Legally, whose choice is it which Ubrella Company I work with?

[vlc]

Seems to me that it is my choice which Umbrella Contract I work under, no?

[MrButton]

Seems to me that it is my choice which Umbrella Contract I work under, no?

Yeah of course.

Just like it’s the clients/agencies right to choose who they work with, no?

Therefore in practice you come to an agreement usually by picking from a list they are happy with.

[lucyclarityumbrella]

If only!
The agency may well have a preferred supplier list, and if you don't like their choice, they may simply say tough and you take it or leave it! It's wrong in my eyes as we handle your money, so you should be happy with it. But from their perspective they could take on the liabilities if a contractor uses an avoidance scheme.

[northernladuk]

Seems to me that it is my choice which Umbrella Contract I work under, no?

To an extent. You can chose who you work for but you cannot chose who the agent will engage with. Remember the contract is between them and the umbrella so not unreasonable they will want to vet who they enter in to contracts with. So the key dependancy is not you and brolly. It's brolly an agent.

[vlc]

I don't trust strangers, even when they get someone else to say 'trust me'

Do I not need to TRUST the Umbrella company? Is there not any risk to me, regarding which umbrella company I'm employed by? If I don't know them or don't trust them to handle my emplyment, then imposing them on me seems very unfair and risky. Who will cover that risk?
Prior to this, it was my choice to deal with the employer I preferred.
And I see there are accreditors popping up, claiming to vouch for the quality of an Umbrella Company, but why should I trust the FCSA?? It's very easy to claim to be an accreditor. It's just a club.

[GhostofTarbera]

Do I not need to TRUST the Umbrella company? Is there not any risk to me, regarding which umbrella company I'm employed by? If I don't know them or don't trust them to handle my emplyment, then imposing them on me seems very unfair and risky. Who will cover that risk?
Prior to this, it was my choice to deal with the employer I preferred.
And I see there are accreditors popping up, claiming to vouch for the quality of an Umbrella Company, but why should I trust the FCSA?? It's very easy to claim to be an accreditor. It's just a club.

Indeed a risk


https://www.contractoruk.com/forums/...gone-bust.html


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[northernladuk]

Do I not need to TRUST the Umbrella company? Is there not any risk to me, regarding which umbrella company I'm employed by? If I don't know them or don't trust them to handle my emplyment, then imposing them on me seems very unfair and risky. Who will cover that risk?
Prior to this, it was my choice to deal with the employer I preferred.
And I see there are accreditors popping up, claiming to vouch for the quality of an Umbrella Company, but why should I trust the FCSA?? It's very easy to claim to be an accreditor. It's just a club.

You do but in many cases the agency has done some background work on the umbrella so a bit more security there.

And to be fair they are doing some people a massive favour. With so many 85% schemes still around that the greedy can fall for they are actually doing you a huuuuge favour.

[DolanContractorGroup]

Do I not need to TRUST the Umbrella company? Is there not any risk to me, regarding which umbrella company I'm employed by? If I don't know them or don't trust them to handle my emplyment, then imposing them on me seems very unfair and risky. Who will cover that risk?
Prior to this, it was my choice to deal with the employer I preferred.
And I see there are accreditors popping up, claiming to vouch for the quality of an Umbrella Company, but why should I trust the FCSA?? It's very easy to claim to be an accreditor. It's just a club.

Hi vlc,

I think it's important to work with a company you can trust.

Also, it's not the accreditor (FCSA) that audits us. It's either EY, BDO or Saffery Champness. Proper auditors that assess the company's financial position.

Thanks


Zeeshan

[eek]

Hi vlc,

I think it's important to work with a company you can trust.

Also, it's not the accreditor (FCSA) that audits us. It's either EY, BDO or Saffery Champness. Proper auditors that assess the company's financial position.

Thanks


Zeeshan

But equally the agency needs to trust the umbrella's being used especially in the new world where it's possible that even known umbrellas could be offering expenses or still paying the contractor's limited company deemed payments (as an agent mentioned to me yesterday) to support an SDS appeal.

Plus with the number of "umbrella" firms around were I an agent I wouldn't be letting anyone use any umbrella that had not been personally vetted by my firm. And that would mean pick from this list or continue looking.

[lucyclarityumbrella]

I wouldn't be letting anyone use any umbrella that had not been personally vetted by my firm. And that would mean pick from this list or continue looking.

I think that is the key, the agencies are simply relying on the audit with no actual due diligence over and above that from what I have seen.