Clean It Up

UK Window Cleaning Forum => Window Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: Gary Barker on December 23, 2014, 12:34:36 pm

Title: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Gary Barker on December 23, 2014, 12:34:36 pm
Hi there

I'm new to this game and am just a bout to invrest in a van with WFP system and a second hand Sky Vac gutter clearer.  My question is simple: Is it a absolutely necessary to open a Business Bank Account or can I use my personal account just for starters. 

My gut feeling is that I could be getting lots of lower value cheques and payments in by BACS which can actually cost you money in the case of a Business Account.  I Bank with HSBC (First Direct) for my joint personal account with my wife. 

Any advice welcome, thanks.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Clever Forum Name on December 23, 2014, 12:48:34 pm
For ease of use get a business account.

Accept no less than 18months FREE banking. When that is up, swap accounts.

OR

Look at santander accounts.

I pay £7.50 to santander a month and post all my cheques.

I pay £6.80 to Barclays a month and they handle all my BACS

I bank all cash in personal account then TRANSFER over to barclays labeled "business cash"

So bank charges are less than £15 a month now.

They were close to £75!
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: ChumBucket on December 23, 2014, 12:49:14 pm
You don't have to have a business bank account. You can just use a personal one.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: ChumBucket on December 23, 2014, 12:52:31 pm
I pay nothing to pay all my cheques in- approx 50 per month. I pay nothing for BACS handling either. In fact I pay ZERO bank charges for anything & do all my business banking via my personal & joint account & have do for over ten years hassle free. ;) You do the maths ;D
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Clever Forum Name on December 23, 2014, 12:54:28 pm
I pay nothing to pay all my cheques in- approx 50 per month. I pay nothing for BACS handling either. In fact I pay ZERO bank charges for anything & do all my business banking via my personal & joint account & have do for over ten years hassle free. ;) You do the maths ;D

When they ask who to make the cheque payable to i much prefer quoting a business name as to a personal name.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: ChumBucket on December 23, 2014, 01:02:52 pm
I pay nothing to pay all my cheques in- approx 50 per month. I pay nothing for BACS handling either. In fact I pay ZERO bank charges for anything & do all my business banking via my personal & joint account & have do for over ten years hassle free. ;) You do the maths ;D

When they ask who to make the cheque payable to i much prefer quoting a business name as to a personal name.

My personal name IS my business name. ;) Think along the lines of "Dave Morris" window cleaning.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Clever Forum Name on December 23, 2014, 01:17:12 pm
I pay nothing to pay all my cheques in- approx 50 per month. I pay nothing for BACS handling either. In fact I pay ZERO bank charges for anything & do all my business banking via my personal & joint account & have do for over ten years hassle free. ;) You do the maths ;D

When they ask who to make the cheque payable to i much prefer quoting a business name as to a personal name.

My personal name IS my business name. ;) Think along the lines of "Dave Morris" window cleaning.

Depends on your Christian name and surname. Personally my name wouldn't suit a business name. Plus I can't stand personal names for business's

Nothing worse than going shopping with the missus and we have to go to Karen Miller. Cringe.

But that's what great about being self employed. No right or wrong way.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: PoleKing on December 23, 2014, 01:24:36 pm
I pay nothing to pay all my cheques in- approx 50 per month. I pay nothing for BACS handling either. In fact I pay ZERO bank charges for anything & do all my business banking via my personal & joint account & have do for over ten years hassle free. ;) You do the maths ;D

When they ask who to make the cheque payable to i much prefer quoting a business name as to a personal name.

My personal name IS my business name. ;) Think along the lines of "Dave Morris" window cleaning.

Depends on your Christian name and surname. Personally my name wouldn't suit a business name. Plus I can't stand personal names for business's

Nothing worse than going shopping with the missus and we have to go to Karen Miller. Cringe.

But that's what great about being self employed. No right or wrong way.

Is that a Chinese knock off of Karen Millen?   ;D
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: slap bash on December 23, 2014, 01:25:10 pm
I use  personal account only one customer ask me why, just said I cannot afford a business account.One of the advisers at the bank told me to stick to a personal account and when my business  get very big change to a business a/c.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Clever Forum Name on December 23, 2014, 01:28:22 pm
I pay nothing to pay all my cheques in- approx 50 per month. I pay nothing for BACS handling either. In fact I pay ZERO bank charges for anything & do all my business banking via my personal & joint account & have do for over ten years hassle free. ;) You do the maths ;D

When they ask who to make the cheque payable to i much prefer quoting a business name as to a personal name.

My personal name IS my business name. ;) Think along the lines of "Dave Morris" window cleaning.

Depends on your Christian name and surname. Personally my name wouldn't suit a business name. Plus I can't stand personal names for business's

Nothing worse than going shopping with the missus and we have to go to Karen Miller. Cringe.

