Computer Side business

Quiltface

Quiltface

Active Member
I have pondered doing a side business of either pc repair or it consulting for small companies to get a few extra bucks to buy some alligator skin shoes or something else equally pointless

Anyway are any of you doing this or have done this in the past and what kind of liability concerns should i look out for?
 
Repair-
Liabilities: ESD Damage, Losing Data, etc

Building computers for parts plus a flat rate can net you a few extra bucks, as can building a computer and selling it on ebay.

Could write more, working on physics homework though so ill lengthen my post later.
 
I guess I worded my question wrong, I know what my liabilities are but have any of you found a way to lets say keep problems from getting fingers pointed back at you and not being sued. example I fix a virus on someones computer and then their hard drive dies and tries to blame me and sue me. Do I need to have an elaborate disclaimer or something for them to sign... can I write it or should I have some sort of lawyer do it?

thank you for your reply though... I appreciate it.
 
Quiltface said:
I guess I worded my question wrong, I know what my liabilities are but have any of you found a way to lets say keep problems from getting fingers pointed back at you and not being sued. example I fix a virus on someones computer and then their hard drive dies and tries to blame me and sue me. Do I need to have an elaborate disclaimer or something for them to sign... can I write it or should I have some sort of lawyer do it?

thank you for your reply though... I appreciate it.
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The easiest way would be to hide your personal assets behind a company. An LLC(Limited liability company) or Corporation are easy ways to do this, in these cases your company could be sued, however your personal assets remain protected. What you would want is some sort of pre-service "contract" disregarding you from any sort of financial liability for any actions that were unforseen. However, Something else i would also recommend including is a clause that says something along the lines of "Any hardware or software damages in the case (company name) admits fault, The hardware or software will be replaced or the client will be reimbursed for the damages. However, (company name) will not be responsible for any lost or damaged data due to unforseen circumstances"

I am not a lawyer by any means, so i would highly suggest talking to one about a pre-service contract as well as filing for an LLC or Corporation as well as a federal Tax ID number(www.legalzoom.com is the cheapest i have found for Corporations and LLC's). I do not recommend filing for a sole proprietorship as fiscal responsibility falls back on you, the individual("proprietor") as well as any legal responsibility. For a small side business, an LLC is the way to go as you would not need to name officers like a corporation(although you can name yourself as all officers of the company if you so please).
 
All you need is a piece of paper stating:

I will not be held responsible for any damages that may occur while I'm trying to fix your computer".

If they sign it, great. If not, don't touch their stuff.

A signed document is enough to remove liability, on a small scale basis mind you.

I know nothing of "L.L.C.'s" and "Corporations".
 
I'm thinking of doing something similar, during christmas holidays. As said above, give potential customers fair warning and generally you can't be held responsible. They should always backup anything they need before sending a computer to get fixed. That gives me an idea:

a sign that says: "We cannot be held responsible for loss of data, so we recommend backing up anything you need before getting us to work on your computer"

And then perhaps you could provide a backup service, for a small fee to guarantee no loss of important data. :)
 
Bodaggit23 said:
All you need is a piece of paper stating:

I will not be held responsible for any damages that may occur while I'm trying to fix your computer".

If they sign it, great. If not, don't touch their stuff.

A signed document is enough to remove liability, on a small scale basis mind you.

I know nothing of "L.L.C.'s" and "Corporations".
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Signed documents can mean absolutely nothing legally without it being either notarized or signed by a witness or you run a risk of it being invalid.

also, the only other way to legally run a business is to register a sole proprietership with similar costs but no legal protection.
 
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LLC or subchapter S would also work. I used to sub contract through a company that did that, so they contracted me out and their contract with the client was between them and the client. I had no liability in it at all as all contracts were between parent company and myself.

In the end, it was not worth my time and hassle as there are always dicks out there that want everything for free. Private practice doctors were some of my worst clients, and they were absolutely clueless. When I would bring things up like HIPPA standards they would look at me like a deer in head lights.

If you want my opinion, the least hassle will be building them and selling them, but that will yield the least amount of money. The most money will be in what they call, "Professional Services." Which would install server set up, data migration, network services set up, and consulting.

I would just use your personal contacts and see how it works out before you decide to drop the money to become a LLC. Plus when you become a LLC expect the IRS to audit you the first couple of years since you are a brand new business. Then you have to get all your tax documents in order and so forth.

It is a lot of work for sometimes the biggest head aches you will ever get.
 
tlarkin said:
LLC or subchapter S would also work. I used to sub contract through a company that did that, so they contracted me out and their contract with the client was between them and the client. I had no liability in it at all as all contracts were between parent company and myself.

