Expenses vs company purchase

[b0redom]

Hi All,
It's been suggested to me that for larger expenses, laptops etc, it would be more sensible from an accounting perspective to buy them through the company rather than buy them personally and expense them.

The only down side I can see with doing this is that I won't get the free insurance I would get buying stuff on a personal credit card.

What does the panel do?

[malvolio]

Hi All,
It's been suggested to me that for larger expenses, laptops etc, it would be more sensible from an accounting perspective to buy them through the company rather than buy them personally and expense them.

The only down side I can see with doing this is that I won't get the free insurance I would get buying stuff on a personal credit card.

What does the panel do?

If it belongs to the company, then the company pays for it. If it doesn't, then you do. Don't mix the two up.

HTH

[b0redom]

So what about insurance? Do you use some sort of company credit card, or just take the risk?

Tom

[Weltchy]

If it belongs to the company, then the company pays for it. If it doesn't, then you do. Don't mix the two up.

HTH

Surely ownership is with the company regardless of whether paid for direct from a company account, or paid for on behalf of the company and then claimed as an expense by the employee?

[malvolio]

All company expensiture - travel, accomodation, parking, whatever - is through the company business card (in my case HSBC's, which is paid back monthly by DD). That way I don't worry about expense claims since I rarely need to make any and I have a really boring P11D every year. The card has exactly the same protections as any other.

Put it this way: last time you were a permie, how many times did you buy your own PC and put in an expense claim?

[DS23]

If it belongs to the company, then the company pays for it. If it doesn't, then you do. Don't mix the two up.

HTH

don't be such a curl of butter. everything is not always black and white.

it might be best practice to run expenses direct from a co business card exactly as you state but it is not always possible to manage finances that way.

when i started my business i was refused a credit card. i lived off personal cash and credit and expensed it as necessary until such a time as the business had built up reserves and had a decent revenue streams.

now i have a co credit card and do as you do but is misleading and frankly wrong to state that you cannot do it any other way.

[SueEllen]

Put it this way: last time you were a permie, how many times did you buy your own PC and put in an expense claim?

Actually I know a permie who has had to do this.

This is because the company concerned doesn't want to pay for equipment which is specified to suit that particular employee and then have the employee walk out in 2 months. So all their employees have to wait at least 6 months before they get the cost of their laptop back.

So to every rule there are exceptions but to answer the OP post if the company owns the laptop then you don't consumer protection on it anyway.

Also from my own personal experience larger companies tend to treat business customers better than consumers. For example I've had companies ring me back and I know from having friends and family who are with that particular company as a consumer they don't get this.

[Evil Hangover]

Hi All,
It's been suggested to me that for larger expenses, laptops etc, it would be more sensible from an accounting perspective to buy them through the company rather than buy them personally and expense them.

The only down side I can see with doing this is that I won't get the free insurance I would get buying stuff on a personal credit card.

What does the panel do?

If you buy a PC / laptop you should account for it as a fixed asset and NOT as an expense. You can claim for annual depreciation expenses, but not for the initial outlay.

Peripherals can be expensed but not big pieces of kit IIRC.

[centurian]

Hi All,
It's been suggested to me that for larger expenses, laptops etc, it would be more sensible from an accounting perspective to buy them through the company rather than buy them personally and expense them.

The only down side I can see with doing this is that I won't get the free insurance I would get buying stuff on a personal credit card.

What does the panel do?

I buy stuff using a personal card, keep the receipt, put it into a file. At the end of the year my accountant assigns the cash value of all the receipts to the directors loan account - except I'm the one loaning the company money.

Once the annual accounts are filed, I withdraw the full total of last year's directors loan account owed to me.

I don't think it matters too much how you do it - as long as it looks clean and above board. If HMRC investigate, then can see the receipts, total them all up and see a single payment to deal with this. It's when they see money moving back and forth like a see-saw that they get suspicious.

[malvolio]

And what is the business justification for intermingling your money and YourCo's money in that way?

No wonder we get problems with HMRC not understanding the concept of a one-man business...