I'm in Surrey and pondering the cleaning, ironing come full laundry conundrum and I don't know whether one option is better than another.
A new eco / green maid and laundry service company is around £15 to £18 an hour but guaranteeing full hours on site, which seems around or better than Molly Maid, who seem hesitant to agree to a certain amount of cleaning time but at least both are real companies with proper insurance, properly employed staff and their own materials etc.
The flip side is the local recommendation or advert in the window which often seems to be a cash in hand job, no insurances, no guarantees etc. They seem to come in around £9-12 per hour.
I favour the professional approach as it does goad me a little that these cash in hand workers are not paying taxes, are perhaps not all legally allowed to work in the UK and are potentially claiming benefits as well. I also worry that if they are not held to be self employed, you are still liable for the tax and NI which they should have paid.
So is it worth paying more for legality and surety or better to take a chance and go with the cash in hand worker ?