Agencies to avoid....

[tractor]

Agree 100%

Had a gig at a Govt department. The agency I was with (good as gold, never any problems) lost the contract, which was then handed over to crapita.

Never have I been so relieved to end a contract

Crapita are hopeless. Completely hopeless.

It's a shame because up until 2000ish, they used to be great, had one of my best contracts through them but I have been offered by them since and their contracts, rates and working practices seem to have really gone to pot!

[BigTime]

... If you are on the bench looking for a gig and any one of the agents on this list have a role advertised would you really avoid them based on feedback from an internet forum?

Yes as the ones to avoid are typically one of many suppliers to the client.

[MikeP]

I don't think that you can ask for more than that and is why I don't really approve of these types of threads.

The value of this type of thread is to aid in selecting who to call when a job is advertised by several agencies. I do my homework before dealing with new agents and any comments on here are just a small part of the picture.

That said, it's as much the agent you're dealing with as the agency. I've had dealings with rubbish agents at good agencies and vice versa.

[cojak]

Come back after your first renewal .. or after they terminate your contract early one week after you renew. Or when they inform you about your 10% rate cut. Or when they pay you late. They have made a couple of my Christmases quite joyful, with the very late announcement of a furlough - one weeks notice, followed by late payment ... Merry Christmas...

I agree that you shouldn't avoid based on the thread, but be aware and factor into your negotiations some extra risk premium on the contract.

If I had two contracts, where everything was equal, rate, location, role, I would definitely dunk Alexander Mann. - But to be fair they do at least have real roles!!

Renewal - check.
Payment on time - check.
10% cut - nope (that's the client anyway).

I'm not best buddies with them but I have no problems.

[psionmark]

Is he still promising he'll pay you?

It looks like he's getting into a new brand name now, NICHOLAS ADAM PHIPPS director information. Free director information., Global Technology Consulting and Global Technology Resourcing (already in administration). I can't imagine how much he's taken contractors, banks and hmrc for.

He hasn't for a while, but he personally promised on multiple occasions over the past 2 and a half years or so.

I was infuriated enough to see him posting about football on Twitter the other day that I started asking him in public when he's going to cough up the £7K or so he owes me. He's not said much since then.

[BigTime]

He hasn't for a while, but he personally promised on multiple occasions over the past 2 and a half years or so.

I was infuriated enough to see him posting about football on Twitter the other day that I started asking him in public when he's going to cough up the £7K or so he owes me. He's not said much since then.

Please share his twitter id. Perhaps some other contractors might like to tell him what they think of thieving agents.

[psionmark]

Please share his twitter id. Perhaps some other contractors might like to tell him what they think of thieving agents.

@nicholasphipps

If you do, please add the hashtag #nickphippsrippedmeoff so it also appears on nickphippsrippedmeoff !

Upon realising I'll probably never see the money, I think the least I can do is warn other people away from him.

Please, everyone, keep to facts on there so I don't fall foul of anything, otherwise I'll have to pull the page.

[Andy Hallett]

There are some real scumbags out there. The UK insolvency laws are toothless and allow these guys to phoenix with no penalty to themselves.

I've had it happen to us with customers on a number of occasions.

[quackhandle]

There are some real scumbags out there. The UK insolvency laws are toothless and allow these guys to phoenix with no penalty to themselves.

I've had it happen to us with customers on a number of occasions.

I was speaking to landlord of my local, and he's owed money (over 10K) by a local shyster who took over the local town non league footy club. It turns out this guy opens a company, runs it to the ground, incurs debts to around 250K, marks it insolvent so creditors struggle to get the money back. He then opens up another. My landlord said HMRC will do nothing, something about the 250K limit. I found him on DueDil with about 50 companies, mostly struck off, to his name, which he keeps on altering slightly.

And yet they spend all this money with IR35 coming after contractors who the majority of which run their companies properly, legally and pay debts on time.

Makes yer mad!

qh

[tractor]

.

I was speaking to landlord of my local, and he's owed money (over 10K) by a local shyster who took over the local town non league footy club. It turns out this guy opens a company, runs it to the ground, incurs debts to around 250K, marks it insolvent so creditors struggle to get the money back. He then opens up another. My landlord said HMRC will do nothing, something about the 250K limit. I found him on DueDil with about 50 companies, mostly struck off, to his name, which he keeps on altering slightly.

And yet they spend all this money with IR35 coming after contractors who the majority of which run their companies properly, legally and pay debts on time.

Makes yer mad!

qh

Perhaps you should send this little snippet to the HoL committee for their consideration