In the end, it was not worth my time and hassle as there are always dicks out there that want everything for free. Private practice doctors were some of my worst clients, and they were absolutely clueless. When I would bring things up like HIPPA standards they would look at me like a deer in head lights.

If you want my opinion, the least hassle will be building them and selling them, but that will yield the least amount of money. The most money will be in what they call, "Professional Services." Which would install server set up, data migration, network services set up, and consulting.

I would just use your personal contacts and see how it works out before you decide to drop the money to become a LLC. Plus when you become a LLC expect the IRS to audit you the first couple of years since you are a brand new business. Then you have to get all your tax documents in order and so forth.

It is a lot of work for sometimes the biggest head aches you will ever get.
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Yeah, you will need to keep good records and such for tax purposes(plus all states have a minimum length you need to keep invoices for, usually its around two years).

Go to www.legalzoom.com as i said earlier, you can check the price of an LLC in your state(plus they themselves charge like a $100 or so fee to prepare everything for you).
 
sub chapter S will also work and I believe is cheaper. Also remember you can itemize your expenses too, and deduct them from taxes.
 
tlarkin said:
sub chapter S will also work and I believe is cheaper. Also remember you can itemize your expenses too, and deduct them from taxes.
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Sub chapter S is like $10 or so cheaper than an LLC last i checked, legalzoom calls them "S Corporations" on their site. Here in ohio the filing fee is something like $130 for an LLC and $120 for an S corporation, plus whatever lawyer fees(legalzooms are like $99 or so iirc)
 
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That's not too bad... Every so often I am trying to think of a niche, one of these days I will come up with one, i don't think fixing peoples computers is what I want to do... at least enough to spend money to protect my ass.
 
Quiltface said:
That's not too bad... Every so often I am trying to think of a niche, one of these days I will come up with one, i don't think fixing peoples computers is what I want to do... at least enough to spend money to protect my ass.
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When I sub contracted the parent company contacted me because they were "testing out" the Macintosh world and needed a Mac guy. So they asked me to send in my resume. I sent it in, and when they saw I also had HP Enterprise certs they snatched me up and had me as a general IT contractor. The bulk of my work was setting up secure WiFi networks for small businesses and people's homes. That was my most common job. I also did some on site HP Proliant server repair for businesses that did not have an in house IT guy.

The rest was general troubleshooting of Macintosh equipment for various small businesses. My contract rate started at minimum $50 and hour and went up from there based on the job. Basic stuff, was $50 per hour, networking started at $100 per hour, data recovery was $200 minimum + $50 an hour after the first hour. I was making anywhere from $500 to $2,000 extra a month and it varied. I did this on nights and weekends on the side of my actual job.

Here is the crappy part. I had to invoice people, which means I did not get a check until they paid the invoice. I was a sub contractor, so they paid the parent company that I invoiced them for, then the parent company cut me a check when I invoiced them. There are good and bad sides to this. The good side is, the parent company took care of all the legal stuff and they were provided the clients. I never had to advertise or go look for clients. The work was steady too, as I always had extra work every month. I also was able to schedule it in my own time. Which meant when I got a client I contacted them and told them when I was available and worked it out from there.

The bad side is, travel and wear and tear on your car. I got paid with in 30 days of invoice. I had to make up for it in taxes at the end of the year, as it raised my tax bracket and if I could not deduct enough from taxes I got screwed. Some clients were a huge pain to deal with. Sometimes I felt it was just not worth my time.

So, I quit doing it. I kept a few clients on the side that I had from that job and they on occasion call me and I do side work for them. Other than that, I don't really have the desire to do it. Too much work for not enough pay in my opinion.
 
yeah that is another thing i dont want to get in over my head... i have a full time job and a baby...sooo yeah i don't exactly have spare time in the couch cushions.
 
That is why I suggest you network with friends or colleagues and keep a few clients on the side. That way you can test out the waters and work it out your way. For example, the clients I kept, they know well that I work a full time job and that I am only available on the side. They know that I give them a good deal ($75 an hour) which is cheaper than almost any other contract IT work. They also know I do good quality work.

If they contact me and I can't do it, I just refer it to another friend in IT. They appreciate my help even if I can't do it, because I usually can find someone that can do it for them.

They also get good work done at a good rate. If it is an emergency and they need work this second they can call a commercial contractor and pay the expedite fee to get the work done. I only keep clients that understand this is how it works in the real world.

I rarely do any side work though because I set it up right the first time for these people so they never really have to call me.
 
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