Paul Jenks

depends on what the specification was. That's not a thin it's a good lift. The opacity of the upper section of the crown hasn't changed. If the client wanted more light under the canopy and to get the limbs away from the building then this has been acheived. If they wanted a proper thin it would have been very tricky on those spindly limbs without a mewp. Just an observation, not a dig. I think I would have suggested what youv'e done and called it a lift and cut back rather than a thin.

The second Hiab was photoshopped into the water.

You could spend a couple of days rigging the brash down and save the crane for the leg wood and trunk in one day with a timber truck turning up toward the end of the day.

£8k sounds about right

I'd say the biggest you'd get in there is a 100t. We had a price for a job a couple of years ago and it was a couple of grand for 2 days crane hire. You'd have to have their banksman with radio comms. You'd need the special plates they put under the legs to stop the road collapsing into the sewer. Look at getting the power and phone lines dropped. The one we got priced was 52m from the centre of the road and the 100t crane could lift 1.7t at that reach. The killer was the insurance. As the lifts were over other peoples houses it went to 5 figures. We actually had CAA clearance to extract the butt and limbs by helicopter but the garden was so small the tree would have filled it up too much to make the heli-lift cost effective. Ended up doing it old school and marched it all through the house in lumps. Chipped the brash in the garden and brought out in recycling bins. 5 guys 6 days including grinding the 8' stump with a little Camon grinder.

In NZ tight lycra shorts on women are called mumbles.

There must be some money in the bales as it seems to be an expensive and slow machine. A big mulcher would deal with it much more effectively. IMO. I guess if they have to clear the site it has it's advantages. Well, one anyway.

If we need to we use these guys. Clive is very professional and they don't take payment unless you get paid. Everything is legal and above board. Total Credit Management | Oxford, Witney, Abingdon, Wantage, Didcot, Bicester, Wallingford, Banbury | Oxfordshire

I took the undamaged guts from of a wrecked pair of Hi-flex and my mum got her sewing machine out and fixed them into a pair of £10 hi-viz trousers. Result.

BIS media information for journalists and the press - Press Releases - Fallon to big businesses: Commit to paying suppliers on time, or be named - BIS media information for journalists and the press Prompt payment is becoming an issue

https://www.gov.uk/statutory-demands Again, it depends on whether you want to continue trading with companies who operate outside the spirit of the law. Personally, I see no benefit. Many of them are parasites and strive to make profit at the expense of their sub-contractors.

https://www.gov.uk/invoicing-and-taking-payment-from-customers/payment-obligations I've only ever threatened a statutory demand. It may upset the client, it may make the relationship stronger. (Didn't make the relationship stronger in my case.)

Crane drivers don't like step cuts as it can jolt the rig. Position the end of the jib, with the two chains tight(adjust to suit, and balanced so the limb/section will remain oriented as it stands even after it's cut)slightly away from you in the direction you want the section to move once it's free. You need the driver to pinch the chains to get some of the weight off the section. The chains should just bite into the bark or wood. Be careful, a 100t crane has a lot of 'pinch' so don't go too mad. Get a feel for the way the rig operates by doing some relatively small bits first. Do a small back cut and then pass the saw through as smoothly as you can. The drivers are usually bloody good and as soon as he feels it release he'll get the section away from you.

A business or company, (the terms are not always synonomous), can be a vehicle to financing living expenses. Most are set up for the above reason or for the perception of freedom. In reality running a business/company is very demanding at a number of levels and that is why many fail and many more stumble along with no real goals other than to put food on the table. Few set an objective and realistic set of long term goals, one of which may be for the owner to have the capacity to step back and draw an income or sell a fully functioning and self sustaining business. Many small business owners delude themselves into thinking they have value in their business that can be realised by selling and so again delude themselves that all the long hours of toil and stress will be worth it when they do sell up. Unless a business is self-sustaining without the owner it has very little value. It takes a good deal of work to get a business to this place both with systems and personnel. (It's no good buying a business if the key personnel, not the owner, are not going to stay.) I work to extracate myself from operational, administrative and management roles and develop my people to own these roles. The next phase is to train managers to think and act strategically, thus removing some more of my stress and responsibility. To drag this back to the thread, staying within the tax regulations by knowing what is legal and what isn't and what is moral and what is immoral is the right way to run a company. It can be tough when others operate in the same arena and blatantly outside the regs. That's life. Operate with integrity and you should sleep better. The path of truth is not the path of ease.

