< Previous40 East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk MEET THE EXPERTS Whether it’s a new supplier, new contracts, or trading partners, it pays to find experts in their fields. It’s easy to define an expert as an individual skilled in a given area but doing so eclipses the journey involved in reaching that point. Indeed, experts begin their careers at exactly the opposite end of the spectrum – as bright- eyed novices. From here, they accumulate understanding and experience, honing their skills through learning and through doing until, years later, they can be labelled as experts. Suffice it to say, when you take their advice, you’re getting decades worth of know-how in every answer. What’s more, when you work with an expert, they can bring a wealth of insight to whatever business you happen to be conducting. Perhaps you need a chartered accountancy, a training provider, or a legal firm. In this regard, it’s always better to invest in experts in their specific fields, rather than those who claim to adept across all fields. One can’t help but think of the adage of the jack of all trades being master of none. It only serves to follow that someone who has dedicated their professional life to a specific part of a sector would have much more valuable and practical experience and insight in their field Experts 40-43.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:13 Page 1www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 41 MEET THE EXPERTS Importance of security in a crisis Webeye, a Mansfield-based security specialist, explores the importance of robust, reliable security during the continuing coronavirus crisis and what measures businesses need to take. Construction sites, empty properties and remote locations remain under threat. You need to be confident your assets are safe and, if intruders do break-in, you need to know ASAP. Security becomes even more critical in times like these, and technology can play its part in keeping everyone involved safe. Governments are encouraging staff to carry on working from home, but how can you check your business premises are protected, and your security provision is working correctly or at all? Effective alarm delivery is crucial to maintain a credible security programme. If you’re monitoring sites, you need to make sure you can receive alarm notifications directly to your home computer, tablet or mobile device. But by their nature, home devices are not as robust as professional security systems. Webeye has developed a cloud technology that is a robust platform and app that have thought through the pitfalls and have put checks and balances in place to make sure you receive credible alarm notifications. You also have to think about guarding and security staff. If you have no physical security staff on-site, you’ll need effective systems to be your eye-and-ears on the ground. Advances in wireless and battery technology mean there are systems on the market such as the Videofied Visual Verification system or Webeye’s webeyeOCULi that send video clips directly to you which effectively monitor sites where there is no mains power. They trigger upon intrusion and send video clips directly to your home device via the webeyeCMS cloud receiving platform that can act as your automated central monitoring station. To find out more, visit www.webeyecms.com, email sales@webeyecms.com, or call 01157 149990. than someone who has only delved superficially across a plethora of different sectors. After all, PhDs aren’t awarded to those students turning their hand to as wide array of topics as possible, but the ones dedicated their time and energies to a specific niche and demonstrating their skill, understanding and knowhow. That’s all well and good pointing out, but what does that mean for businesses? Well, the next time you’re looking to change supplier, don’t just plump for the one that looks the best. Do your research, put the effort in to getting a handle not only on the company but it’s management team. Do they truly have expertise on their industry, or do they just make loud boasts? It’s pertinent at present as the coronavirus crisis continues to negatively impact almost every sector and continues to leave businesses out to dry. Bosses are, understandably, having a tough time trying to balance the need to reduce operational costs and overheads, whilst also responding to the pandemic and adapting and evolving their operations and services accordingly. While there is a myriad of ways in which companies can reduce costs, swapping suppliers can have a major impact. Some might © Shutterstock /metamorworks 42 Á 40-43.