Choosing An Umbrella Company

admin — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 06:55:34 +0000

There are hundreds of umbrella companies on the market, each them of claiming to be offering a service that is better than their competitors. The problem for newbie contractors is deciding which one to use as they have to work their way through a minefield of gloss and clever marketing. So, how do you compare umbrella companies? Well, the good news is that they all pretty much all do the same thing, with the only difference from one umbrella company to the next is the price they charge and their standard of customer service.Fifty dollars is the average weekly amount charged by umbrella companies to process a timesheet. While this amount will vary higher and lower between companies, you can expect a quality service at this rate. If you find the service much cheaper, expect the company to either lack in their customer service or overlook key aspects of the process. Either way, saving a few dollars is not worth the gamble. Make sure that the administrative fee is an all-inclusive fee and look for a company that charges a flat fee for their service. Be wary of umbrella companies that bill based on a percentage of the invoice amount.
Comparing the level of service offered to customers can be more difficult that sorting out the fee structure. Expect every company to tout their customer service as the best around. It will take some outside analysis to truly decipher which company actually offers the best service. Navigate their website for valuable customer tools like an online timesheet application, check out how long the company has been in business, and find out whether they offer same day compensation.In addition, find out what their reputation is with previous and current customers. There are a number of websites that will compare various umbrella companies based on reviews and service options. There are also many forums online where people leave reviews and discuss experiences they have had. The benefit to a forum based website is that it is less likely to be controlled by the umbrella companies. Many times, companies will pay a fee to a comparison website, which causes this inform ation to be more suspect that a forum website based on consumer reviews.Once you weed out the various companies to a few key choices, gather any unanswered questions you may have and give the companies a call. An interactive conversation will help you evaluate their knowledge of the business and their ability to provide the service you need. Don't be afraid to ask for a referral from one of their current customers, regardless of whether or not you are actually going to call them. Their readiness to provide you with a current customer's contact information will illustrate how much confidence they have in their service, as well as their willingness to satisfy customer requests.

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Choosing An Umbrella Company