But that's what great about being self employed. No right or wrong way.

Is that a Chinese knock off of Karen Millen?   ;D

Haha. Lovely autocorrect for you.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Matt. on December 23, 2014, 01:33:43 pm
Stay where you are for now, see how next 6 months go and then make a decision based on how you get paid
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Bay View WCS on December 23, 2014, 01:44:34 pm
I have used my personal account for years with no issues.

Cheers, Tom
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: deeege on December 23, 2014, 01:49:20 pm
For ease of use get a business account.

Accept no less than 18months FREE banking. When that is up, swap accounts.



Couldn't be bothered to keep swapping accounts for the sake of saving £20 a month. Sending out letters to customers telling them of a change of bank details. Commercial customers using it as an excuse to delay payment. Dealing with national companies massive accounts departments etc etc. Not for me that.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Neil Jones on December 23, 2014, 05:16:45 pm
Santander business £12.50 PCM.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Sean Dyer on December 23, 2014, 07:03:50 pm
tried business banking but was a nightmare , stayed with personal

If your a one man band , cant see why its a problem
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: NWH on December 23, 2014, 08:16:16 pm
You don't have to have a business bank account. You can just use a personal one.

No you can't not if you are trading as a business most will charge you £25 a month,I was also paying around £70 a month before I contacted them and said this can't be right lol.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: ChumBucket on December 23, 2014, 08:21:03 pm
You don't have to have a business bank account. You can just use a personal one.

No you can't not if you are trading as a business most will charge you £25 a month,I was also paying around £70 a month before I contacted them and said this can't be right lol.

Here we go, entrepeneur of the year has spoken!! ::)roll

No you can't? Well I must have been living a dream for the last ten years then!! ::)roll
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: Clever Forum Name on December 23, 2014, 08:32:24 pm
You don't have to have a business bank account. You can just use a personal one.

No you can't not if you are trading as a business most will charge you £25 a month,I was also paying around £70 a month before I contacted them and said this can't be right lol.

Trading AS is simply that. You can call yourself WHATEVER you want. Tax bill comes in your name. different story when you are limited.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: NWH on December 23, 2014, 09:29:39 pm
I've only got to show I'm online and I gets Cumbuckets goat lol,my bank toold me I couldn't run a business from a current account simple as that
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: ChumBucket on December 23, 2014, 10:03:27 pm
I've only got to show I'm online and I gets Cumbuckets goat lol,my bank toold me I couldn't run a business from a current account simple as that

A lot of people tell you a lot of things, funny that eh? ::)roll

Do you have your own brain Nige?
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: duncan h on December 23, 2014, 10:28:51 pm
I use  personal account only one customer ask me why, just said I cannot afford a business account.One of the advisers at the bank told me to stick to a personal account and when my business  get very big change to a business a/c.
Same here mate. Self employed 4 times now. When I had a milk round at 19 I had a business account. They were free in those days. You just got a big cheque book.
Now I have a Barclays personal account. Open on line. DONE. Don't get any cheques. Cash or they pay into my account. All free
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: NWH on December 24, 2014, 10:26:54 pm
Maybe with the amount of money your paying in it dosent look like your running a business,do you pay in over 100-200 cheques a month I don't these days but if you did I can't see any bank not seeing your running a business.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: ChumBucket on December 24, 2014, 10:31:31 pm
Maybe with the amount of money your paying in it dosent look like your running a business,do you pay in over 100-200 cheques a month I don't these days but if you did I can't see any bank not seeing your running a business.


My bank knows I'm running a business, in fact, the teller usually asks me how it's going! What makes you think that it's a requirement to have a dedicated business bank account to do business banking? It isn't.
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: NWH on December 24, 2014, 10:46:00 pm
Legally yes you can do it but it depends on the volume of transactions and turnover etc,you can't have cheques made out to chumbucket window cleaning though can you lol or borrow enough for a new van over the phone can you. More advantages with a business account but harder to hide money eh
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: ChumBucket on December 24, 2014, 10:51:37 pm
Legally yes you can do it but it depends on the volume of transactions and turnover etc,you can't have cheques made out to chumbucket window cleaning though can you lol or borrow enough for a new van over the phone can you. More advantages with a business account but harder to hide money eh

Explain why I could not borrow money for a new van over the phone then..........
Title: Re: Bank Accounts - personal or Business??
Post by: David Beecroft on December 25, 2014, 04:16:38 pm
It depends on how you see your business developing. If your customers are going to pay via BACs or similar, you won't want to change bank account details midstream. Selling your business might go better if you are able to pass over the bank account as well. Also you might want to be building up your profile with the bank. If you join the Federation of Small Businesses you can get free banking through the Co-op bank. I have a Santander account that I opened when they were offering free banking for life, not available anymore. Hope it goes well for you.