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:14 Page 242 East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk MEET THE EXPERTS caution against looking for cheaper suppliers with the notion that cheaper equals poorer service. However, it’s less an issue of finding the cheapest supplier, but getting the best value for money. For example, a single new supplier could be performing the role of multiple existing suppliers. It’s possible that you might be paying too much for an existing supplier. In any case, the expertise of your suppliers should play a key part in your decision making if and when you decide to swap suppliers. It pays to go for experts because only with a deep knowledge of their industry could a supplier actually see how to save you money and how to improve efficiencies. Expertise can honestly be the difference between a bad supplier and a good one, and a good one and a truly excellent one. There’s a wealth of industrial sectors across the East Midlands from its pedigree in manufacturing and construction to emerging fields such as cloud computing and game development. With experience comes knowledge and so we use our regular meet the experts feature to invite businesses from across the region to share their knowledge and offer an insight into their success. This latest edition brings you leaders in finance and security, with companies that have carved out a renowned reputation for their services and continued excellence. 40-43.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:14 Page 3www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 43 MEET THE EXPERTS Doing business locally has often been a phrase trumpeted by those in the region who want to have more customers, with some cynically using it as a way to try and shame local companies into using them as suppliers. Nowadays, however, the focus has changed, and local companies are promoting themselves not only on how close they are geographically, but upon their expertise and incredible customer service. In this feature, you’ll be met businesses that have risen to leaders in their respective fields so you can trust that the knowledge you’ll receive is trusted and proven. Who knows, you might even find a new supplier or get the ball rolling on a new contract. © Shutterstock /Matej Kastelic Solving your cashflow issues The economic climate continues to challenge business owners, their employees, and of course those dependent upon them. Many small and newly established ventures feel the brunt of it all especially keenly: the success of government- backed funding applications requires certain conditions often unmet by such businesses. The struggles, of course, are not limited to the commercial – worry and anxiety are sky-high for many business owners, who have put their time, capital and reputations on the line to see their companies succeed. If companies find themselves unable to access traditional funders, they might consider short-term cashflow solutions from companies such as mine. Paul Michel Finance, in partnership with Fifo Capital Business Finance, works closely with company directors to minimise interruption, keep cash and services flowing, and contain the funding to as short a term as possible. We have quick turnaround, no long-term contracts, and the desire to see companies survive and thrive. Whether for wages, procurement of materials, payment of taxes or other expenses, we can help. Invoice financing furnishes business with payment 30, 60 or even 90 days before expected settlement. Short-term business loans allow companies access to working capital. Supply-chain and trade finance help maintain favourable terms with suppliers. Any bespoke combination of these solutions is also possible, which can make a huge difference to cash-strapped businesses. To get in touch with Paul Michel and to find out more, visit www.pmichelfinance.com, email paul@pmichelfinance.com, or call 07863 753 111 or (01509) 648144. 40-43.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:14 Page 444 East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk TAX The Importance of understanding Employment Status By Jennie Brown, Tax Partner at Streets Chartered Accountants. Ensuring that an individual understands the significance of their Employment Status is important for many reasons, not least in understanding how they will be taxed on their earnings and any requirement to make assessments with HMRC. This can be a complex area however; this article has been prepared to give an overview of some of the key considerations. First, dealing with terminology, a contract of services is that of an employee-employer and a contract for services is that of a contractor-client. Additionally, the rules known as IR35 apply when an individual is providing their services through their own Limited Company. IR35 is essentially in place to address the issue, if it were not for the Limited Company that sits between the individual and the end organisation, the relationship between them could be viewed as one of employee and employer. A whole host of factors are considered, those key ones are listed below and are equally relevant to considering the status of a contractor who is self-employed but is not operating through a Limited Company: supervision, direction and control over work; right of substitution; Limited Company to Private Sector organization is currently responsible for assessing its IR35 status and even when the changes come into the Private Sector, they may continue to be responsible. They will therefore need to take greater interest whether their end clients may start to take on this responsibility in the future. In many cases where individuals have contracts that fall within IR35, they may be looking to assess the benefit of continuing to work through a Limited Company. Where an individual has responsibility to assess if their contract falls within IR35 and it does, there is a specific way they need to ensure this income is taxed and most significantly it means there is minimal expenditure that can be