Tax FAQ
Self Employment
My business is a haulage contractor
and we own eight lorries. Seven of the lorries are driven by our
own staff. One is driven by a self-employed individual who does
driving at other times for other hauliers. We have been subject to
a PAYE audit visit by HM Revenue & Customs who say that this
individual is an employee. Is this right?
One of the most common mistakes is to assume that as an
individual is treated as self-employed in one business they should
be treated the same in all businesses. A full status check should
be carried out for anyone you take on in a self-employed
position.
The main pointer in your case is who is providing the
machinery/lorry to enable the individual to carry out their duties.
If, as in your case, it is your business then the individual will
be an employee.
However, if the lorry was leased to the individual passing all
responsibilities to them for such things as insurance, maintenance
and road fund licence they would be treated as self-employed. The
lease agreement must also be on a commercial basis and reflect the
responsibilities of the individual.