Which umbrella - OrangeGenie vs Parasol

[tommyboy]

using an umbrella

I'm on my first contract and I thought it would be a one off (but given the credit crunch thing I may be better off staying as a contractor rather than going back to permie life). Anyway, I did what I could to investigate the various companies talked about on this site. The specific two mentioned in this thread seem to have a lot of baggage which was a worry. In the end I narrowed it down to two companies and picked the one who seemed most tuned in to what I needed. The service is good and I can live with the cost. All my questions are answered and I get paid on time. That's all I need. But I guess I should look at opening my own company if I accept an extension. Will the agency pay my invoice as quickly as it pays the umbrella company?

[malvolio]

..snip... Will the agency pay my invoice as quickly as it pays the umbrella company?

Probably not, but that's permie thinking.

The payment terms will be in your contract: if you don't like them argue to get them changed. But as long as you get paid within those terms, you don't have a problem. You may have to rethink your cashflow for the first month or so, of course, but that's all part of being in charge of your own future.

[DaveB]

Probably not, but that's permie thinking.

The payment terms will be in your contract: if you don't like them argue to get them changed. But as long as you get paid within those terms, you don't have a problem. You may have to rethink your cashflow for the first month or so, of course, but that's all part of being in charge of your own future.

Also depends on the agency you aer with. Use the search funtion on the forums and see if there are any comments about them and their reliabilty.

Having said that *most* agencies are very good about paying promptly and you should have no problems getting your money.

[HermanDune]

TheBigYinJames

Hoy Big Yin, are you Tommy Sheridan in disguise?

[TheBigYinJames]

Hoy Big Yin, are you Tommy Sheridan in disguise?

Hehe, no. But I do have family connections to his political party, which I don't personally support.

[GreenerGrass]

Running a company is a piece of piss compared to dealing with the cretins at Parasol.

[P1mpAndPr0ud]

No experience of OG on this end, but I did point a contractor the way of Parasol (on the basis of a colleague's recommendation) recently, and, my god, what a bunch of feckless idiots.

Having said that, I've since spoken to dozens of brolly-users, and Parasol generally get good feedback, so perhaps it was just a black spot.

As far as the Ltd. Vs Brolly question goes, I really think the individual has to decide which side they want their bread to be buttered. Do they want to purchase a service (and, by extension, pay for the privilege), or do they really want to operate independantly and take care of all the additional problems/challenges this will create?

If it were up to me (which it isn't), I'd go for a brolly, but then I like a quiet life.

[Torran]

I've defended Parasol in the past but I must admit service levels have slipped recently. Cost me a days money with their p*ssing about.

[GlassHalfFull]

I get about 70% of my gross through my brolly

I'd be interested in knowing which brolly you use?

[YasminHuegilll]

neither of them are the most tax effective. Umbrella's are easily the worst from a tax effective perspective, just offsetting your taxable income with expenses. Then everything else is taxed PAYE. You're also hit with employer and employee National Insurance. Starting your own Ltd Company is more tax efficient but a massive admin headache. The most effective structure is Financial Management Structure. I have worked through one for the past 4 years and get 78-82% of my gross. I do no invoicing, no admin. There are quite a few of them out there, some better than others. Have a look at <spam> they list several companies on there that do these structures