alyssamma

Having is license won't really help for lawsuits. I'm not sure about what is "legal". Some municipalities require a license for electrical work. I wouldn't think that applies to vending machines, but there are some weird laws out there Get the insurance and sleep well at night Kevin

Wow...that is pretty amazing. I had never heard of that before so I Googled it If you live in Mass, you should definitely check this out. Here are some links providing more info... http://www.sec.state.ma.us/rod/rodhom/homidx.htm http://www.probatecourtiannella.com/HomesteadAct.htm Kevin

In your lawn mowing example, you are paying someone to do a job that isn't your business. If you had a lawn mowing business and paid someone to do it, they would be your emp, not a contractor. You have a vending business. People you get to help you do things directly realated to that business are, in general, employees. Someone like an accountant would not be because that is not directly related to vending. Read the links I gave you - it should explain this more to you. Kevin

Blue, I would caution against that. I am not sure what would happen if he mixed soc and EIN. There is a test on the IRS website to see if you need an EIN, and using it as an alternate to a soc isn't one of them. I'm not saying you are wrong - just saying that if you start filing your personal taxes with an EIN that might cause problems. And if you identify yourself to the IRS with yiour soc, but Pepsi is using an EIN, that might cause problems too. Kevin

This is actually a tricky question. You have a TIN - Taxpayer Identification Number. This is your SS#. I believe you can supply this to them and be ok. Since you are a sole prop, you are good to go with that. In your post you say this is what they want. However, if they really want an EIN - Employer Identification Number (which, like the SS# is a type if TIN), then it gets a little tricky. Technically you don't meet the requirements to get an EIN. I'm not sure what would happen if you just applied for one and got it. My guess is nothing, but that could confuse things. So, if that want a Federal Tax ID Number (TIN), then this is your SS# for your type of business (sole prop w/o any employees). If they won't take that for some reason, find out why and post back here. Kevin

If they have their own company/corp, then it is easy - you can treat them as a contractor. Otherwise, it is not so easy. Based on what you said above, I would consider them to be an emp, but the safest thing to do is to consult here: http://www.irs.gov/businesses/small/article/0,,id=99921,00.html You can also look here: http://www.twc.state.tx.us/news/efte/appx_d_irs_ic_test.html If they are a contractor, you need the EIN of their business. If they are an employee, there are a number of things you need. For the IRS an I9 and W2. Depending on your state you'll need other things. For example, in Ohio, there is a new hire form you must fill out. You also need to get set up to pay worker's compensation, unemployement (state and fed), etc. Kevin

Yes...it's a business expense.

This is a topic that comes up often on this board. It is also one that gets a lot of different opinions. I wanted to try and give some insight into this topic. First, if you are at all worried about getting sued, having insurance is the best thing period. Get a large policy and sleep well at night. That being said, unless you have substantial assets, the chances of you getting sued are next to nothing. If you are a college student with 10 machines and $200 in your bank account - don't worry - skip the insurance. However, if you own a house with some equity in it or other (non-retirement) assets, then you should probably get insurance. What will an LLC by itself do to protect you? It depends on your actions. If you personally do something negligent, it won't do much. That is not because any corporate/company "veil" will be pierced. It is because you'll be named in the suit along with the LLC because you did the action. Note, the key word here is negligent. If you are drinking and servicing your machines and you get mad and toss a machine through a window, you are being negligent. If someone trips on your machine, and it is NOT placed in the middle of a walkway, you aren't. Of course, negligent is really whatever can be proved, so this goes back to the first point - get insurance if you are worried. Still, if you are pretty conscientious and you don't have a lot of assets, the simple protection of an LLC should be enough. Also, when I first started vending 2 years ago I remember someone asking for a case where a bulk vendor was sued. No one could find an example of that, but they did find some cases where full line vendors were sued. I think these dealt with people being electrocuted, which is something an LLC should protect you against assuming you didn’t do anything with the wiring. So, you have to ask yourself what the odds of being sued are. You have a much better chance of being audited than sued, so think about what types of risks you take with the IRS. Ultimately, I would make the following suggestions… 1) If you have any type of real business, form an LLC. 2) If you are worried at all about being sued, get insurance. 3) If you have any substantial assets, get insurance. 4) If your business is large enough (say, making >$1K/month profit), get insurance and form an LLC. Kevin

I had a merchant account for a low volume business ($1-$2K/mo in CC sales). There was no holdback and the rates were very reasonable. I paid about 3-3.5% *total* on my sales (this includes things like statement fees, interchange fees, etc.). I didn't have a holdback, but I do know other processors implement this. If anyone is interested in more info, PM me. Kevin

Yeah, there are a list of reasons for needing a tax ID. But the key is that it is easy to get online. And the IRS website has a short questionaire that will tell you if you need one or not. Kevin

http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_TAX_SURPRISE?SITE=AP&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT It looks like it will be repealed. Right now Reps and Dems can't agree on how to do it, but they both want to. Odds are, before it is enacted, it will be repealed. Kevin

LOL, np Kelly. The fact is there are lots of different opinions about machines and triples vs. doubles or singles here. The OP should just get a couple of machines and place them. It doesn't matter what type or how many heads. Get cheap, used machines and see if he likes it. If he does, then he can worry about brand and heads... Kevin

Don't listen to the people who say you'll have nothing but problems with cheaper machines. We've had Vendstars for 1.5yrs and had zero problems with them in that time. Read the reviews on this board and you'll find that people who actually *use* Vendstars agree that they work fine and stand up without any troubles. Again, not trying to push one brand over the other. Just saying to start out cheap. Learn and move from there. You might decide you don't even want to do vending. This way you are out a minimal amount of money. Kevin

LOL, you are going to get a lot of different answers for that question Personally, I like Vendstars - others here hate them. Regardless, just get one or two machines to start with. If you pick the "wrong" kind it doesn't matter much. Then you can see for yourself what you like and don't like. Get a used machine on Craigslist for a cheap price - or eBay. Try not to spend more than $50, but definitely don't spend more than $100 (per machine). Kevin

I think XYZ went out of business. And, while I personally like the machines, the coin mech is prone to failure