1. Why You Can Use Whether A Band Charges VAT As
A Quality Filter
By Paul Wolfe http://www.carteblancheinfo.com
One of the most common questions I get asked when I quote for
Client’s events – and especially private weddings – is something
along the lines of: “Can you get rid of the VAT in return for
cash?”
Just so the record is straight, the answer to this question is
always no – it’s illegal. If you’re a VAT registered company
you must pay VAT on your service irrespective of whether
you’re paid in cash or by cheque or credit card.
But here’s a generalisation that few people in the industry
acknowledge, but in my mind remains a fact: the bands that
charge VAT are of a higher quality than the bands that don’t
charge VAT.
How Does Whether A Band Charge VAT Or Not Affect
Their Quality?
First we need to look briefly at a figure that Customs and Excise
term ‘the VAT threshold.’ Basically any business of any kind
that turns over £67,000 or more in any 12-month period has to
register for VAT. There’s no exceptions, or qualifications. The
rule is cut and dried.
So here’s how the generalisation works. If we say that on
average a good 5 piece band charges somewhere in the region of
£1600 per event - this figure will vary depending on factors like
travel and increases for seasonally busy days, but let’s use
£1600 for the sake of this article – then in order to stay below
the threshold they’ve got to work less than 40 times in a 12
month period.

2. That might sound reasonable you think. After all there are about
50 Saturdays a year where weddings can be held, and there are
statistically less weddings in November, January, February and
March, so maybe that even sounds about right.
Except if you thought that you’re not taking into account the
amount of weddings that now happen on a Friday, or a Sunday,
or the corporate party season in December, or New Years Eve
which counts as two dates because most bands simply charge
double.
So What’s The Big Deal About A Band Being Below The VAT
Threshold?
There’s no big deal – but what it indicates is that the band are
effectively a part time outfit, doing only 40 or so bookings in a
year. And why this is important is that a good band functions
like a good team – and nothing fosters good teamwork more
than regular performance in that team setting. And that
improved teamwork leads to a band’s sound being tighter and
more cohesive – factors that non-musicians might struggle to
articulate, but which they nevertheless respond to
subconsciously (usually by dancing longer and harder!).
So if you ask some of the bands that charge VAT how many
bookings they do a year I’d fully expect their answer to be in the
region of 70 – 80 bookings a year. And the fact that these bands
are doing significantly more performances goes a long way
towards explaining why bands that charge VAT are better than
those bands that don’t charge VAT.
How Many Bookings A Band Does A Year Is Also A Sign Of
The Demand For That Band?
And another definition for demand of a product or service is: the
perceived value (quality) of that product or service.

3. So if we take Band A who are in demand and work at 80
functions a year, or Band B who are in less demand and work at
say 40 functions a year – which band would you book for your
event if the quality of that band was the only factor you were
taking into account?
If it were my event I’d book Band A too.
Are There Any Exceptions To This Rule? Can You Book A
Really Good Band That Doesn’t Charge VAT?
Yes there are some exceptions. Firstly there are some types of
act that are substantially cheaper than a party band who can
perform 70 or 80 bookings a year without breaching the VAT
threshold. (Just so you know we’re talking about string
quartets, solo singers, jazz bands).
And also there are ‘bands’ that generate part of their sound from
backing tracks – so you can have a duo or trio that has live
vocals and a couple of live instruments, and I’ve seen good duos
and trios and they’ll certainly do a good job. (Though I’ve got
to say that I’ve played in duos and trios and bands right up to 10
and 12 piece bands and as a generalization the band’s overall
quality increases by a significant percentage each time it gets
bigger – why this is so is the subject of another article.)
But if you’re looking at two bands that cost approximately the
same and Band A charges VAT and Band B doesn’t, I’d be
willing to bet that Band A were simply a better band than Band
B. Sounds strange I know, but it’s true.
Summary.
Here’s what we’ve learned in this article:

4. 1) A band that charges VAT is probably better than a band that
doesn’t (except in special circumstances like jazz or classical
music)
2) That if you want to book a quality band for your wedding
one of the simplest ways to filter the list you found on Google is
simply to strike out the bands who don’t charge VAT.
3) That asking a band to forego VAT in exchange for cash is
illegal.
So when you’re looking for a band for your event, don’t wince
when a band tells you it charges VAT – instead rejoice because
you’ve just found one of the better bands to put on your
shortlist.
For more information on Live Bands For Weddings, Corporate
Functions and Other Events please visit our website at
http://www.carteblancheinfo.com