offset, as would be the case if they were employed. Moving on to an individual who does not operate through a Limited Company, and believe they are operating as a sole trader and thus self-employed, in all cases it is the end client’s responsibility to assess the individual’s position, and due to recent case law, there are three main types of employment status: * Employee * Worker * Self-Employed There are still only two status from a tax mutuality of obligation; use of equipment/provision of tools; financial risk; length of engagement; opportunity to profit; part and parcel; quality over quantity/matter of fact. If found to be ‘in-side’ of IR35 then that contract should be taxed ‘on-payroll’ and subject to Income Tax and Class 1 National Insurance through PAYE. What is important to note is that this does not necessarily mean that the individual will then accrue general employment rights and benefits, they are merely being taxed on payroll, and will often be referred to as a deemed employee for tax and usually the end client will operate a separate payroll from its genuine employees in such situations. In operating your business through a Limited Company and considering IR35, it’s important to understand where the responsibility sits. For those providing services through a Limited Company to an organization which sits in the Public Sector, it is the Public Sector Body who, since 6 April 2017, has had responsibility to determine the IR35 position of its workforce. Similar measures are set to come in across the private sector, delayed in April 2020, but the responsibility will only be moved to larger organizations. Therefore, an individual providing services through a 44-45.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:16 Page 1www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 45 TAX point of view; employee or self- employed but if you are a worker you are deemed to be taxed like a self-employed individual but you do accrue some employment rights. This was highlighted in the 2018 case of the business Pimlico Plumbers. Therefore, we currently have a mismatch between law and tax which over time may be aligned. In light of all of this, the detail within both a contract and the working practices of how someone undertakes their work are therefore key to fully assess the status of an individual’s employment status. Looking at the list of key factors, what the rules are there to determine is; do we have someone akin to that of an employee, do they have set working hours, they are supervised and appraised, provided with equipment and the contracts sets a clear requirement to provide work and undertake the work without substitution, for a considerable length of time. Alternatively, do we have someone taking financial risk, working for many other businesses, managing their time and working hours and when and where these are undertaken, with the provision of their own equipment. From a Tax perspective, those who are fully fledged employees or taxed as deemed employees have limited expenditure they can offset against that income and are subject to Income Tax and Class 1 National Insurance on it. Those who are operating through a Limited Company can offset any expenditure that has been wholly and exclusively incurred in delivering the services and those sole traders and partnerships can offset the business element of any expenditure incurred in delivering the contract, thus reducing their taxable profits. Those operating via a Company are subject to corporation tax on the profits in the Company and then need to consider the Income Tax on extracting this, and those sole traders are subject to Income Tax and Class 2 and 4 National Insurance on the profits made in the year. Therefore, dependent on the level of profit an individual anticipates making, they would also want to weigh up the pros and cons of operating as a sole trader versus a Limited Company. This is a complex area of legislation, HMRC guidelines and case law and the approach the Government has taken with the varying Covid-19 support measures only reinforces this. Additionally, with many employees now working from home they will no doubt wish to better understand the expenditure they can claim to cover the costs of home working and there will inevitably be a surge of revisions to contracts to reflect new working arrangements. It is therefore important to understand the status of how a contract will be performed, before it is entered into and to seek advice. If HMRC were to ever challenge a decision in the future it would always be beneficial to evidence a duty of care has been undertaken in trying to ensure your contract is taxed in the correct way. 44-45.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:16 Page 246 East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk AUTOLINK © Shutterstock /Sergey Mironov 46-49.