Going self-employed ??????

[drumm0]

Do I need any other papers/cards etc????

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Hello everyone.

Need advice as might need to go solo.

Currently hold
-2330
-Inspection & testing
-17th edition
With a couple years house bashing experience.

Do i need anything else to become self employed to work within domestic an small commercial premises ie NVQ's/Part P or do i need to register anywhere or is it just a case of getting insurance and away i go??????

[Bikeelec]

You most certainly need public liability insurance and without a doubt, you MUST have part P registration with NICEIC, NAPIT, ELECSA etc etc. There are ways around this - i.e notifying your Local Authority Building Control Dept on particular notifiable jobs but they can ask for up to £160 PER notification (domestic dwellings) and so you can see it is costly and a pain in the rear doing it this way. My advice, look to join one of the scheme providers I mentioned.

[topsparky]

cis card from the tax office
friendly bank manager
and deep pockets
not trying to put a damper on things though
it's just my opinion

[rocker]

If you limit it to domestic then you wont need a CIS card, and you will need a level 2 VRQ at least (awarded by EAL or equivilent), I don't know if that is inluded in your 2330. I'm guessing when you say '17th ed' you mean the 2382:10 wiring regs exam (£450); if so, great. If not, you will have to get it within 12 months of registering with a competant person scheme (NIC have just started saying they wont take anyone who hasn't got it, and also anyone who hasn't been working for 12 months).
When you've got the VRQ (£700 - £900) (you may have it as part of 2330), as bikelec says, you can either pay building control every time you do a job (£160 is a very conservative estimate where I'm from, try £200) so that your local county council can continue putting traffic lights in bloody stupid locations, or you can go with a competant persons scheme (£450). From recent experience, I would say that ELECSA are the most helpful. You will then have to notify building control and do a job that will be inspected by ELECSA: providing the job is sound, and you have:
A 17th ed tester (£400 minimum) (and a poxy 'approved' proving unit [£60] if you're with NIC), and you know how to use it.
At least 2 million TRADE SPECIFIC public liability insurance.
Guarantee scheme (elecsa sort you out with one for free)
Health and Safety policy, Risk assessment etc (if you are employing people [5 or more??])
....and you know your regs, you will pass. Whether you have to get building control out to inspect that particular job or not is up to your particular council and how many bloody-stupidly-located-traffic-lights they need to erect. After all this, you can start working to pay off the various ****s you have no-doubt accumulated getting to this point.

"Why pay more for expensive tradesmen when this magi-tool will do the job for just 9.95. And that's not all, we're throwing in this......." if only it was that simple. And we havent even gone into vans, drills and stupid 110v sh!te, taxes, accountants......

Commercial work of any kind (I think I'm right in saying even holiday homes that are rented out, *technically*) will need other qualifications and your CIS card....

[Bikeelec]

The NIC will accept you as long as you sit the 17th by the end of 2010. My assessor asked me 3 weeks ago if I had it (which I do) and said that I neden't worry if not as they won't 'close the doors' until the end of the year.

Just a point, but to go self employed you don't actually have to have any quals! Daft if you were to do it but at the end of the day you don't need quals. Who checks unless you join a scheme provider and then you will need a certain level of vocational / academic achievement.

[Bikeelec]

What the hell does that mean Alex??