Help!

[jas]

Hoping that someone on this site may be able to help me?

I have just agreed my first contract start date for 26th Nov in London and am looking at umbrella companies.

However as I live in the Midlands I will be initially commuting by train daily to London. This will not be cheap as when I went for the interview I was charged total of £110 to Euston and the tube!

As there are a few parties involved now (Agency, Umbrella company/accountant and client) who would I be best situated to approach to get this re-imbursed? Would I be in good stead if I asked the client to reimbuse me this expense or is this something they should be willing to do anyway?

Found out yesterday the umbrella company does not reimburse me but does pay me tax relief on my expenses? My rate is £200 pd and it would make sense if I was reimbused this expense as I will be travelling a lot.

Another thing the Umbrella company mentioned was that they do not need receipts for work related expenses, I would just input on the online portal and the more I claim back as expenses the less tax I pay..... could anyone please clear up how this works as this may be another option to getting as much of my travel expenses back as possible! Is this a route that many contractors take?

Thanks in Advance

Jas

[minstrel]

What does your contract say?

If it says the client is prepared to pay for your travel expenses from the Midlands to London every day then you can charge the client £200 per day plus expenses of £110 i.e. £310 per day.

If the contract doesn't say you can claim expenses for travel to the client's office (the more likely option), then it looks like you've just signed up to a contract with an effective daily rate of £90.

Typically, the client won't pay for you to get to your normal place of work, so you need to bear that it mind when working out your rate and where you are prepared to work.

[Sockpuppet]

Hoping that someone on this site may be able to help me?

I have just agreed my first contract start date for 26th Nov in London and am looking at umbrella companies.

However as I live in the Midlands I will be initially commuting by train daily to London. This will not be cheap as when I went for the interview I was charged total of £110 to Euston and the tube!

As there are a few parties involved now (Agency, Umbrella company/accountant and client) who would I be best situated to approach to get this re-imbursed? Would I be in good stead if I asked the client to reimbuse me this expense or is this something they should be willing to do anyway?

Found out yesterday the umbrella company does not reimburse me but does pay me tax relief on my expenses? My rate is £200 pd and it would make sense if I was reimbused this expense as I will be travelling a lot.

Another thing the Umbrella company mentioned was that they do not need receipts for work related expenses, I would just input on the online portal and the more I claim back as expenses the less tax I pay..... could anyone please clear up how this works as this may be another option to getting as much of my travel expenses back as possible! Is this a route that many contractors take?

Thanks in Advance

Jas

I doubt they would pay your travel costs. I mean do perm employees get paid for travelling to work....no....so why would a contractor.

£200pd sounds very low for London - you've been had by the looks of it.

You may want to look at a hotel/B&B some B&Bs can be had for £40 a night which would be better £160 a week is not that bad esp as its a PAYE offset.

But to recap...no I seriously doubt they would pay your expenses and I wouldn't ask either as it'll probably flag you as a newbie.

[Keldin]

I don't know any client who would pay you for your travel costs if you hadn't negotiated that before the agreeing the contract.
The best thing is to up your normal rate if you will be required to cover travel and accomodation costs and then make sure you find economical ways to deal with them. For a start booking train tickets 14 days or more in advance and getting season tickets will reduce the price. £110 is probably the turn up and travel cost for buying tickets on the day.

K

[Harrysp]

When I used to go to London on a daily basis from brum it was costing me something like £775 for a standard ticket, tube all zones plus car parking at train station.

£200 a day doesnt sound like much to me especially if you will be travelling in to London every day and back again.

Anybody have any idea on what take home would be on £200 a day or what the permie equivalent salary would be?

PS dont even fall for the unreceipted expenses bull sh1te

[TheFaQQer]

As there are a few parties involved now (Agency, Umbrella company/accountant and client) who would I be best situated to approach to get this re-imbursed? Would I be in good stead if I asked the client to reimbuse me this expense or is this something they should be willing to do anyway?

None of them will reimburse your expenses unless they are specified in the contract. I factor my expenses into the daily rate - most of the clients I deal with prefer to deal with it that way. Expenses incurred outside the contract are charged at cost (for example travel between sites that were not envisaged at the start of the contract).

Now that you have agreed the contract, there is next to no chance that anyone in the chain will suddenly agree to paying your expenses.

Another thing the Umbrella company mentioned was that they do not need receipts for work related expenses, I would just input on the online portal and the more I claim back as expenses the less tax I pay..... could anyone please clear up how this works as this may be another option to getting as much of my travel expenses back as possible! Is this a route that many contractors take?

That's correct - the umbrella company does not need to see your receipts for valid work related expenses. If you are the subject of an HMRC investigation, then you will need to produce the receipts for the expenses you have claimed. If you cannot produce the receipts then they will disallow these expenses that you have claimed and hit you with a fine and penalties, since you are committing tax fraud.

Whatever happens, DO NOT CLAIM FOR EXPENSES THAT YOU DO NOT INCUR. Your umbrella company may tell you that you can claim, for example, £20 a day for subsistence if you work 10 hours a day or more, whether you incur the expense of not. THIS IS A LIE WHICH WILL LET YOU IN FOR A REAMING BY THE TAX MAN.

[scooterscot]

If your client is not paying expenses then I'd be thinking twice about signing such a contract. But like some of the guys have already said here, why should the client cover your costs to get to work?

200pd that's about £45k a year as a permie based on a 7.5 hour day. Sounds like a low rate for a contractor what business are you in?

[miffy]

The cheapest way to do this Jas is to get a season ticket. You can usually get these per week, month or year.

I live in Leicester and have done this before for a 1 month gig. A 1 month season ticket including zone 1 & 2 tube was (at the time) 650.90 for standard class and 1041.50 for first. A friend of mine who lives in Solihill worked there with me and his overheads were about the same as mine.

So a days travelling costs were £32.54 and £9 to park the car. This comes out of your gross and the client is unlikely to reimburse you the costs, your daily rate should factor in all costs should it not?

As the others have said £200 seems very low to me. Are you working half days or it there something unique about this arrangement? Someone is potentially making a mint here.

Have you already signed on the dotted line and how long is the contract for?

[TheFaQQer]

your daily rate should factor in all costs should it not?

It depends on how you have negotiated the contract. Some clients will expect an all-in rate and not pay any additional expenses; some will expect an all-in rate but will pay additional unexpected expenses; some will expect a lower daily rate and then pay expenses.

If there is nothing in the contract to cover expenses, then you are expected to pay for these yourself.

[max]

Hoping that someone on this site may be able to help me?

I have just agreed my first contract start date for 26th Nov in London and am looking at umbrella companies.

However as I live in the Midlands I will be initially commuting by train daily to London. This will not be cheap as when I went for the interview I was charged total of £110 to Euston and the tube!

As there are a few parties involved now (Agency, Umbrella company/accountant and client) who would I be best situated to approach to get this re-imbursed? Would I be in good stead if I asked the client to reimbuse me this expense or is this something they should be willing to do anyway?

Found out yesterday the umbrella company does not reimburse me but does pay me tax relief on my expenses? My rate is £200 pd and it would make sense if I was reimbused this expense as I will be travelling a lot.

Another thing the Umbrella company mentioned was that they do not need receipts for work related expenses, I would just input on the online portal and the more I claim back as expenses the less tax I pay..... could anyone please clear up how this works as this may be another option to getting as much of my travel expenses back as possible! Is this a route that many contractors take?

Thanks in Advance

Jas

Is this is a wind up?