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digital assets safe

Protecting your digital assets

Protecting digital assets and memories is vital as the shift online continues The value of our online lives is becoming immeasurable, yet few people are recording or protecting their digital assets.  Whether the financial value of investments or the emotional value of family photos, if there is no arrangement in place to hand on passwords, list accounts, or give authority for access, there is the chance of losing assets forever when someone dies.   And problems can arise even while people are alive and still in a position to access online…

Self assessment tax

A quick guide to Self-Assessment tax returns and coronavirus schemes

The coronavirus outbreak has had an unprecedented impact on businesses and individuals. If you are self-employed, you may be concerned about paying your Self-Assessment tax bill due on 31 January 2021. In this post, we look at some of your options and government schemes set up to help businesses during the pandemic. What if I have tax payments due? If you currently owe tax from previous years, but your business is having difficulties with cash flow, you can contact the HMRC coronavirus helpline (0800 024 1222). They may be able…

returning gifts

Returning faulty Christmas gifts: What are your rights?

It can be disappointing to discover that a Christmas gift is faulty, but fortunately, you do have certain rights when it comes to returning gifts that do not function as they should. You may also be able to return gifts that you simply did not want or do not need. However, your rights differ if the product is in good working condition. In this post, we look at your rights when returning both faulty and unwanted Christmas gifts. Can I return a faulty Christmas gift? If a gift you have…

Christmas get togethers

Avoiding a turkey of a Christmas when the family gets together

With the pandemic putting relationships under pressure and divorce rates recording their biggest percentage rise since 1972, family professionals and support groups are encouraging couples to focus on the wellbeing of the family over the festive season. Traditionally, more people petition for divorce in January than at any other time of the year, which is attributed to the pressure of the family Christmas get-together.  This season it’s expected that many more relationships, already under stress as a result of the life challenges brought about by coronavirus, will struggle to survive.…

Squatters beware

How to repossess your property from squatters

Squatters have been an inconvenience for landlords, both residential and commercial, for many years. Of course, in residential situations, a person trespassing, or squatting in a house is a criminal offence, and assistance from the police is common. In a commercial scenario, the situation is far more complex and time-consuming, with a squatter having to be evicted with assistance from the courts and with possession being enforced by County or High Court Enforcement Officers. Our Litigation department at Bowling & Co recently assisted a client to recover possession of their…

Landlords safety checks

Landlords must gear up for new safety checks 

Residential landlords must get their house in order with the arrival of further legislation to protect tenants through electrical and building safety requirements. New electrical safety standards are rolling out for private sector tenancies and the other upcoming challenge for residential landlords is fire safety compliance for building structures.  Both safety aspects have been accelerated following tragic outcomes.  Electricity causes about half of the UK’s 37,000 house fires a year, according to the charity Electrical Safety First, and faulty electrics cause some 70 deaths and 350,000 injuries each year in…

Employee data protection

Why Big Brother needs to watch out when it comes to employee monitoring

The ‘Big Brother’ surveillance scenario envisaged by George Orwell has long since become reality.  The ability to watch citizens outlined in the futuristic novel Nineteen Eighty-Four, published in 1949, is now firmly fact, not fiction. Rolling back to 2013, the British Security Industry Association estimated that the number of CCTV surveillance cameras in the UK numbered some 4 to 6 million and recent estimates put London in the top three cities worldwide having the highest number of cameras by population.  This race towards technological surveillance and monitoring saw a further boost during…

Coronavirus and separation

The new immigration rules: deadlines you need to know

The UK’s new immigration system will come into effect on 1st January 2021 and will apply to both EU citizens and non-EU citizens. This means that citizens of EU member states (with the exception of Ireland) who want to move to the UK on or after 1st January 2021 will require a visa to live, work or study. There are many consequences for both employers, workers, and families of EU citizens. There are also several important deadlines that you must make a note of if you are an EU citizen…

Christmas, coronavirus and separation

Christmas, coronavirus and separation: what are the rules around taking children away from home?

For many parents, the issue of spending time with children at Christmas can be tense. Both parents want to spend Christmas day with their loved ones and their children, but this becomes complicated when they do not live in the same town or city or if they have to travel to visit relatives. In addition, coronavirus restrictions may mean that travel and visiting relatives is not advised or even permitted. In this article, we look at some of the key issues and questions surrounding, Christmas and coronavirus for separated parents.…

Stress-testing before celebrating

Stress-testing before celebrating a virtual office Christmas  

Christmas traditionally brings a round of festive celebrations for customers and employees, but with current Covid-19 restrictions, companies are having to re-think drinks and dinners for customers and learn how to stage a virtual staff party. Plans that venture into new territory will demand a doubling down on risk management.  Any corporate gifting and entertaining must stand up to the rules laid out in the Bribery Act, and an online Christmas party needs to be controlled to avoid employer liability from inappropriate staff behaviour. A recent poll[1] found that 26%…

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