It isn't hard to set up a limited company and if you choose a decent contractor accountant they will lighten the load of the paperwork involved. The other thing to consider is that umbrella companies are changing the way they work from October because of the Agency Workers Regs. Umbrella workers are within the scope, which potentially makes them less attractive to clients who want to 'hire and fire' freelancers for whatever skills they need and for how long without worrying about employee rights. So Umbrella companies are looking at different ways of operating (e.g. Swedish Derogation), some are announcing their plans, some aren't yet. If you are looking for alternative umbrella companies

Yep would agree with that and to not put yourself in situations where you would associate having a fag - pint in one hand, cig in the other.

Can you prove the car's value (real value, not theirs)?

How completely horrendous. This is all way beyond me but I did just want to say I think you've been treated appallingly. It just seemed like constructive dismissal to me, you do the same as you've always done, then all of a sudden you should have filled out some form. Anyway just wanted to say I hope the new job is a lot better.

Guess it depends on the finer detail in the employment contract, maybe get someone to give you some initial free guidance?

I don't personally think you judge outside of your own situation. Whatever management do is up to them how they structure things. So if you're happy with the job and it still pays enough and you'd rather reduced hours than look somewhere else for an alternative then there's your answer. Do you have periodic reviews where your input can be judged and salary/hours reassessed that stops this open ended arrangement?

I know it's standard practice for banks to check Equifax and Experian so I'd say get copies of those, but I don't know what else they check.

I hardly ever use it now, the whole privacy thing doesn't sit too well with me. I wonder how many people claiming unfit to work have uploaded pics of them playing golf and the like.

Reason enough to be very careful what you put on there if you ask me

Going back to the OP, from the childminder's point of view they're protecting the slot you've booked I guess if you don't use it, but definitely I'd compare to others.

Someone else on moneysaving expert describes Ikea as 'militant' on this front and also says 'If you bought the item within the last 3 months and paid via credit or debit card and you take a copy of your statement with the entry on it then yes you will get a refund. However if it was outside 3 months then they won't.' Does seem as though cut your losses here unfortunately..

I notice they say they publisher customers' comments every 6 months on their website We’re committed to becoming Britain’s most Helpful Bank And you'll be the judge Every six months we'll publish a report to let you see how well we have fulfilled our commitments and identify any areas which need improvement. It will also include a full range of customer comments. Might be worth submitting your comments there - I presume they'll publish it as part of their 'full' range if not resolved. -- I don't actually know on this one, but even common sense says a premium account which is charged for is not suitable for someone on that sort of income.

It's a relatively small amount of money you'd think they'd agree to £10 a month. The admin to collect it will cost them more. How daft.

day (at least it used to be reserved for one day a week in the good old days)

Gordon Brown

I've just read in another couple of old posts about cats and kidney failure and the prognosis as automatically not being good. Just have to flag up this site, run voluntarily by a fantastic lady, where she and others share their knowledge: (Google feline crf dot org) My cat had kidney failure just under 12 months ago. He 'crashed' very suddenly, had lost weight, howled and had gunk coming out of his mouth. Vet put him on a drip for 3 days and said his results still weren't great and 'you might need to give some thought here as to what's fair on him and what we might need to do here' (or words to that effect). I told her to keep him on the drip for another week (to flush out all the toxins the kidney hadn't been able to). He came home, was put on a renal diet (buy online, it's not prescription only!) and fortekor. He twitches a bit but is otherwise back to his normal self a whole year after his days were numbered. I'm lucky I know. It's not down to the numbers the blood results give, it's down to the cat. Some cats do OK with high numbers, some do less well with lower numbers. But I did want to say don't always pay attention to a vet that seems keen to put them straight to sleep. I'm glad I didn't

Forgot to add that a neighbour's cat was insured with a well-known supermarket - I don't know the background but in one case they were only going to pay half the costs - I haven't had any difficulties like that so I do wonder if 'get what you pay for' does apply, as someone else has said.

£15 a month sounds like a good deal to me! Mine's £50 but then the dog is nearly 15. Despite the cost I can't complain, Direct Line have literally paid thousands which means I still have my little friend with me - I don't begrudge a penny.

Couldn't agree more with the 'looks like it is prescription not told otherwise' scenario - I only found that out by chance. Ear cleaner that's £15 on line is £30 at the vets! That's not supplier-led it's just a massive mark-up. Shouldn't there be a law - in the same way foods have to be clearly labeled - that says what's prescription and what's not?