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    #11
    Depends on what you are looking for, quality of services, price or tax savings?

    Harry Lee

    <admin>Link removed, no advertising</admin>

    Originally posted by wim121 View Post
    I can see why you're looking at changing umbrella's then!

    I changed umbrellas a while back after being mucked about by a previous umbrella called Paramount, oh the horror stories! Just let me say to any using or considering them, get out now while you can.

    I went with Excellium for an assignment, nice, professional, good rates (from £9 net pw), would recommend to anyone. When I spoke to GFK they were very nice as well, over £15 net pw, but the service seems excellent, although I never signed up to them, but they were the nicest umbrella out of about thirty that I spoke to. I’m considering them for in the future, if things don’t work out currently.

    Anyway, recently, I have been calling around umbrella companies again, as one contract specifies "preferred umbrellas".

    Quite frankly, it doesn’t matter how good or bad Parasol is, quite frankly, they are a deceitful company I wouldn’t touch with a bargepole. I called Parasol. When asked if they had a geographic number they refused to provide one, quite essential if I need to call them from my mobile for instance. They seemed very sketchy and I didn’t get a good feeling from them whatsoever. There is NO reason at all for an umbrella to have an NGN and insulting to contractors not to offer a geographic number.



    My advice when looking at an umbrella:
    - If the have an NGN (0800, 0845, 0870), ask if they have a geographic number, if not why not? If they refuse to give you one then that isn’t a helpful or open company. Do you really want exorbitant mobile charges, if you need to contact them while out in the field, or struggle to get a 3G connection and go through the palaver of going on the website to request a call-back?
    - Be weary of ones that promise to let you claim every expense under the sun. Keep in mind that an umbrella should always tell you to submit AND keep receipts, just because you use an umbrella, doesn’t mean you'll never get audited/quizzed by the taxman.
    - Does the umbrella understand very basic concepts and terms. You won’t believe it, but two umbrellas out of a list of sixteen preferred ones on an agencies list got flummoxed at the difference between gross and net and couldn’t give me a simple straight up figure. I had to explain to them how tax relief worked. Not encouraging at all.
    - Although you might not always speak to the same person, do they seem professional, helpful? They should, that's what you pay them for! They are there to take the hassle of a LTD company away. Your only responsibility with them should be, getting timesheets signed and expenses submitted.
    - The easier they make it to submit expenses, the better.
    - What are their terms for payment? What if the client doesn’t pay, do they pursue payments?
    - Do they offer advance services? Do they charge a reasonable amount (under £10 for it)? If not, why not?

    There are a lot of other questions you may have, but my final recommendation is the best isn’t always the cheapest.
    Last edited by administrator; 20 June 2011, 08:48. Reason: Advertising

    Comment


      #12
      Originally posted by wim121 View Post
      I can see why you're looking at changing umbrella's then!

      I changed umbrellas a while back after being mucked about by a previous umbrella called Paramount, oh the horror stories! Just let me say to any using or considering them, get out now while you can.

      I went with Excellium for an assignment, nice, professional, good rates (from £9 net pw), would recommend to anyone. When I spoke to GFK they were very nice as well, over £15 net pw, but the service seems excellent, although I never signed up to them, but they were the nicest umbrella out of about thirty that I spoke to. I’m considering them for in the future, if things don’t work out currently.

      Anyway, recently, I have been calling around umbrella companies again, as one contract specifies "preferred umbrellas".


      Quite frankly, it doesn’t matter how good or bad Parasol is, quite frankly, they are a deceitful company I wouldn’t touch with a bargepole. I called Parasol. When asked if they had a geographic number they refused to provide one, quite essential if I need to call them from my mobile for instance. They seemed very sketchy and I didn’t get a good feeling from them whatsoever. There is NO reason at all for an umbrella to have an NGN and insulting to contractors not to offer a geographic number.



