As The Government announced it's new lockdown measures meaning that Hospitality, leisure and non-essential retail are all forced to close, as a business you may be temporarily closing your doors. It's not something any business wants to do, but before you do so we advise you do the following:

1. Provide us with an up-to-date meter reading – this is to ensure your bill is accurate, that way you will avoid paying any overestimated bills. You can submit a meter read here

2. Get in touch with us on 01423 502554 or info@cngltd.co.uk to let us know and provide an alternative postal address for any future correspondence

At CNG we are committed to helping customers power through the Coronavirus crisis, and have partnered with Think Business Finance to offer support with applications for the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) which ends 30th November. Think will check your eligibility, package your application, ensuring it is formatted as the lender requires and that all supporting documentation is present.

To check your eligibility and how much you could borrow click here to visit the Think Business Finance website. 

Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme 

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme has been extended until December, with employees receiving 80% of their current salary for hours not worked, up to a maximum of £2,500.

The Job Support Scheme, which was due to start on 1 November 2020, has been postponed.

Deferring of VAT and Tax payments 

The VAT payment deferral period ended on 30 June 2020. 

Any VAT payments deferred between 20 March and 30 June should be paid in full on or before 31 March 2021. You can make additional payments with subsequent returns.

Sick Pay 

In response to those having to self-isolate, the Government introduced a statutory sick pay scheme.

Employers can claim back up to 2 weeks of SSP if:

• you have already paid your employee’s sick pay 
• you’re claiming for an employee who’s eligible for sick pay due to Coronavirus
• you have a PAYE payroll scheme that was created and started on or before 28 February 2020
• you had fewer than 250 employees on 28 February 2020 across all your PAYE payroll schemes

Business rates holiday for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses 

A business rates holiday for retail, hospitality and leisure businesses in England for the 2020 to 2021 tax year. Your Local Authority will be responsible for applying this.

Coronavirus Future Fund

Coronavirus Future Fund will issue convertible loans between £125,000 to £5 million to innovative companies facing financing difficulties due to Coronavirus.

Coronavirus Bounce Back Loan Scheme

The Bounce Back Loan Scheme (BBLS) enables smaller businesses to access finance more quickly during the Coronavirus outbreak. The scheme helps small and medium-sized businesses to borrow between £2,000 and up to 25% of their turnover. The maximum loan available is £50,000.

The government guarantees 100% of the loan and there won’t be any fees or interest to pay for the first 12 months. After 12 months the interest rate will be 2.5% a year.

The Local Restrictions Support Grant 

The Local Restrictions Support Grant (LRSG) supports businesses that were open as usual, providing services in person to customers from their business premises, but are now forced to close. 

- For properties with a rateable value of £15k or under, grants to be £1,334 per month, or £667 per two weeks;

- For properties with a rateable value of between £15k-£51k grants to be £2,000 per month, or £1,000 per two weeks;

- For properties with a rateable value of £51k or over grants to be £3,000 per month, or £1,500 per two weeks.

For more info on this, click here.

Local Authority Support

£1.1bn is being given to Local Authorities, for one-off payments to enable them to support businesses more broadly. 

For more information on funding to support your business visit the GOV.UK page here.

The Federation of Small Businesses

The Federation of Small Businesses offer members a wide range of vital business services including advice, financial expertise, support and a powerful voice heard in government.

Throughout the COVID-19 outbreak, they have a free dedicated area offering advice and guidance for small businesses and the self-employed. With regular news updates, webinars and recommendations on how to manage during these difficult times. 

https://www.fsb.org.uk/

British Chamber of Commerce

Joining your local Chamber gives you access to a range of business services including cost savings and business advice.

There is a free hub on their website with advice on dealing with the effects that the Coronavirus may have on your business, funding support available to you and crisis management plans.

There is also a team on hand to answer any questions and queries you may have.

https://www.britishchambers.org.uk/

Business Support Helpline

You can contact the government’s business support line for free advice on 0300 456 3565, Monday to Friday, 9am - 6pm

HMRC helpline

If you are concerned about paying your tax due to coronavirus, please call HMRC 's helpline for advice on

Tel: 0800 0159 559.

We are working with our partner companies to carry out site visits, installations and connection work, ensuring that the Health and Safety of our customers, staff and partners is the main priority and all necessary distancing practices are being observed. 

For the moment we are operating business as usual, but if you do have any queries or concerns about connections and metering, or would like to cancel a planned in visit please contact energyconnections@cngltd.co.uk  

We want to reassure all CNG customers that whilst we are operating a remote workforce, we are doing all we can to ensure business as usual. Our team are on hand to answer your queries, or you can email info@cngltd.co.uk and we will get back to you as soon as we can. You can find our COVID-19 Risk Assessment document here. 

We are in this together and will be keeping abreast of any latest developments and posting updates on this page, our blog section, and via our LinkedIn and Twitter pages.