You may want to leave that desk job behind, or simply start working for yourself. Whatever the reason, driving can give you that extra freedom. Yesterday, it was only good for giving you the freedom that comes with traveling as and when you see fit. Today, you can start moving forward to turn those journeys into money makers, and your ideas into an up-and-coming successful business. Here are some things to consider.
- Insurance
One of the first steps to doing this will be to change your insurance policy. Standard insurance will be for personal and domestic journeys only, with some including commuting to a place of employment in this. When working for yourself, you will not technically be employed, but you will still need to have the correct level of cover in case of an accident to be able to claim for any injuries or damages caused. This may lead you to wonder what your time limit is in regards to taking action after an incident – see ‘statute of limitations car accident’ by clicking the link.
- Advertise
When you set up your business, you might also want to advertise it properly. You can use traditional advertising, such as newspaper and general online adverts, but you can also take advantage of social media to its fullest and create business pages and accounts to follow your business and show off your skills.
- Tax
Working for yourself also brings around other challenges regarding income tax payments. Whereas before, any tax calculations would have been undertaken by your employer and deducted prior to you receiving your wage, you will now be responsible for these. Likewise, any payments into a pension fund or towards healthcare and other forms of insurance must also fall to you.
Your taxes must be paid annually. Failure to do so can lead to a criminal record and proceedings regarding fraud or tax evasion. In this, you will also be able to include your deductible expenditure.
- Expenses
Expenses relate to any daily running costs of your business. For a business involving driving, this may include the initial cost of your business vehicle, the insurance and tax required by law, any servicing or other checks, and general fuel costs. To some degree, other expenses such as the cleaning and maintenance of the vehicle may also be deemed as acceptable.
There may be other running costs too. You will need to consider payments for any other staff you have, as well as for business premises if you have one. The running of these can also be included in your expenses sheet.
- Paperwork
Finally, you need to also consider the paperwork attached to your business. You might be required to have policies and procedures in place to show how you are complying with business and transport laws, as well as in regard to health and safety, and data protection.
Starting your own driving business may seem daunting, and like a lot of work, but it can also be highly rewarding to know that you have tended to an idea and made it grow into a good source of income.
