Starting Up

Codofwar

Hey all,
Quick question about getting started up on my own. I've always been doing tommers/nixers whatever its called where you are from but work is really picking up for me and Id like to be fully set up officially if you will.
Id like to be c2 reg'd, insured and join either reci or ecssa but have no idea where to start.
I know to join reci or ecssa you need insurance first so any advice really would be helpful and where would be better to get quotes and any idea of prices maybe.
Cheers in advance.

conbre

aon insurance, is who i am with, ecssa will have a number for them,
or just try them on the web

2011

IMHO this is not a good time to start as an electrical contractor, in fact I can not think of a worse time!

Anyway to answer your question, if you ring/email the ECSSA they will assist you with getting insurance. They will also be able to tell you what the insurance costs are.

The ECSSA are very helpful when it comes to setting up.

I am would guess that all of the above applies to RECI, but I have little direct experience with them.

Best of luck with it!

Codofwar

Cheers for that lads.
@2011 I can see how now would look like a terrible time but there is a builder who I know that is very busy at the moment, one of the few thats busy around and all the work is being passed my way. I dont want to take new houses and big extensions on though unless im fully insured and can competently certify them which is why I want to get set up.

curraghyid

to join reci once your insured fully trained ie time served /exams passed and have post app experience which satisfies the appointment boards criteria ie are you experienced enough to competently carry out your own installations from design/planning to handover final certification your in.

i have always found arachas to be reasonable on the insurance front.

getting a c2 can be tricky especially in construction industry you will need a registered principal contractor to fill in the required forms for your c2 application stating their intention to engage you as asubcontrctor for a particular contract.

also depending on your projected turnover you should register for vat over 40k for services i think:o

lastly if you have a reasonable and diverse base of customers and or possible customers and are willing to keep your prices las low as possible without losing money self employed is a good option at the moment at least you have some semblance of control of your income ,best of luck with it.

davelerave

reci for the extra 'bragging rights' .some of the competion seem to be signing on(having been let go) and pricing cheap which will be a pain to compete against.c2s are harder to get now as well

2011

I dont want to take new houses and big extensions on though unless im fully insured and can competently certify them which is why I want to get set up.

That is a very sensible approach.

A positive attitude like yours is great to see.
I hope it goes well for you.

C2s take a while to get as you need to have established a track record. IMHO you should register for VAT as you will be over the threshold, unless you are doing very badly.

I would strongly recommend you join the ECSSA. I think that it is thier helpful attitude that is the reason that they are now larger than RECI in terms of membership.

There is a lot of politics between RECI and the ECSSA (I wont get into this), but In my view it does not have any impact on the quality of work produced by any electrical contractor.

lastly if you have a reasonable and diverse base of customers and or possible customers and are willing to keep your prices las low as possible without losing money self employed is a good option at the moment at least you have some semblance of control of your income ,best of luck with it.

I would not go self employed as a "sole trader" if I were you. The reason is that if everything went wrong and you were "taken to the cleaners" you as an individual would be personally liable (they could take your house). With a limited company only the company is liable for debts, not you as an individual. This is not an area that I have much knowlege in, but it is advice I recieved from my accountant (they are expensive too!). I think an accountant is better to advise you in this area.

Codofwar

Cheers, all solid advice.
Thanks for all the help.

the_electrician

I am with the ECSSA myself and have found them great