PCG Insurance

[The Lone Gunman]

That didn't take long.
So are PCG the inland revenue? Just because they believe your not inside IR35 doesn't mean the IR will agree. Is it not best to have cover for a contract QDOS believe is outside IR35 but just in case you still have all the other costs covered. For a few quid more that makes more sense too me.
Correct me if I'm wrong. I'm sure you will.

May I answer this one?
Inland revenue penalties can only be charged when the guilty party has claimed to be outside IR35 with no evidence to support this stance.
Charges and penalties will not be charged where the guilty party has made enough effort to show they are without IR35.

A statement from QDOS or B&C stating your IR35 status is as good evidence as you can get as they are recognised experts in the field (thye have been involved in many a win against the revenue).

Should you still be found to be within IR35 you will only be liable for the unpaid tax. No penalties will apply.

In defence of Malvolio
Mal has been posting advice on this board for quite some time. He always posts his honest and well informed opinion. He does not try and lead people astray.
He is fiercely supportive of the PCG and makes no apology for that stance.
He gives his advice freely and generously.

I can well understand why he is short with some of the people who "crash into this board".
A quick read of the guides on this site and a simple search of the forums will answer most newby questions, yet we still see the same questions rolling in again and again.
One has to ask if contreacting is a suitable career option for anyone who can not do the simple tasks stated above.
Then we see people who question the validity of the advice. Mals advice is just that, advice. If people don't like it they are free to not take it.
If others have other advice then they are free to offer it, but arguing that Mal is a pillock for not offering that advice is unproductive.

I, like Denny, am no lover of the PCG, but I would advise any contractor to join, especialy a newby. The range of products is excellent and the access to the knowledge base is invaluable.

Remember that everybody who gives advice on this board does so honestly. We all have businesses to run and work to do so we can do without repeating what we have said before or searching the forums for a previous answer.
If you dont like the advice then dont take it. If you have an alternative answer then give it, you will receive valid opinions on it.

Regrads TLG.

[The Lone Gunman]

No it isn't. I just think that supporting the PCG is the lesser of two evils: not doing anything and doing something. Let's not forget that the PCG were instrumental in bringing about the ludicrous ''opting out' option for limited company contractors - something that has only serviced the EBs with no discernable benefits to contractors. They also have EBs as affiliates and it appears that they don't really need to earn the right to affiliate by ensuring that their contracts are PCG ones either. This I find totally unacceptable.

On the other hand, I feel that contractors need to mobilise now, more than ever, as I've been saying for years now, if they are going to stem the tidal wave of abuses being directed against them.

I would start something of my own if I thought that sufficient backing was there. Something I'd been toying with for some time now. However, I see little point in doing this if my own project is unlikely to generate the degree of support it needs to grow and survive.

I agree with that Den. I also like the idea of PCG membership at a low cost level similar to Union fees and, I assume, on Union lines. Maybe the PCG should consider setting up a "Union".

[malvolio]

To answer that one, the bulk of the cost of the basic £120 PCG membership goes on the PEI insurance premium. The economics are actually quite weird, but becuase of the bulk discounts we get, lowering the fees would actually have a serious effect on the coverage offered. And if we detach the insurance from the membership fee, we become an insurance broker and have to jump through a whole other set of regulatory hurdles - which is not what we're there for.

And £120 a year - not really very much, is it...?

[The Lone Gunman]

To answer that one, the bulk of the cost of the basic £120 PCG membership goes on the PEI insurance premium. The economics are actually quite weird, but becuase of the bulk discounts we get, lowering the fees would actually have a serious effect on the coverage offered. And if we detach the insurance from the membership fee, we become an insurance broker and have to jump through a whole other set of regulatory hurdles - which is not what we're there for.

And £120 a year - not really very much, is it...?

Fair point. Union fees work out about that much and don't offer as much.