Ten Questions to Ask an Umbrella Company

Are you thinking of becoming a contractor? New to contracting? Don't fancy spending hours of your ‘free' time in front of the computer filling in forms and spreadsheets? Then you'll need to know more about the umbrella company service.

1. What do umbrella companies do?
2. How do I pick a good umbrella company?
3. What does it cost to join an umbrella company?
4. How can I compare different umbrella companies?

If you've just decided to start contracting you might not even know what questions you should be asking.

• To make life a lot simpler Excellium Umbrella company identifies exactly what questions you should be thinking about, together with some handy hints on what answers you should be looking for.

Fast Food of Accounting

Mark ridgeon, MD of Excellium Umbrella, explains that

• "An umbrella company is simply a ready-made limited company. Think of it as the fast-food of accounting. Umbrella companies started to become popular over ten years ago. In those days there were only a handful of umbrella companies, today you can choose from hundreds.
• "Given the massive increase in their numbers it's inevitable that some will be better than others - so here's what you should be considering when choosing an umbrella company."

Ten Questions to ask an Umbrella Company

1. How much do they charge? And are there any extra charges?
2. How many clients on their books?
3. Can you claim business expenses? Do you need receipts?
4. Are insurances included in the price? What are they and for how much?
5. How quickly will you be paid after sending over your timesheet?
6. Will you have your own account manager?
7. Is there a formal complaints procedure?
8. What are their opening hours? Does this suit you, if you need to call them?
9. Can you leave them at any time without having to pay a penalty?
10. What happens to your account when your contract ends?

"Asking these questions should give you an idea of what it will be like working with them. Yor relationship with your umbrella company is important, so don't make your decision lightly." concludes Ridgeon.