Safestyle Uk????

Speedy

Speedy

Proper Accy
Weaver
Attended an interview today for Safestyle UK to work as part of their canvassing team, the job itself sounds straight forward enough and and im sure wont be much of a problem for me.

However after reading some reviews of the company i have found 80% of them had problems either with bad fitting windows or pushy salesmen or other such issues.

I have also read a few comments from ex-employees saying that its a terrible job and they try everything they can to avoid paying you the commission fees you earn by getting people to take out a free quotation.

So my question is, are safestyle a good company to work for?

Please dont turn this thread into a rant about the quality of their work, pushy salesmen etc etc, the only thing im curious about is if the staff their are treated better than the customers seem to be. And as the work is purely commission based will i actually end up making any money at the end of it or is it just one of those jobs thats best avoided.
 
Speedy said:
Please dont turn this thread into a rant about the quality of their work, pushy salesmen etc etc,.
Click to expand...


Surely if people on here find that is their experience then it's as good a feedback on the type of company they are you can get ?
 
A couple of Safestyle canvassers came to our home and my husband said that he would consider a new front door from them.......when I returned from wherever I had been and he told me, I rang them and told them not to bother coming back(I had heard nothing but bad reports of this company).......one of the chaps came round anyway and gave me a mouthful of abuse for wasting his time.
I wrote to the company and complained but heard nothing at all from them.
Personally, I wouldn't touch them with a long stick.
 
In this day and age I'd give a commission only based job a wide berth Speedy, especially in light of what you have heard
 
I can see where your coming from, but theres plenty of bad reviews online for me to read without asking to hear more.

I was looking more for anyone who works or has worked for them or even just knows someone who has to see what their opinion of the company is, at the end of it all theres nothing i can do to change how the company operates, i just want to know if im likely to recieve a wage thats appropriate for the job id be doing. :-)
 
When they hire someone, do they get one free?

Any job that was commission only would set alarm bells ringing, in how a company valued their staff.
 
I knew a salesman who told me they are trained to push for a sale even on a free quote offer..and regardless of the time spent with the customer they are not supposed to leave the house without a sale in their back pocket.

and for the record I know this to be true as we had one in our house for 3 hours..he was there for a quote only on windows for the back of the house and after 3 hours he got aggresive when we wouldnt sign, I called the police saying there was a strange man in my house and he left pronto.

there surely has to be more work than that out there..
however if you can be pushy to the general public and get a sale at all costs regardless of the manner in how its done then go for it..
 
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grandson used to work for them and he found it very hard to get a sale and someweeks his wages where practically nil. maybe he was too nice. Take my advice steer well clear.
 
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From my experience with similar companies, commission only sales jobs, I would be very very careful. Many years ago, when I was about your age, I too worked for several firms selling on a commission only basis. I never got paid.
Out of interest what qualifications do you have and what interests do you have. I see you are interested in cars, maybe there is something in the car game that you could do?
If you take a commission only job, you must factor in your expenses.
good luck
 
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I would never work for a company who paid commission only, you could spend all day knocking on doors and still be at it at 10pm, if nobody puts an order in you have worked all day for nothing. Can't be right.
 
If want a reputation as a pushy bullying thug (which from my dealings with them is well deserved) then go ahead and join them
 
I know people who have worked in the call centres and people who have worked knocking for them. If you can sell consistently for this lot your a good salesman. Its a revolving door the jobs are on the job centre every other week which is an indication people arnt sticking with it. Sister worked in call centre years ago struggled to get her commission money, and a friend worked what you will be doing years ago and this lad is good and he said its dog s///e. He now has a beamer company vehicle sits on his arse all day apart from the odd renewal which generates about at least 2k a month minimum so maybe the slammed doors in the face and the lack of earning made him tougher,hungrier and greedy enough to work his way up the sales ladder with other companies. Its persistance and an element of persuasion which is aggressive and can be deemed as bullying but thats what they and a hell of a lot of sales managers will tell you is the most successful method. Unless your selling something that everybody wants needs or the customer is coming to you then its a rejection all day job that alot cant handle. Good luck...........
 
Mate of mine worked for them - did well the first month but then started to earn a pittance ... he's on a minimum wage job now and better off.

One thing he said to me and its a note to everyone is that the people he most despised whilst doing the job were the ones who stood there and listened to the whole pitch before declining, those who just slammed the door in his face were saving themselves and him time - those who thought they were being decent by listening were in fact causing wasted time on all parties.
 
Can i just say if you do take the job .............DONT call at my house the answer will be no thanks.
 
Well been for my first day of training today and i have to say so far so good. Still a little bit dubious about it, but im gonna stick with it and see how things go. After all, whats the worse that could happen.
 