      My advice when looking at an umbrella:
      - If the have an NGN (0800, 0845, 0870), ask if they have a geographic number, if not why not? If they refuse to give you one then that isn’t a helpful or open company. Do you really want exorbitant mobile charges, if you need to contact them while out in the field, or struggle to get a 3G connection and go through the palaver of going on the website to request a call-back?
      - Be weary of ones that promise to let you claim every expense under the sun. Keep in mind that an umbrella should always tell you to submit AND keep receipts, just because you use an umbrella, doesn’t mean you'll never get audited/quizzed by the taxman.
      - Does the umbrella understand very basic concepts and terms. You won’t believe it, but two umbrellas out of a list of sixteen preferred ones on an agencies list got flummoxed at the difference between gross and net and couldn’t give me a simple straight up figure. I had to explain to them how tax relief worked. Not encouraging at all.
      - Although you might not always speak to the same person, do they seem professional, helpful? They should, that's what you pay them for! They are there to take the hassle of a LTD company away. Your only responsibility with them should be, getting timesheets signed and expenses submitted.
      - The easier they make it to submit expenses, the better.
      - What are their terms for payment? What if the client doesn’t pay, do they pursue payments?
      - Do they offer advance services? Do they charge a reasonable amount (under £10 for it)? If not, why not?

      There are a lot of other questions you may have, but my final recommendation is the best isn’t always the cheapest.
      Wim121 - I am Parasol's PR manager and read your comments with interest. you can email me at [email protected] or give me a call on 01925 644 892.

      I want to get a full breakdown of your feedback and take it to our operations team.

      The are lots of reasons for using NGN numbers, however if there is a case for an alternative I'm happy to raise it.

      Comment


        #13
        New to all this...

        Hi guys,

        I'm new to all this so bare with me. Just read through this post, parasol have been mentioned a few times, are they the best option for someone looking for the umbrella option?

        regards, Mark

        Comment


          #14
          Originally posted by MarkLogan View Post
          Hi guys,

          I'm new to all this so bare with me. Just read through this post, parasol have been mentioned a few times, are they the best option for someone looking for the umbrella option?

          regards, Mark
          Absolutely not
          Connect with me on LinkedIn

          Follow us on Twitter.

          ContractorUK Best Forum Advisor 2015

          Comment


            #15
            Originally posted by MarkLogan View Post
            Hi guys,

            I'm new to all this so bare with me. Just read through this post, parasol have been mentioned a few times, are they the best option for someone looking for the umbrella option?

            regards, Mark
            I'm not claiming that all. There are other good umbrella companies who will be adopting the same model as us post AWR and do things in what we would deem the correct way. These are the employment led umbrellas as opposed to those who sell themselves on tax or take home pay. I would say that the swedish derogation model post AWR is the way to go though.

            Always do your research when shopping for an umbrella. There are some really useful guides on this site and other contracting websites.

            Do take the league tables with a pinch of salt though. They are not impartial, often owned by umbrellas, and most you have to pay to be included on..... which we won't.

            Comment


              #16
              Originally posted by LisaContractorUmbrella View Post
              Absolutely not
              I promise i didn't pay anyone for that!

              Comment


                #17
                employment costs

                steve, can you explain why my employment costs are so high, I have tried to get an answer out of 5 or so parasol employees who all seem to just circle jerk me with a different answer.

                justify employment costs of £819 a month when already paying NI & Income tax - you may be able to save parasols face here.

                where is this £200+ a week going on - give me the breakdown.

                Comment


                  #18
                  Originally posted by wim121 View Post
                  I can see why you're looking at changing umbrella's then!

                  I changed umbrellas a while back after being mucked about by a previous umbrella called Paramount, oh the horror stories! Just let me say to any using or considering them, get out now while you can.

                  I went with Excellium for an assignment, nice, professional, good rates (from £9 net pw), would recommend to anyone. When I spoke to GFK they were very nice as well, over £15 net pw, but the service seems excellent, although I never signed up to them, but they were the nicest umbrella out of about thirty that I spoke to. I’m considering them for in the future, if things don’t work out currently.

                  Anyway, recently, I have been calling around umbrella companies again, as one contract specifies "preferred umbrellas".

                  Quite frankly, it doesn’t matter how good or bad Parasol is, quite frankly, they are a deceitful company I wouldn’t touch with a bargepole. I called Parasol. When asked if they had a geographic number they refused to provide one, quite essential if I need to call them from my mobile for instance. They seemed very sketchy and I didn’t get a good feeling from them whatsoever. There is NO reason at all for an umbrella to have an NGN and insulting to contractors not to offer a geographic number.



