New business help please?

Aquamania

Lomast wrote: »

That is unfortunate as you will now have to declare when asked that you have had an insurance policy cancelled everytime you renew any insurance policy and that is likely to cost you more money

I think it depends on the circumstances.

As I read the OP, the insurance cover has been cancelled beacuse of a change of use of the building, a use that the insurer presumably does not cover.

It's a bit like a 17 y.o. who has just passed his test buys himself a 1200cc Renault Clio and gets it insured.
6 months later he sells the Clio and buys himself a Lamborghini Testarossa, phones his insurer, and finds the insurer will not insure a newly qualified driver on that type of vehicle, so the insurance is cancelled (as he no longer owns the Clio either).

That is not what is meant by having insurance cancelled.

What they mean is, has the insurer cancelled insurance specifically to the insured, whereas they would offer similar insurance to someone else.
e.g. because the insured has been convicted of some criminal activity, such as insurance fraud.


Edit: However, as the OP was sent the letter of cancellation out of the blue by registered post rather than being told when he contacted them that they would not cover the new risk, I think there's more to this than one would otherwise presume... :cool:

Not_tight_just_careful

Hi guys,

Thanks for all the responses.

I’d like to point out it is not just electricals which I sell online. This was just an example of where a problem could potentially arise. Electricals account for approx. 20% of my total sales I would say.

With regards to the house insurance, it was simply a case of the policy Icurrently had was no longer "Fit for purpose" which is why AXA cancelled the policy. The problem was not that I registered a small businessfrom home but the fact that I guesstimated the held stock value to be at around £2000 (This is where the problem resides) Any stock, sub-£500 in value is not a problem. The policy has since been reinstated in light of the revised information and the insurance continues. The other constraint is that I am not allowed to advertise the business. This is all very subjective to the word"Advertise" though I would say.

It is exactly as Aquamania said, it's not like I had the insurance declined/refused/revoked, it was just no longer suitable in the eyes of AXA. I did worry about the knock-on effect myself but the female representative on the phone told me it was simply a cancellation. The car analogy is correct given by Aquamania (Car insurance scenario)

The P.A.T testing route is something I am going to go down anyway as It is good practice and peace of mind to do so. As mentioned the courses are no tooexpensive. The machines can be purchased second hand and the calibration needs to be up to date and appliance sticker logged/recorded against tested items etc. Incidentally, through all this, I have done my homework and managed to find alot of cheaper insurance policies with the same cover (including business)

I will continue to look in to the legalities and possible insurances neededto go about my business.



Thanks Mistral001, I have a good eye forwhat sells and what doesn't J

I’ve been using eBay for well over 10 years so pretty used to the describing the items condition etc.

justjohn

Someone can correct me if I am wrong. But PAT is not a legal obligation for second hand goods.


As long as the goods were tested and considered safe by a competent person then they are ok to sell.


Also second hand shops can sell electrical goods with no power cords to avoid PAT testing (this was a way around it , a few years ago in scotland, unsure now) I used to work in a second hand shop and as long as we did not supply power cords trading standards did not have a hissy fit regarding pat testing.


I am unsure about online sales, However second hand shops have no probs in getting public liability insurance and I was never asked if my electrical goods were pat tested. Only person that ever asked was trading standards.


I am sure someone will be along to say I am talking total cobblers ...but hey ho lol

justjohn

And just a small NOTE I have never seen a second hand mobile phone with charger with a PAT test label on.


I have been requested for PAT tested/labeled laptop power supplies(they want them because its an obligation for there employee's). Never seen labelled PSU's unless the have come from companies onto the second hand market and even then its only a handful.


Again not many sellers label and pat test items.


Many big companies PAT test items every few years, many do not.....have a look next time you go into a bank, most of there kit has a PAT test label on. However many big companies do not test there kit(have a look in the high street stores lol .

w1lson86

Hi to all. My name is Christopher and I am new to money saving expert. I am currently in the process of planning a future greengrocery buisness. I have secured a reasonable sum of money and have looked at several retail locations in my local area, just to get a feel for the buisness location, size of premises etc and really just to test the water.

I won't be moving in to any premises until next year and dont want to rush. I have made some attempts to research potential footfall in my area, is it viable etc. What i would really like to do is try to get some numbers together. At this stage i am adopting a common sense approach and airing on the side of caution. I have no buisness skills as such but have a willingness to both listen and learn and feel i could succeed. I'm trying to workout my start up costs.

I have contacted several firms regarding the hiring of equipment, shelving companies etc but i am struggling to get some rough numbers together for annual electric, gas, water, building insurance, public liability insurance etc. If anybody currently runs a relatively small shop/similar buisness and could point me in the right direction, offer help and advice or some average/rough figures of what these costs maybe i would be grateful.

Kind regards Chris

Savvy_Sue

Best bit of advice I can offer is go work in a greengrocer's if you haven't already got that experience.

Can't help with utilities - it really is a 'how long is a piece of string' - but I'd have thought the agent through whom you locate your premises would have a fair idea.

You will need to pay for refuse disposal, and you'll need several elements to that: we have food collection (which I think you'll need to), bottles (less likely), paper, cardboard, plastic and landfill.

We have a fair few 'popup greengrocers', which sell x pieces of fruit for £1. They display the fruit in bowls, some are mixed and others all bananas, apples etc. I'd imagine that's quite a different model to the 'normal' greengrocer where you buy by weight.

BTW, our two nearest greengrocers also sell milk, eggs, white vinegar, really posh chocolate ...

Not_tight_just_careful

w1lson86 wrote: »

Hi to all. My name is Christopher and I am new to money saving expert. I am currently in the process of planning a future greengrocery buisness. I have secured a reasonable sum of money and have looked at several retail locations in my local area, just to get a feel for the buisness location, size of premises etc and really just to test the water.

I won't be moving in to any premises until next year and dont want to rush. I have made some attempts to research potential footfall in my area, is it viable etc. What i would really like to do is try to get some numbers together. At this stage i am adopting a common sense approach and airing on the side of caution. I have no buisness skills as such but have a willingness to both listen and learn and feel i could succeed. I'm trying to workout my start up costs.

I have contacted several firms regarding the hiring of equipment, shelving companies etc but i am struggling to get some rough numbers together for annual electric, gas, water, building insurance, public liability insurance etc. If anybody currently runs a relatively small shop/similar buisness and could point me in the right direction, offer help and advice or some average/rough figures of what these costs maybe i would be grateful.

Kind regards Chris

Not myself wanting to appear rude w1lson86, but could you not have started your own forum thread rather than posting your question on mine?

J_Howard

PAT testing is done regularly on the annual basis in the corporate sector. Though its not a regulation but big companies do not take the risk of bigger losses.
It is recommended where many electronic systems are working, just like computer panels. So, PAT is a preventive measure.