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:21 Page 1www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 47 AUTOLINK 2020 represented the toughest year for car sales since 1992, new figures show. It also saw the biggest year-on-year decline in sales since 1943, when industry was focused on supporting World War II. Last year, annual new car registrations dropped 29.4 per cent to 1.63 million as demand reduced and showrooms were forced to close as a result of the pandemic, while Brexit concerns heightened, seeing a 680,076-unit decline equivalent to £20.4 billion in lost turnover, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). The first lockdown was the primary cause of the slump, with March being a critical month when sales are boosted by a change in number plates. Working from home has also been highlighted for its impact on car sales, killing the commute and, subsequently, motoring needs. The year also saw 31.1 per cent fewer vehicles joining large company car fleets. For electric cars, conversely, 2020 was a boon, with the best ever year for battery and plug-in hybrid vehicles. Together, battery and plug-in hybrid electric cars accounted for more than one in ten registrations – up from around one in 30 in 2019. Demand for battery electric vehicles grew by 185.9 per cent to 108,205 units, while registrations of plug-in hybrids rose 91.2 per cent to 66,877. The SMMT note that, encouragingly, there is room for further growth as most of these registrations (sixty-eight per cent) were for company cars, indicating that private buyers need stronger incentives to make the switch, A tough year for the automotive industry Car sales crashed in 2020 as COVID-19 shut showrooms and Brexit nervousness grew. 48 Á 46-49.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:22 Page 248 East Midlands Business Link www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk AUTOLINK as well as more investment in charging infrastructure, especially public on-street charging. This will be particularly important as the automotive industry and public react to the Government’s ban of the sale of new petrol and diesel models by 2030. Figures from DriveElectric predict at least 200,000 new battery electric vehicles will be registered in the UK in 2021, pushed by the aforementioned ban, financial incentives such as a rate of just one per cent Benefit in Kind company car tax from April 2021 for a period of twelve months, the influx of new EVs entering the market in 2021, environmental awareness focusing on not only climate change but local air quality, and increasing numbers of initiatives like Clean Air Zones. However, price remains a key hurdle for mass adoption of EVs, costing more than their petrol and diesel counterparts, as data highlighted by RAC illustrates. Looking at the year’s best sellers, the top ten was made up of the Ford Fiesta (in first place with 49,174 registered), Vauxhall Corsa (46,439 registered), Volkswagen Golf (43,109 registered), Ford Focus (39,372 registered), Mercedes-Benz A-Class (37,608 registered), Nissan Qashqai (33,972 registered), MINI (31,233 registered), Volkswagen Polo (26,965 registered), Ford Puma (26,294 registered), and Volvo XC40 (25,023 registered). With the third lockdown across England the industry is expected to be further impacted. Though click and collect is providing a lifeline, it can’t offset the effect of showroom closures. However with the vaccine programme underway, there is still potential for some recovery in 2021. The deal made with the EU - the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement - will also benefit the industry, which has as a result avoided a disastrous no deal scenario, bringing more certainty for trading conditions, 46-49.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:22 Page 3www.eastmidlandsbusinesslink.co.uk East Midlands Business Link 49 AUTOLINK © Shutterstock /Janon Stock which is vital as seven in ten new cars registered in the UK were imported from Europe in 2020. The continuation of tariff- and quota-free trade will be critical to a strong new car market, but with new border checks and paperwork, disruption is expected in the industry. Considering exports, the trade deal will require greater focus on battery production within the UK if our industry is to be maintained while petrol and diesel engines are phased out, as rules on batteries indicate that electric batteries must be sourced locally or from the EU to avoid tariffs on exports following the Brexit free trade deal - cars and parts continue to avoid tariffs so long as they contain enough content from factories in the UK or EU. From 2024 batteries will only be allowed to contain up to fifty per cent of material from non-EU/UK countries. A local battery supply chain will be essential, whereas currently most batteries used are sourced from companies in east Asia. Mike Hawes, SMMT Chief Executive, said it was imperative that the UK secures investment in battery gigafactories and electrified supply chains to create the world-leading battery production infrastructure that will maintain the nation’s international competitiveness. Reflecting on 2020, Hawes said: “2020 will be seen as a ‘lost year’ for Automotive, with the sector under pandemic-enforced shutdown for much of the year and uncertainty over future trading conditions taking their toll. However, with the rollout of vaccines and clarity over our new relationship with the EU, we must make 2021 a year of recovery. With manufacturers bringing record numbers of electrified vehicles to market over the coming months, we will work with government to encourage drivers to make the switch, while promoting investment in our globally-renowned manufacturing base – recharging the market, industry and economy.” 46-49.qxp_Layout 1 08/02/2021 12:23 Page 4Next >