind stuntmen in the list of high-risk occupations it seems. I had only three points on my licence ( good for a courier ) and a licence holder for eighteen years. I would however be driving 40,000 miles plus per year which bumped it up too.

I would ring up for a quote or use insuresupermarket.com or confused.com, find yourself a competitive quote than check the restrictions. May be an idea to get goods in transit insurance to cover the parcels....

For what you want, courier insurance is taking a sledgehammer to crack a nut.

Savvy_Sue

yeovilmac wrote:

Thats kind of you to say, Savvy Sue.....

You're welcome. My only experience of couriering is the unpaid kind, delivering boys and their stuff to wherever they want to be ... and then picking them up again afterwards!

yeovilmac wrote:

One thing I would be wary of is getting specialised courier insurance. It costs an absolute fortune and in your situation, it simply isn't worth it.

Actually, I suspected as much, but didn't want to scare the OP!

yeovilmac wrote:

I would ring up for a quote or use insuresupermarket.com or confused.com, find yourself a competitive quote than check the restrictions. May be an idea to get goods in transit insurance to cover the parcels....

And there you've given a solution. Personally I wouldn't want to skip the goods in transit insurance, but it would depend on what I was carrying.

Madaboutmoney_3

Thanks yeovilmac, some great advice there, I will take a look at the insurance. Not scared off yet Savvy_Sue, but I will keep you posted;)

JasonLVC

Have you considered things like public liability insurance. What happens if you loose a parcel?. Are you liable or the people employing you?. Are you protected from being sued for your negligence (not suggesting you are negligent - but you could drop a parcel of high value and the sender will want someone to pay for it).

What happens if you break a leg (horrible thought but bear with me)?. Will the courier firm expect you to carry on working or find a replacement?. or will they simply allocate to another operative in the neighbouring area - and vice versa, will you be expected to cover for someone else off sick?.

Bear in mind that if you do not work you don't get paid so this may affact your ability ot get a loan/mortgage of high value if you cannot prove your income.

Sorry to sound negative, but just wanted to raie those thoughts as I too am about to go work for myself acting as an agent for a large company and not sure about the whole insurance, tax liability thing.

Madaboutmoney_3

No problem JasonLVC, all advice is greatly received. It also helps me to ask any questions that I am not totally sure of. I have someone from the company visiting me next week before I start, so at least I am armed with the right questions.

If anyone thinks of anymore obstacles or questions I need to ask about, please fire away.

sarah_elton

WHA wrote:

Way, way over the top and totally unrealistic!! If you are a very small business, with good records, filed receipts, etc., a more reasonable fee would be around £100-£200 - that is certainly the fee level I charge. Sounds like they are thinking of the large firms of accountants who don't want very small businesses anyway. I would say that the people running that course were talking out of a bodily orifice! And no doubt, those same people didn't bother to tell you about the potential for tax saving by choosing a year end other than 5 April (i.e. 30 April or 31 May are good) and no doubt told you you can only claim £2 per week for use of home, etc. etc. I would never tell anyone they "needed" an accountant, but I think people are intelligent enough to be told the true facts of what an accountant would cost and what benefits they may be able to provide - certainly those earning very little who are internet-savvy, and aren't wanting to indulge in extensive tax savings (i.e. they're happy to pay a reasonable amount of tax) can find out most of the things they need on the internet and the various courses. But a course saying things like that are just as bad as the accountants who tell you that an accountant is a necessity!

Sorry, should have made clear that figure was for a limited company, and included Companies House returns and all other associated gubbins.