Self employed and van usage

[cazy50]

Hello.
My husband is self employed and now his company want to charge him £40.00 a week for usage of the van. He doesn’t bring it home, uses it solely for work purposes and has a fuel card.
Can his company start charging him?
Any advice is helpful

 

[JEREMY HAWKE]

Yes and 40 quid a week is a deal I'm paying £350 a week rental on each van

If you want to send a cheque to help my struggles one would greatly receive it at the address below

 

[cazy50]

Yes and 40 quid a week is a deal I'm paying £350 a week rental on each van

If you want to send a cheque to help my struggles one would greatly receive it at the address below

Sorry, but that’s not helpful. The money is irrelevant it’s the fact that he is being charged for using the van for work purposes only!

 

[JEREMY HAWKE]

Unless he has a contract with his customer already in place then basically his customer can do what they want.

The details you give are very limited however it is often common on this forum for people to confuse self employment with employment.
Of course him being self employed gives him some aspect of the upper hand and that is the ability to walk away without notice

 

[fisicx]

If he is self employed how can there be a company?

Are you saying he is a contractor and has been given a van?

 

[cazy50]

Unless he has a contract with his customer already in place then basically his customer can do what they want.

The details you give are very limited however it is often common on this forum for people to confuse self employment with employment.
Of course him being self employed gives him some aspect of the upper hand and that is the ability to walk away without notice

Hi Jeremy.
Thank you. He has no contract. He used to be charged because he took the van home, so he decided to leave it at work and use his car too and from his office/yard.
Apparently now it doesn’t make any difference, his boss decided to keep charging him, then told him he owed 15 weeks van usage which was not agreed!

 

[DWS]

Unless he has a contract with his customer already in place then basically his customer can do what they want.

The details you give are very limited however it is often common on this forum for people to confuse self employment with employment.
Of course him being self employed gives him some aspect of the upper hand and that is the ability to walk away without notice

Did not see this post when I answered on the other which is now deleted, but yes the Company can charge what they want, it is their van.

 

[JEREMY HAWKE]

Hi Jeremy.
Thank you. He has no contract. He used to be charged because he took the van home, so he decided to leave it at work and use his car too and from his office/yard.
Apparently now it doesn’t make any difference, his boss decided to keep charging him, then told him he owed 15 weeks van usage which was not agreed!

I think your mistake is present in this reply He is not his boss as a self employed business he is his customer.

If he is self employed but being treated like an employee then this would be a much different issue

 

[DWS]

Hi Jeremy.
Thank you. He has no contract. He used to be charged because he took the van home, so he decided to leave it at work and use his car too and from his office/yard.
Apparently now it doesn’t make any difference, his boss decided to keep charging him, then told him he owed 15 weeks van usage which was not agreed!

Backdating the charge if your husband was not aware of it does seem a bit harsh but moving forwards I do not see what he can do, the Company can charge what they want, maybe charge an extra weekly amount of £40 on his invoices.

 

[Ozzy]

Pulling some of the above replies and comments together;

Based on your first comment @cazy50, you mention your husband is self-employed. You then mention his 'boss' but if your husband is self-employed he does not have any boss. He is his own boss, which means any company he works for is his customer as @JEREMY HAWKE states.

If your husband is not happy with the customer's rules then because he is his own boss, your husband can choose to not work for that customer any more and go find other customers to provide his services to.

Equally, your husband can choose to add additional charges to his invoices to his customer just as @DWS stated. His customer might not like it though.

Looking at this from the outside, it appears a company (who you call your husband's boss) has called in a sub-contractor (your husband) to do some work, but the sub-contractor does not have their own van to deliver the service so they are renting their own vans to the sub-contractor.

Based on some of your comments above it is important to keep in perspective here; there is no employee and employer relationship here. No boss and employee - there are just two separate businesses doing business together. They can choose to continue to do business together or they can go their separate ways.

 

[eteb3]

You then mention his 'boss' but if your husband is self-employed he does not have any boss.

If both parties count this (presumed) bloke as the boss, husband may in fact be employed (whatever the paperwork says) and entitled to bite them on the bum for rather more than 15 weeks’ NICs.

Not supplying own equipment is one of the markers of employment, iirc

Being under close supervision and control is another

 

[Newchodge]

I suggest the 'self employed' person speaks to an employment lawyer as quickly as possible. Hopefully on a no win no fee basis.