Contractor body warns on rising travel fares

Contractors and other one-man bands were right to foresee a rise in the cost of doing business alone, the Consumer Price Index suggests.

Updated on Tuesday, the index shows that a recent increase in travel fees is continuing – something that contractors’ body IPSE says will be a “major concern” to one-man bands.

“This will directly increase the costs of doing business for self-employed people who tend to work all over the country and abroad,” said the Association of Independent Professionals and the Self-Employed, referring to steeper road and air fares.

Pointing to the inflation figures, IPSE stated that travel prices rose by 6.6% between June and July this year, compared with a 4.6% rise between the same two months last year.

Separately, prices for ‘recreation and culture’ are also up – albeit marginally, meaning that one-man bands might also feel the squeeze at the end of the business day or week.

In particular, the price tag on recreation and culture notched up by 0.2% between June and July this year, compared with a drop of 0.2% in the same period a year ago.

As to how the increase has come about, the Office of National Statistics said that price movements on computer games and consoles were the biggest contributory factor.