Talent Resource Management

[u9k82]

My Experience

Evening All , just thought i would share my experiences and understanding of the situation

I too got the dreaded letter , after the initial nausia and dizziness I decided to do some digging ,

I rang the helpline (batchworth) and they bluntly informed me they didn't know much and that Redding financial services did not have phones...... BULL S**T!! - a financial company with no phones ?!

So I deduced from the letter that the e-mail address for the queries was the with the fort group , so i did a google search and got a phone number off their website

http://www.thefortgroup.com/

I rang the number and asked for Jill Smart - worth a punt!!

And guess what i got through!! heres her number 01481822795 , and guess what the reason why she doesn't take calls is that she know's F*** all!! , she is just another layer in the cofusing mess.

The fort group are just administering the loans and asked me to put my queries on an e-mail so she could get some answers!

But she did tell me that Redding finance are part of the Talent Resource Management group ?!?!?! and NOT part of the fort group

THE PLOT THICKENS!!!

After a further talk with batchworth i discover that batchworth are just outsourced administrators for TRM based in England , TRM / Pascheme plus is based in guernsey also

SO

TRM / Payscheme plus are the bad guys

Batchworth and the fort group are hired help to administer the accounts (batchworth) and to administer the loans (The fort group)

Redding Finance are just another guise of TRM , they have probably set up a sister / sub company under the TRM umbrella because having a loan with and being employed by TRM looks very very dodgy!!

I think this is a move by TRM to add smoke and mirrors to the process to keep the scheme running and to help keep the contractors protected , this also done by making the loan look more official - as the loan was fairly mickey mouse!!

HOWEVER - I'm a change manager and this must be the worst case of process change ever!! no one , not even batchworth had forsight of the changes , no one knows why ?? they have not communicated how this effects the contractors , if the loan will still be written off ?

I also think that the new agreement they want us to sign is far to heavy , they just haven't thought of the effects of sending out such a letter. yes its looks like a proper loan !!! but thats a scary thing!!!!

TRM are expecting us to sign an agreement for huge loans and expecting us to TRUST them that they are not going to ask for the loan back , when to all intents and purposes they could!!

CONCLUSIONS

Are we at anymore risk now than before , we all greedily signed the agreement in the beginning , the fears we all have existing before the dreaded letter , its just the shock of seeing the loan amount on paper that has sent us all into frenzy

If we all quit the scheme are we at more of a risk if the scheme goes under ?!

Also think of it this way - we were never going to recieve a letter saying "look guys we've set up another company because the HMRC were sniffing around , so to make our scheme more concrete we'll transfer the loans to a sister company , that will keep the wolves from the door for a while! , but shhhhh dont tell anyone!"

Instead they sent an official letter , expecting to answer queries on a one to one level rather than in a mass communicaion that could be picked up and undo all the aims of shifting the loans in the first place

they must of been expecting mass queries thats why they cannot commit to respond within 14 days!!!! and with the queries going the the fort group ( tax avoidance queries ) lessens the likleyhood of this being tracked back to TRM

I'm not defending TRM and i wont be signing the new agreement , but there may ne a method behing there madness , and this all has been so badly managed

TRM have two options

Start answering questions or fold!!

[boss original]

I rang the number on the letter I received, got all the info I needed and have signed...I don't understand the big problem.

[Kiwi]

TRM Issue

Jon C, I would like to join the group, I am working away from home at the moment but I know I have a Redding letter waiting for me at home. I left TRM 3 weeks ago after working a 9mth contract through them. I am very concerned.

I have requested permissions to PM / mail you but do not have them yet.

[architect]

Hi Jon,

I have emailed the administrator yesterday but haven't received any response as yet. I wish to join your mailing list but I don't have privileges to email you so far.

Hoping that the administrator can do the needful today.

[architect]

Hi Jon,

I have emailed the administrator yesterday but haven't received any response as yet. I wish to join your mailing list but I don't have privileges to email you so far.

Hoping that the administrator can do the needful today.