The only legal requirement for sick pay, assuming it's not written into a contract of employment is Statutory Sick Pay and this only kicks in with a doctors note after seven days. (Used to be 3). The employer pays it and then claims it back from HMRC. We don't pay sick pay except SSP. Tends to keep people healthier. Yes I do have the capacity to pay myself using dividends. It is a more tax efficient way of paying directors. Personally I'm not a big fan of this and so I'm paid a living wage and pay normal PAYE/NI. Virtually all our profit goes back into the business in training, premisis and kit. The rest stays in the business as working capital to fund growth. As alluded to earlier, my ideal is to make the working environment better for the staff. Ultimately this feeds back to make my life easier.

As a director I get paid holiday. My company is an entity that rewards those who work for it. Granted, for the hours I put in I'm the lowest paid in the company by the hour. (Even in salary I'm about halfway between the highest and lowest remuneration.) Before everyone gasps in exasperation, huge financial reward is not my main driver. If I can develop my team to run the company without me and reward them accordingly and help them realise their goals, I can take a modest wage and do very little ad infinitum. Maybe start an operation in a town near you.

Please don't think that I or anyone else thinks you're making loads as a result of tax irregularities. Financial gain as a term can be misunderstood. If one fails to pay HMRC £1 that is owed, when it is owed, it is seen as financial gain. Small businesses do seem to get the sh*t end of the stick a lot of the time. The role of the small business leader is bloody hard. The tenacity of the entrepenuer and his/her fight to get on and generate an income for themselves and often others inspite of the numerous obstacles. The tax system is what it is and we should all work with it. Greece hasn't and look where they are. Taxes may pay for unnessecary paper pushers and Brussells doctrine and it also pays for schooling, roads, safety, hospitals, streetlights, democracy, the Olympics etc.

It's just that the previous post read[to me] as if something underhand was occurring. My apologies for my misinterpretation. You must be a dab hand at explaning to Messrs HMRC and Co.

IMO, the benefits in sustainability and staff continuity far outweigh the extra costs. The legislation for employing personnel is very clear and simple for employers and employees alike. That for subcontractors is vague and open to abuse at the expense, predominently, of the subcontractor and HMRC. It's very difficult for subcontractors to follow a career path as it's expensive and time consuming. If employers wish to engender loyalty from their staff they should develop them and do this within a PAYE structure. (Just my view, and I know it doesn't suit everyone. Employers and employees alike. I also realise that this a subject for a different thread.) And don't forget all the training, PPE and machinery costs Andy.

HMRC are there to ensure that the correct taxes are paid. They enforce legislation. The legislation is the same for eveyone. Those who choose to circumvent legislation for the purpose of financial gain are breaking the law. Depending on the situation they are sometimes applauded and sometimes berated. Either way the law of the land has been broken. As hard as it may sound, if your business model is unsustainable without circumventing current tax legislation I'd say it's the wrong model.

Which is tax evasion, if it can be proved.

We only use Stihl Bio oil for chains. Have done for years. Costs a lot. Less obnoxious for the environment and less obnoxious for the guys.

Sub-Contractor, PAYE or self-employed? - UK Business Forums

HM Revenue & Customs: Deciding whether your work comes within CIS You're right. there isn't a blanket application of CIS to arboriculture. I was mistaken. We've always carried out works for PLC's and £1m+ construction companies so it has applied to us all the time we've been trading. Even before we reached the VAT threshold. The ACAS website has a lot of good information for employee rights.

http://arbtalk.co.uk/forum/business-management/10305-cis-registration-where-do-i-stand-2.html