Terms & Conditions of Business
CONTENTS
1 OUR AIM
2 OUR COMMITMENT TO YOU AND YOUR COMMITMENT TO US
3 CHARGES AND EXPENSES
4 PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS COPYRIGHT, INTELLECTUAL
5 PROPERTY & STORAGE OF PAPERS AND DOCUMENTS
6 TERMINATION
7 LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
8 ACCURACY OF INFORMATION AND WARRANTIES
9 LIMITED COMPANIES
10 COMMUNICATION BETWEEN YOU AND US
11 COMPLAINTS
12 DATA PROTECTION ACT
13 CONFIDENTIALITY
14 MEDIA AND PUBLIC RELATIONS
15 EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
16 APPLICABLE LAW
17 IMPLEMENTATION
1. OUR AIM
We aim to offer our clients a quality professional service with a personal touch. We believe you deserve honest and informative advice that is clear with regular communication throughout the planning process.
2. OUR COMMITMENT TO YOU AND YOUR COMMITMENT TO US
We will:-
• Explain to you the options that are open to you and the professional work which will be required,
• Keep you regularly informed of progress or, if there is none, when you will next hear from us,
• Avoid using technical language in communications with you where possible,
• Deal with your queries promptly in accordance with our communications protocol.
You will:-
• Provide us with clear, timely and accurate instructions,
• Provide all information or documentation required to complete the work for submission in a timely manner.
3. CHARGES & EXPENSES
A quotation for work will be issued to you by email together with a scope of works which will be established on the basis of information you provide. Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the price quoted is comprehensive, if the scope of work changes or you request changes to the work agreed, or it is not as originally advised by you, then there may be additional costs if extra work is required. We will advise you as early as possible where additional costs are likely to result. Our quotations are valid for acceptance for 30 days after which time a new quotation may be required. Quotations must be accepted by clients in a written format (including email).
4. PAYMENT ARRANGEMENTS
Invoices will be raised by us with respect to your work normally as soon as the work has commenced, but in the case of large, complicated or extended contracts, may be issued on a staged instalments basis. We may also ask you to pay some or all of our fees in advance in such circumstances. Payment is due to us within 21 days of our sending you an invoice.
Interest will be charged on any overdue account on a daily basis at the applicable rate under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 (currently 8% over the Bank of England base rate). You are responsible for payment of our invoices even if someone else has agreed to pay an invoice or we have agreed to send an invoice to a third party for payment on your behalf. Where we are acting on any matter for two or more persons such persons shall be jointly and severally liable to us for payment of our invoice. The term “persons” includes bodies corporate, unincorporated associations and partnerships.
5. COPYRIGHT, INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY & STORAGE OF PAPERS AND DOCUMENTS
After completing the work or instructions for you, we are entitled to keep all your papers, statements and documents associated with the service provided, or withhold any report while there is money owing to us for our charges and expenses. In addition, we will keep records of your matter (on an electronic or paper file) in storage for not less than 6 months. After that, we have the right to destroy your file after such period as we consider reasonable. The copyright in all reports produced and provided by us remain our property pending payment of your account in full.
6. TERMINATION
You may terminate your instructions to us without charge by cancelling in writing at any time after issuance of a quotation by us which has been accepted by you, provided work has not commenced and/or a cost has been incurred by ourselves. If you seek to cancel any contract after commencement then you will be liable to pay our charges up to the full value of your quotation. We shall be entitled to stop acting for you and to cancel any contract at any time for any reason. Where we do so, we will refund any moneys paid by you to us for work not yet undertaken. Such termination may occur if you do not pay any invoice or comply with a request for a payment on account.
7. LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
We carry professional indemnity, public and other insurance. Our insurance shall apply to any claim:– a. by you b. and, if any duties are held to be owed to them, any related or associated individual companies to you, and any officers, employees or consultants of any of these entities; c. against us (which for the purpose of this clause includes any successor practice), and/or any past, present or future employees of ours. Any such claim shall be limited to such amount of insurance cover from time to time, and never being more than £1,000,000 per claim, including claimants' costs All claims, whether made by one or more of the parties referred to in subparagraphs (a) and (b) or by a third party, arising from the same act or omission, or from a series of related acts or omissions, shall be regarded as one claim. We can only limit our liability to the extent the law allows. In particular, we cannot limit liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence. Please ask if you would like us to explain any of the terms above.
8. ACCURACY OF INFORMATION AND WARRANTIES
Our personnel are experienced and professional in their approach and work to published Professional Codes of Conduct, but they are working in environments which may be subject to rapid changes not under their control. We warrant that the reports produced and supplied by us will be based on information collected using all reasonable care and skill and meeting a professional standard. In some cases, data sets may be large, and in such circumstances personnel will make professional judgements on their analysis and presentation of data. As a whole and we cannot be held responsible for any effects that the documents have we produce have but we will endeavour to present them in the way that assists the work we do for you.