Well, just a minute after writing the above, I have been given the privilege to email. Thanks admin.

[zohan]

hello all,

I have also received a letter from redding and would like to join this group.

[boss original]

I think Jon C is really stiring things up here......

They are obviously trying to cover our backs as well as their own, And we all signed loans agreements when we first signed up the the scheme...so no change there.

Quite honestly if we want to continue to enjoy the benefits of this scheme without being investigated by the HMRC we should all just keep quiet...don't you think the HMRC look at sites like this all the time????

And tbf....you're all just drawing attention to yourselves here....

[Lewis]

TRM are expecting us to sign an agreement for huge loans and expecting us to TRUST them that they are not going to ask for the loan back, when to all intents and purposes they could!!

But that is the whole point of these loan schemes. Otherwise they don't work. At the risk of stating the obvious, a loan that you don't have to repay is not a loan at all. My colleagues got their heads around this risk at the start - it is entirely trust that the loans are not called in. If it is was risk free we'd all be doing it.

I don't think anything has changed for you, you were told they were loans when you joined and so you knew the risk. The fact you never signed a loan agreement means little I think when you consider you accepted the money (as a loan) and didn't declare it (which you could only do if it was a loan).

Like I said before, from what I have read it sounds to me like your scheme is trying to become a bit more legit. The other schemes had loan agreements from the start. The fact the new company the loan is with is just an administration company should please you. It doesn't sound like they are calling in the loans. Althought I am still confused who the loan is from, is it a trust? It should be I think.

TRM have two options
Start answering questions or fold!!

And you will go down with them. If they fold the administrators might come in and really call in the loans!

I am just trying to give you some balanced opinion. At the end of the day you want the scheme to work, it is your only outcome that is positive. It doesn't sound to me that they are doing much different from other schemes so I wouldn't panic unnecessarily and do something rash (like all refuse to sign) which could ultimately bring down the scheme and yourselves.

But yes ... you need more info and you need to make sure nothing dodgy is going on. But I hope you at least feel reasured this doesn't sound particularly unusual to me based on what colleagues have told me about how their scheme works.

BTW ... there is a Montpellier thread going on in parallel to this. That scheme has moved from partnership profits to a loan based one. Maybe ask on there if they have signed loan agreement forms.

EDIT - just thought, those who have left shouldn't be getting loan agreements though as their loans are suposed to be written off.

[architect]

I rang the number on the letter I received, got all the info I needed and have signed...I don't understand the big problem.

It would help us all if you can please share the info you received which convinced you to sign that letter.

[eyetie]

HMRC are armtwisting contractors by proxy

I got this from someone at Impact Marketing (TRM sub-company) on July 31

>>>
The loans are not paid off – we do not give you any money up front at all, a portion of your own money comes to you in the format of a discretionary company loan

Loans do not get declared to HMRC (by us or you), if they did you would be expected to pay tax on the income. We show interest as a charge on the loan element to ensure it is not deemed to be a benefit in kind from the company to you and therefore not taxable

We can provide you with a loan indemnity document to state that we would never ask for any repayments to be made, even in the unlikely event of the company going into liquidation

I hope this helps, any other queries please let me know.

Best regards

Nicola
<<<

It looks like the taxman is forcing TRM to use a separate company to administer the loans.

I'm no fan of TRM but how does this actually change the state of affairs. The letter looks scary but no scarier than the original loan acceptance letter ("here's a loan we may collect upon") other than having an actual (albeit scary) figure attached.

The Redding letter deviates from Nicola's advice in that the letter suggests in para 9 that immediate payment can be called in the case of bankruptcy (Redding's or your own) and we have no guarantee Redding will be around for any amount of time, but that guarantee didn't come with TRM either.

I personally will be resigning from TRM asap, asking them to forgive my loan and hoping that will limit my exposure to HMRC. If they behave and forgive the loan, I will consider re-starting up with them for future contracts as then my exposure will only be the extent of the new contract.

if they don't behave...

NB forgiveness is easier to get than permission.