                  My advice when looking at an umbrella:
                  - If the have an NGN (0800, 0845, 0870), ask if they have a geographic number, if not why not? If they refuse to give you one then that isn’t a helpful or open company. Do you really want exorbitant mobile charges, if you need to contact them while out in the field, or struggle to get a 3G connection and go through the palaver of going on the website to request a call-back?
                  - Be weary of ones that promise to let you claim every expense under the sun. Keep in mind that an umbrella should always tell you to submit AND keep receipts, just because you use an umbrella, doesn’t mean you'll never get audited/quizzed by the taxman.
                  - Does the umbrella understand very basic concepts and terms. You won’t believe it, but two umbrellas out of a list of sixteen preferred ones on an agencies list got flummoxed at the difference between gross and net and couldn’t give me a simple straight up figure. I had to explain to them how tax relief worked. Not encouraging at all.
                  - Although you might not always speak to the same person, do they seem professional, helpful? They should, that's what you pay them for! They are there to take the hassle of a LTD company away. Your only responsibility with them should be, getting timesheets signed and expenses submitted.
                  - The easier they make it to submit expenses, the better.
                  - What are their terms for payment? What if the client doesn’t pay, do they pursue payments?
                  - Do they offer advance services? Do they charge a reasonable amount (under £10 for it)? If not, why not?

                  There are a lot of other questions you may have,
                  but my final recommendation is the best isn’t always the cheapest.
                  The only question you should be asking is why am i paying a third party money for them to pay me normal PAYE, whilst i appreciate some people find umbrella service useful the best option is to go limited, so why come on here slagging off umbrella companies and getting them to justify their charges, you might as well stay permie or is it just a case of being to lazy to investigate other options

                  Comment


                    #19
                    Originally posted by skillmaster22 View Post
                    steve, can you explain why my employment costs are so high, I have tried to get an answer out of 5 or so parasol employees who all seem to just circle jerk me with a different answer.

                    justify employment costs of £819 a month when already paying NI & Income tax - you may be able to save parasols face here.

                    where is this £200+ a week going on - give me the breakdown.
                    Hi Skillmaster

                    Employment costs consist mainly of Employers’ National Insurance Contributions (NIC) but they also include amounts to cover your insurance costs, as well as enough funds in order to pay you should you be on sick leave or maternity leave etc.

                    The rate of Employer’s NIC is currently 13.8% of earnings above £136 per week.

                    At Parasol we calculate employment costs to be 13.8% of the invoice value we raise for your work, minus our margin and the NIC free amount of £136 per week. For example, if we raise an invoice for your work of £1,000 a week, the employment cost will be calculated as follows:

                    £1,000 - £27.50 Parasol margin - £136 NIC free allowance = £836.50



                    So in the example above the employment cost is £101.44

                    You can see the amounts we retain outlined in the ‘Pay in Detail’ section of your payslip. For anyone that was with us before we introduced the new payslips this would have been listed as Employers’ National Insurance on the actually slip.

                    When you get a minute can you email me your personal details to [email protected] please and include a couple of times when you are free today. I will make sure a senior member of our ops team gives you a call to go through this in more detail.

                    Hope that helps

                    Comment


                      #20
                      mental costs

                      Originally posted by Steven@Parasol View Post
                      Hi Skillmaster

                      Employment costs consist mainly of Employers’ National Insurance Contributions (NIC) but they also include amounts to cover your insurance costs, as well as enough funds in order to pay you should you be on sick leave or maternity leave etc.

                      The rate of Employer’s NIC is currently 13.8% of earnings above £136 per week.

                      At Parasol we calculate employment costs to be 13.8% of the invoice value we raise for your work, minus our margin and the NIC free amount of £136 per week. For example, if we raise an invoice for your work of £1,000 a week, the employment cost will be calculated as follows:

                      £1,000 - £27.50 Parasol margin - £136 NIC free allowance = £836.50



                      So in the example above the employment cost is £101.44

                      You can see the amounts we retain outlined in the ‘Pay in Detail’ section of your payslip. For anyone that was with us before we introduced the new payslips this would have been listed as Employers’ National Insurance on the actually slip.

                      When you get a minute can you email me your personal details to [email protected] please and include a couple of times when you are free today. I will make sure a senior member of our ops team gives you a call to go through this in more detail.

                      Hope that helps
                      Hi Steve, sorry to say i have had that before, it still doesnt really tell me why the costs have suddenly started coming in? never paid these before why am I getting slammed with them now?

                      Comment

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