03 Jan The Contractor’s Guide to Financial Security and Safety
Many people’s personal finances have taken a hit in the last couple of years with the rising cost of living, high inflation, and food, fuel and energy bills spiralling. It’s no wonder, then, that increasing numbers of people are turning to contracting to achieve a higher standard of living and to be able to meet their financial obligations. Here we look at how an umbrella company can provide financial security for contractors and assist you in your daily financial planning.
Average salaries
The average salary of an employed person in the UK is currently around £34,963 a year. In contrast, the average annual salary of a contractor is £50,000, with the most experienced people earning around £75,000 per year. Contracting through an umbrella company has become more popular with people seeking financial security to cope with difficult times.
Let’s look at some of the ways that an umbrella company, such as i4 Services can help you maintain financial security.
Secure employment status
Unlike being self-employed, as an employee of an umbrella company you are entitled to a full range of in-work benefits and rights. These include:
- Holiday pay
- Sick pay
- Maternity or Paternity pay
- Auto-enrolment in a workplace pension
- Insurances
As well as these rights, we can also provide income confirmation and references when you apply for a mortgage or for a loan/credit, which may prove difficult to attain if you’re self-employed due to the perceived ‘precarious’ nature of your employment status. With an umbrella company, because you have a contract of employment, issues like this simply don’t arise, so there’s one less thing for you to worry about, financially.
Insurance options
As well as your statutory rights, we also offer all our contractors insurance cover at no extra cost. This Employer’s and Public Liability Insurance provides Professional Indemnity Cover of up to £2,000,000* which means that if you’re sued by a member of the public for damage or injury during your work, or if a client claims you’ve made a mistake that’s cost them money, you’re protected.
We also offer our veterinary specialists Professional Indemnity Cover – this is included in our fee – so that they can feel confident and supported in their work.
Regular payments
Here at i4 we understand that times are tough for many people and that as a contractor any delay to your salary payment can cause financial difficulties. That’s why we run our payroll services every day of the week, except for UK Bank Holidays. We guarantee that your payment will be processed as soon as we receive the funds from your agency or end-client. And, if your bank accepts Faster Payments, the funds will be cleared the same day. If there’s ever a problem you can contact us and we’ll do our best to chase your payment on your behalf.
Payment details
So that we can process your payments quickly and efficiently we’ve also developed an App, Myi4 portal, where you can electronically submit your timesheet each week. The App also enables you to track the progress of your payments in real-time from the moment we invoice your agency or end-client, through to us sending the payment to your bank account, using our Payments Tracker system.
In addition, you can also text ‘MYPAY’ to 0117 325 6900 to receive a text giving the status of any payment you’re waiting for, because we understand that information is important.
Emergency funds
Working as a contractor through an umbrella company can be lucrative and rewarding, financially as well as professionally, but there may be times when the work simply isn’t there and your income stream dries up. We always advise our contractors to prepare for this by putting aside a percentage of your salary each week or month to provide a financial buffer for yourself and to enable you to relax between assignments while you look for new work.
Of course, your chosen umbrella company will still be there when you return to work and, after we’ve received your new work details, your employment will continue, with us providing the same, high levels of care and commitment as you’ve come to expect.
Working through an umbrella company provides a far higher level of financial security than other self-employed options, including the stability of a record of continual employment and in-work rights and benefits, as well as support options that can make your life simpler and more convenient.
If you’d like more details on any of the financial security and safety that umbrella employment with i4 Services can bring, call us on 0800 084 3058, email us at help@i4services.uk, or fill in the contact form here.
* Subject to specific high-risk sector limitations, for example Medical, Offshore Oil and Gas, etc – please call us for more information.