9. LIMITED COMPANIES
When we contract with a limited company, we may require a director and/or controlling shareholder to sign a form of personal guarantee in respect of our charges and expenses. If such a request is refused, we will be entitled to terminate any contract and to require immediate payment of our charges.
10. COMMUNICATION BETWEEN YOU AND US
We aim to ensure that all our communications with you will comply with our Communications Protocol. We will aim to communicate with you in such a method as you may request. We may need to virus check USBs, discs or e-mail. Unless you withdraw your consent we will communicate with others when appropriate by e-mail but we cannot be responsible for the security of correspondence and documents sent by post or e-mail. We aim to return missed phone calls within 48 hours. Questions raised by email will take longer to respond to but should this take longer than 48 hours we will send a holding response to advise of the timeframe for the main response to your question. Our aim is to offer all our clients an efficient and effective service at all times. We hope that you will be pleased with the work we do for you. If you have queries or concerns, please contact us as soon as possible. Where we act for two or more clients jointly it is on the clear understanding that we are authorised to act on instructions from either, both, or any of them and that both will be jointly and severally liable for our fees.
11. COMPLAINTS
Should we receive a complaint it will be dealt with in accordance with our complaints procedure which requires a response to your complaint within 14 days. If you have queries or concerns, please contact us as soon as possible so that we can promptly address any queries or concerns. Our aim is to offer all our clients an efficient and effective service at all times. We hope that you will be pleased with the work we do for you.
12. DATA PROTECTION ACT
In order to facilitate our communications with you we will seek consent from you to our recording relevant personal information on our records and/or computer system from time to time. We will supply you, at your written request, a copy of any personal data relating to you and the purposes for which it is processed and with details of the source of the data and any potential recipients of the data. By agreeing the scope of work terms and agreed fee you are agreeing to these Terms & Conditions. If you are signing as a company director you are also providing us with the authority to search from time to time not only details about yourself but also your fellow directors. We may contact you by email, telephone, or other electronic messaging. By providing us with your address, telephone numbers or email address you consent to being contacted by those methods for these purposes. If you provide us with information concerning another person, eg an employee, you confirm that you have their authority to do so, that you have their consent to the processing of their personal data and that you have informed them of our identity and the purpose for which their personal data will be processed. For security, safety, quality control, training and the purpose of accurate record keeping we may monitor or record your communications with or visits to us.
13. CONFIDENTIALITY
Work may require the use of consultants who specialise in a specific area of planning or development related external agencies or professionals to provide specific services. By instructing us you are consenting to us our communication with other parties and the sharing of information.
14. MEDIA AND PUBLIC RELATIONS
From time to time it may be in our interest to publicise our activities and involvement in matters and you confirm your consent to allow us to do so. Should planning permission be granted and the development is constructed we will take photographs/images of the development that may be used to advertise the company and you confirm your consent to allow us to do so.
Social Media Platforms
Communication, engagement and actions taken through external social media platforms that this website and its owners participate on are custom to the terms and conditions as well as the privacy policies held with each social media platform respectively.
Users are advised to use social media platforms wisely and communicate / engage upon them with due care and caution in regard to their own privacy and personal details. This website nor its owners will ever ask for personal or sensitive information through social media platforms and encourage users wishing to discuss sensitive details to contact them through primary communication channels such as by telephone or email.
This website may use social sharing buttons which help share web content directly from web pages to the social media platform in question. Users are advised before using such social sharing buttons that they do so at their own discretion and note that the social media platform may track and save your request to share a web page respectively through your social media platform account.
15. EQUALITY AND DIVERSITY
We are committed to promoting equality and diversity in all our dealings with clients, third parties and employees. Please contact us if you would like a copy of our Equality and diversity policy.
16. APPLICABLE LAW
Any dispute or legal issues arising from our Terms of Business will be determined by the law of England and Wales and considered exclusively by the English and Welsh courts.
17. IMPLEMENTATION
As consultants we endeavour to achieve positive outcomes, but we cannot and will not guarantee the granting of planning permission through our work. Securing planning permission either at Local Authority level or with the Planning Inspectorate is subjective and decisions to grant permission or refuse ultimately rests with another party. Unless otherwise agreed, these Terms and Conditions of Business shall apply to any future instructions given by you to us. Although your continuing instructions in this matter will amount to an acceptance of these Terms and Conditions of Business, it may not be possible for us to start work on your behalf until written confirmation of your acceptance of the terms and conditions is received by us. By confirming by email that you accept the quote provided you are agreeing that to avoid any delay we may start work on your behalf straight away and we do not have to wait for the cancellation period to expire. In doing so you will be liable for any costs incurred once work has started. If at any time any one or more of the provisions of these Conditions becomes invalid, illegal or unenforceable in any respect under any law, the validity and enforceability of the remaining provisions hereof shall not in any way be affected or impaired thereby.