BeeKeepers in Surrey

[mark1971]

Hi, i am a pest controller based in Surrey. I hope i don't upset anyone but our company will not treat Bees. We get asked all the time and get called out to honey bee swarms as a lot of people think they are wasps! I want someone local who will be willing to collect the bees (free of charge of course) to help both me and the customer out. All im after is a link to my site from a useful and genuine website in exchange for me putting there details on my website. Everyones a winner i think as you can take the bees and i will have a very useful link to my site. Like i said please do not be offended as i am not a spammer hence why i have protected the link to my site ***********

 

[Black Comb]

Do you charge the client for the callout/service?

 

[mark1971]

I'm afraid we have to charge a call out fee but all customers are pre warned on the phone that if they are bees we will not treat them unlike other local pesties.

 

[dpearce4]

so will you pass over the call out charge to the beekeeper that will be doing the work for you? and if you are charging the customer why does the beekeeper need to supply a link to your website?

 

[Winker]

your local beekeeping club http://www.surreybeekeepers.org.uk/
will be able to collect swarms FOC give them a call

 

[Bob Bee]

Hi, i am a pest controller based in Surrey. I hope i don't upset anyone but our company will not treat Bees. We get asked all the time and get called out to honey bee swarms as a lot of people think they are wasps! I want someone local who will be willing to collect the bees (free of charge of course) to help both me and the customer out. All im after is a link to my site from a useful and genuine website in exchange for me putting there details on my website. Everyones a winner i think as you can take the bees and i will have a very useful link to my site. Like i said please do not be offended as i am not a spammer hence why i have protected the link to my site w-w-w . waspnestssurrey.co .uk

It is in fact illegal to kill a warm of bees in the uk. The surrey boys offer a service like all beekeepers associations;
FROM GOOGLE;
Surrey Beekeepers Association :: Home
www.surreybeekeepers.org.uk/
Swarm Collection. Please read the Swarms section first, if you think you have a swarm of Honey Bees, call 01932 807852

 

[mark1971]

I can assure you there are some local's that will treat bees (not swarms) but we don't touch them at all. Currently we are being offered £40 to pass over a swarm of bees to a bee keeper. Im trying to build quality links to my site and i am looking for a way to make both party' get a good deal. I assumed that honey bees may be worth a few quid as we get offered £40?

 

[BeeMoustashe]

first time I've heard of beeks paying to take a swarm away

 

[mark1971]

really? Must bee a good offer then lol. Sorry i just work on the website side of things so got no idea

 

[Nellie]

I can assure you there are some local's that will treat bees (not swarms) but we don't touch them at all. Currently we are being offered £40 to pass over a swarm of bees to a bee keeper. Im trying to build quality links to my site and i am looking for a way to make both party' get a good deal. I assumed that honey bees may be worth a few quid as we get offered £40?

How much of that £40 do I get for turning up and taking the bees away?

 

[TOBY-3652]

it is not illegal to kill any bees in the uk.. wherethat fact comes i dont know

 

[jezd]

How much of that £40 do I get for turning up and taking the bees away?

not sure if they will, but if they did then how much of your payment are you going to declare to the taxman?

or for that matter take out a separate insurance policy since by taking a payment you have gone professional and the BBKA insurance covers you no more.

JezD

 

[dpearce4]

so you charge the person £40 call out, you then get £40 from the beekeeper that you get to collect them. hmm nice work if you can get it.

 

[jezd]

I got a couple of calls last year from ppl re swarms and they had decided there was a '£££ value' to the swarm and to my surprise they wanted money from me for the honor of collecting - lets just say I didnt take them up.

 

[mark1971]

I don't get paid £40. Thats what we are offered for the bees. We charge a small call out fee for our time

 

[thurrock bees]

ive got a few pest controllers to pass my number to 'customers' who have a bee problem, they do not charge as they can tell from the call if they are bees, they do advise the caller i ask for a donation towards fuel costs. And if im asked to deal with a wasps nest i pass their number on. Its a good situation where we help each other.

just a idea ?!

 

[mark1971]

no sure were the " we are charging £40 call out + £40 for the swarm?" We have never sold a swarm to date but we have been offered thats why i came on here

 

[Nellie]

not sure if they will, but if they did then how much of your payment are you going to declare to the taxman?

or for that matter take out a separate insurance policy since by taking a payment you have gone professional and the BBKA insurance covers you no more.

JezD

I have insurance and I have an accountant thanks very much. Sadly same accountants aren't too keen on me putting the beekeeping through the company books or my personal tax return, probably because it costs a small fortune for very little income but in the grand scheme of things I'm not worried about an extra £50 being declared to the tax man.

Point remains that collecting a swarm isn't necessarily a boon from my point of view and certainly isn't a zero sum exercise. There's my time, the kit, travel, a hive to put the bloody things in and with half of the swarms we collected for people last year the time and effort involved in requeening the nasty little so and so's in order to be able to do anything with them but it does make it entertaining when someone tries to charge me to take a swarm off their hands.

Generally I don't charge if someone asks me to sort out a swarm for them but I wouldn't pay for the "privilege" either.

 

[Bob Bee]

it is not illegal to kill any bees in the uk.. wherethat fact comes i dont know

sorry River Cottage nonesnse obviousely....

 

[mark1971]

last year we had a call to a large wasp nest on a kids climbing frame. I asked her what it looked like and she said it was a large round nest with loads of wasps not bees. We explained that if it was bee the call out fee was x amount and she said its fine but they are definatley wasps. Turned up to find a swarm of honey bees resting on the climbing frame