So I’ve a friend who’s lining me up with jobs through letting agents on property maintenance bits,
Basic stuff,
Fixing kitchen doors, Hanging doors, skirting etc.

Apparently I need to register a business, Sole trader, Public liability insurance and of course Self-assessment tax returns (Accountant???)

Already have some tools but need to get a van,

Thinking a Vauxhall vivaro, around the £1600 area,
What things should I be looking out for when buying a van of this budget?

Self assessment is actually fairly easy, takes me an hour at most.
You’ll need to keep a record of what comes in and what goes out, you can do that on a spreadsheet.
You might only need an accountant once a year, not sure if you would even need that as a sole trader.

I would go on general condition. Keep away from vans used in trades with heavy loads. Other than that bodywork, smooth gearbox and engine with no leaks.

As for accountants. You don’t need one to submit sole trader tax return but unless you know what you’re doing then use an accountant. We spend a lot of time correcting errors made by people who didn’t know what they were doing.

Vivaros have a few known faults. Gearbox on the older one’s, pre 06 I think. Also there’s a design fault in which water can accumulate on the injectors which corrodes them making it impossible to remove = £££

I’ve nothing to say about the van, but good luck with the business.

I started in the same line 5+ years ago, and its been great, letting agents now account for less than 25% of my business.

Yes you need to register the business and definitely need the Public Liability Insurance, I’ve done my own tax returns all this time but I don’t like it and will probably get an accountant this year.

what’s the deal with test driving vans?

Sole trader here. Started working for myself last year. The accounting side is pretty straight forward as long as you keep your spreadsheets up to date.

Do you need to buy a van straight away? I used my car for the first six months (a Fiat Qubo with the rear seats taken out) before taking the plunge and buying a cheap van at auction.I spent £1600 on a 2008 Peugeot Partner with 102,000 on the clock. I will concede that I’ve been very lucky with the purchase as it hasn’t needed to have much spent on it (so far). A Vivaro on the sort of budget you are looking at may well be just rolling scrap and at auctions you don’t get a chance to test drive them.

I’m in a very different industry (pest control) and the first six months saw me spending a lot of cash on new kit and so I was glad I put off buying the van until I was a little more established. Focus on the best tools you can afford which will allow you to do a good job. Your customers will care far more about that than the vehicle you arrive in.

Thanks for the advice so far,

Question regarding business name,

Checked here for company names,
it seems although there’s a name very similar already taken as a Ltd, I can’t use the name,
I thought as a sole trader it okay to use a name already taken as a Limited?

Depends on the nature of their business, if they are a similar trade then they may want to protect their interests if they sniff you out.

Best to avoid it if possible unless you’re talking about another 1 man band at the other end of the company to avoid any issues with passing off. Limited or sole trader doesn’t have much relevance here, it’s more about whether you share the same trade and/or geographical area.

Worked around it with a different name!

I seem to have been sent around in circles by HMRC,
As a new sole trader I’m to first register my business which seems to want me to set up my self assessment first, Needs my government gateway number/password which I can’t find,
Only way to order a new user id/password is to enter what my unique tax taxpayers number is, This I believe is only issued once self assessment is set up!

Can anyone recommend a site with plenty of coherent Self assessment advice and ways to deal with HMRC???

You should be able to get your UTR off a current or previous employer, got any old P60s or a P45?

Quality tools are more important than a van, use your car, and always take tools out at night.

small van to start cheaper on insurance ,fuel and running costs, dont forget youlll bned buisnness insurance on van, Direct line for public liability insurance about 90 quid a year,

I’ve been doing exactly this for a good few years now. I started off doing a bit of everything and built up to doing larger projects, like building a brick porch and a conservatory. I found that being able to do everything was great in some respects, but meant that I never really built up the kind of knowledge that enabled me to do a job as quick as somebody dedicated in whichever particular trade. Being time efficient is the key to making a go of it. I learnt this the hard way !
I now stick mostly to painting and decorating, which is where I can earn most money, but also do kitchens, tiling and some electrical work. Plumbing jobs always gave me grief as they were never simple, so now I swerve them.
Register as a sole trader, keep simple records of money coming in and money going out (materials + overheads) and do your own simple on-line tax return every year. I had an accountant that cost £250 a year, but felt that this was an unnecessary expense. People still tell you that you have to have an accountant, but with a micro business with simple books, you don’t.

Here’s my top tip – forget the van, get an estate car !
You will spend a great deal of time visiting your local tip. Cars are free and vans are charged as trade vehicles (expensive). Ask any tradesman, this is a real issue. Most old vans are shagged, again I know this from experience. Something like a BMW estate with a roof rack is perfect and even pleasant to drive.
Best of British luck to you !

All sorted, should hear back from the HMRC in the next week or two!

use your car

I share my Yaris with mrstaco and she needs it as she works out in the community.

Thebees, Did you qualify in any trades?
I just got my NVQ2 in carpentry,
I’m keen to get some part time courses done in other trades, Plastering, tiling, plumbing, basic electrics etc.

get an estate car

Not a chance, basically I want a van to throw the bikes and a sleeping bag in the back and head over to Wales for a weekend, An estate would never give me the same comfort.
Plus I’m keen on doing multidrop deliveries on the side.

Best of British luck to you !

Much obliged kind sir!

I’ve got my experience through working on building sites as an electrician, doing up my own properties but mostly through having a dad that brought me up to have hand skills. To do any major electrical work you will need to be registered with a part P qualification. Similarly you will need to be Gas Safe qualified for any gas plumbing.
Carpentry and bricklaying require some skills that are best got by working alongside somebody with experience.
Painting and decorating is often dismissed as a diy skill. I’ve seen plenty of rooms ruined by diy’ers with a pot of paint. Cutting in a perfectly straight line between the walls and ceiling is the tell tale skill.
Got a mate that does plastering for me and his finish is great. You would need to invest a lot of hours to get to a reasonable standard in plastering in my opinion. You might have a natural flair for it, so don’t let me put you off !
If you’re a good diy’er then doing this for a job could work out well for you. There’s an awful lot of men out there who don’t have even the most basic skills to maintain the family home, so they rely on people like me and you to cover up for their lack of masculinity ! 😀

I’d say either the Vivaro/Trafic or Dispatch/Expert vans would be the best,

The Trafics do have issues with gearboxes and turbo seals, but are a larger better sized van overall.

The Dispatch with the old 2.0 hdi is a great engine that is economical and runs for ever.

Plus I’m keen on doing multidrop deliveries on the side.

Look at how much ‘hire and reward’ will add to your premiums before you get too excited àbout the prospect of that.

There’s an awful lot of men out there who don’t have even the most basic skills to maintain the family home, so they rely on people like me and you to cover up for their lack of masculinity

I’m not even allowed to put up pictures in our new home.