The worst that could happen is that you spend all day working and get paid nothing for it.
Sorry if that sounds very negative, but I am a realist.
 
Hate to say it Margaret, but I think you could well be right. many years ago in the late 80's early 90's I worked for several companies just like this one. I found that I was out of pocket on every one, expected to use my own and petrol. Then I got lucky and got into the car sales business, where I was very successful, not by ripping people off, but by understanding what their needs and desires were. This was before I discovered flying of course....

Unfortunately the commission only sales jobs with double glassing companies/ gas. electric suppliers etc tend to be about pushing and ripping people off.

I have come across Safestyle twice, once my mother in law needed a new front door. Safestyle charged her £3000.00 for one and it was half price! We had ours done, same sort of door, by Sureframe, opposite ASDA for around £500.00 last year.
The second time, they tried to sell me new uPVC windows front and rear, I explained at the door that I had new windows just fitted a few months ago, to which I was told I needed new ones????? The door slammed shut.
So please do not call at our home, as I will do the same again.

On the job front, I believe Costa coffee are moving to Accrington, they will need staff?
 
Not forgetting that you are classed as Self Employed by this company, eh this is illegal as you are not allowed to contract for one company under the UK working laws...
You need to look at IR35 in the HMRC web site and call them,
Here is a small section to help:
Employment status
Employed or self-employed?

A worker's employment status, that is whether they are employed or self-employed, is not a matter of choice. Whether someone is employed or self-employed depends upon the terms and conditions of the relevant engagement. The tax and National Insurance contributions (NICs) rules do, however, contain some special rules that apply to certain categories of worker in certain circumstances. See section on special cases.

If you work for someone else, it is important to know whether you are working for that person in an employed capacity or in a self-employed capacity as an independent contractor. If you are an engager, it is your responsibility to correctly determine the employment status of your workers.

A worker's employment status will determine the charge to tax on income from that employment or self-employment. It will also determine the class of NICs, which are to be paid.

* Employed or self-employed
* Casual, or part time working. More than one job?
* Special cases
* Tax & NIC charges
* Employer's obligations
* Worker's obligations
* Agency obligations
* Our obligations
* Employment rights/benefits entitlement

General links

* Employment Status Indicator (ESI) tool.
* ES/FS1 - Employed or self-employed for tax and National Insurance contributions.
* ES/FS2 - Are your workers employed or self-employed for tax and National Insurance contributions (PDF 46K)
* Advice for contractors in the construction industry (PDF 47K).
* CIS 349- advice for registered contractors about employment status (PDF 62K)
* Employment Status Manual.
* Disagree with our opinion.
* Contact us.
* Managed service companies.
* Workers who supply their services through intermediaries - IR35

Employed or self-employed?

In order to answer this question it is necessary to determine whether the person works under a contract of service (employees) or under a contract for services (self-employed, independent contractor). For tax and NICs purposes, there is no statutory definition of a contract of service or of a contract for services. What the parties call their relationship, or what they consider it to be, is not conclusive. It is the reality of the relationship that matters.

In order to determine the nature of a contract, it is necessary to apply common law principles. The courts have, over the years, laid down some factors and tests that are relevant, which is included in the overview below.

As a general guide as to whether a worker is an employee or self-employed; if the answer is 'Yes' to all of the following questions, then the worker is probably an employee:

* Do they have to do the work themselves?
* Can someone tell them at any time what to do, where to carry out the work or when and how to do it?
* Can they work a set amount of hours?
* Can someone move them from task to task?
* Are they paid by the hour, week, or month?
* Can they get overtime pay or bonus payment?

If the answer is 'Yes' to all of the following questions, it will usually mean that the worker is self-employed:

* Can they hire someone to do the work or engage helpers at their own expense?
* Do they risk their own money?
* Do they provide the main items of equipment they need to do their job, not just the small tools that many employees provide for themselves?
* Do they agree to do a job for a fixed price regardless of how long the job may take?
* Can they decide what work to do, how and when to do the work and where to provide the services?
* Do they regularly work for a number of different people?
* Do they have to correct unsatisfactory work in their own time and at their own expense?


If Safestyle are such a good company then why do the insist you are self employed, with none of the benefits of employment?
This is off their application page:
An agreement between yourself and Safestyle UK is on the basis that you are in business on your own account as a Self-employed Sales Agent and does not create a contract of employment.

Please understand that as you are self-employed, you will be responsible for all Personal Income Tax, National Insurance Contributions and Value Added Tax Liabilities.

Looks like you better register for self employment with the tax man and start paying self employed NI as well....
 
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