If you are self-employed, then you are often at greater risk of having unpredictable income or having periods without any work at all. If this happens, then you might not be able to keep up with your financial commitments. Also, being self-employed means that you need to take into consideration all the types of business insurance that are usually taken care of when you work for someone else. If you are self-employed and are not sure what type of insurance you need, then this article might be useful to you.
Revenue protection
Perhaps one of the most important insurance types that you need if you are self-employed is revenue protection insurance. If you work for yourself then it can be harder to maintain a steady income, and you have no one but yourself to fall back on. If you have revenue protection insurance then you are covered in the event that you have an accident or fall ill and cannot work. This will help to keep you financially stable during tough times.
Business property
If you have a dedicated business property, then it is important that you have adequate insurance to cover the property and its contents. If anything should happen to your property or its contents then you need to have adequate cover to recoup the cost of replacing everything. If you don't have adequate cover you may find yourself with a large repair bill or even the closure of your business.
Business equipment
Even if you have a limited amount of business equipment, it is important to make sure you have adequate cover. If you are a sole trader and work just from a computer, then make sure you have full insurance on your computer and that you can get it repaired or replaced very quickly. If this is your main business tool and you are not covered for it you may find yourself temporarily out of business.
Public liability
If you have premises or are in contact with the public during your business life, then you need to have public liability insurance in place. This covers you against claims in the event that a person or their property is injured because of your work or whilst on your premises. If you don't have public liability insurance then you could be left with an extremely large bill for compensation that you cannot pay. Also, many customers and businesses will not work with you unless you have adequate public liability insurance in place.
Goods in transit
If you are involved in shipping or transporting goods of any kind, then it is important you have insurance that covers their damage or loss. If you don't then you could lose a lot of money should anything go wrong. You should also make sure that you have adequate insurance for yourself if you need to travel on business.
Seek advice
If you are unsure about what level of cover you need and which types of insurance you require, then consult an independent financial advisor who will be able to point you in the right direction.
Self-employment is a great way ofachieving personal career goals, employment independence and the freedom to runyour own business. In fact, over 3 million people in the UK are estimated to beself-employed. But it can prove to be problematic when you're a homeowner too ?especially as far as re-mortgaging is concerned.
Traditionally, self-employed homeowners have struggled to their property. Sometimes it's due to outstanding mortgage arrears. It can alsobe because their actual income is not reflected accurately in their accounts.Either way, someone who is self-employed is generally seen as a high riskinvestment for high street lenders than someone who has a standard employmentand regular income and pay slips.
A high street lender would usuallyexpect to see audited accounts from a qualified accountant or tax assessmentsas evidence that those in self employment can definitely keep up repayments.This information may not be readily available to you however.
But, as the number of people seekingself-employment has grown over the last five years, many mortgage lenders havedeveloped deals that can help this particular market.
Self Cert are one such option for those working on a self-employed basis. With a selfcert re-mortgage, it is possible to declare your earnings without P60's andpayslips as proof. This model offers a far more versatile lending option forthose who need flexibility to their working lifestyles.
Such schemes can potentially beavailable for those with poor credit options.
A specialist self-employed advisor can provide guidance through this time consuming process. But the rightadvisor can offer experience and knowledge of the market, as well as havingaccess to dealing with hundreds of regulated lending institutions, bothindependent and on the high street.
Interest rates will vary according toindividual circumstances, but the mortgage advisor should be able to source outthe best lending deal open to you.
Both Peter K & Martyn are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Peter K has sinced written about articles on various topics from Credit Cards, Debts Loans and Liability Insurance. Peter Kenny is a writer for creditcards-gb.co.uk.For additional articles and an extensive resource for everything about credit cards, please visit us at