Terms and Conditions
1.For the purpose of these terms and conditions the following words shall have the following meanings:
a) “Us/We” shall mean Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited
b) “You” shall mean the Customer (the person or organisation for whom we agree to carry out works and/or supply of materials)
c) “Our representative” shall be the person we send to you to do work
d) “Quotation” shall mean the estimate provided by Us to undertake the agreed works
e) “Services” shall mean the supply of goods and or services that we supply in order to fulfil the agreed works
2. Formation of Contract
(i) These Terms and Conditions together with the estimate of works (”Quotation”) provided by Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited which describe the services, set out the entire agreement between Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited and you (the “Customer”) and will apply once an appointment has been made to provide our services (our “Services”).
(ii) “Southern Mechanical and Electrical” is a trading name of Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited, a company registered in England and Wales, whose registered number is 09760925, and whose registered address is 692 Wimborne Road, Bournemouth, Dorset, BH9 2EG.
(iii) Before procuring the Services you should read these terms and conditions carefully. By instructing our Services you are agreeing to these terms and conditions.
3. Your type of account with Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited
(i) You will personally be deemed to be our customer unless it is made clear to us who the customer is and we have confirmation that you have the right to instruct us on their behalf.
(ii) We offer cash and credit based accounts for all customers. Cash being those who may never have used our services before or those who occasionally use our services on a small basis. Credit being for commercial based customers, those with more than one property
we carry work out on or customers who have used our services for a substantial volume of works. Credit accounts will be offered to applicable customers but you will be able to request an application, where we will assess and decide if you qualify or not. Credit
accounts can be withdrawn at any time without notice.
(iii) Cash customers may be required to pay upfront during the booking stage of a job, this fee will cover our first hour on site. Any materials or additional time on site will be charged accordingly after completion. An invoice will be issued for payment within 30 days.
If payment is not received by then, on the 31st day we have the right to call you for credit or debit card payment over the phone, where a 2% card transaction fee will be applicable. If you do not accept this then you are to pay via BACS that day and send proof of transaction. If monies are not received by the 32nd day then a late payment fee of 5% of the outstanding balance will be applicable. Late payment fees of 5% will be added to the outstanding balance every subsequent ten days until the outstanding balance is paid. If you find discrepancies with the invoice, this must be discussed immediately so we can resolve any issues before our late payment fee applies.
(iv) Credit customers will be invoiced after the completing of every job (unless specified otherwise) for payment, net 30 days. If payment is not received by then, on the 31st day we have the right to call you for credit or debit card payment over the phone, where
a 2% card transaction fee will be applicable.
(v) We reserve the right to instruct out debt collector at any point during a payment dispute, or refer the claim to a court if necessary.
4. Job legislation
(i) We do not charge a call out fee, we charge for time on site in 30 minute increments with a minimum of 1hour. The total charge to you will be the time spent on site by our representative doing the work, it will include all reasonable time spent collecting materials
and/or necessary equipment for completion of works.
(ii) Quotations will be carried out free of charge, there will be a 30% deposit required upon acceptance of the quotation, unless otherwise specified. The remaining 70% will be payable within the terms specified by the type of account you hold with us and these will be stated on the invoice.
(iii) Quotes may need to be revised if the scope of works changes or if further works are required. A small administration fee may be charged. A new quotation will be issued free of charge. The 30% deposit will be kept until the revised quotation is accepted or declined at which point it will be taken from the new deposit or refunded as per your request.
(iv) Before or during the acceptance of our quotation if there is an increase in the price of materials or it is impossible for us to complete the works for the previously quoted fixed price including the reasons stated in section 3 (iii) we will issue a quote free of charge for your acceptance. If quote is declined there will be no charges payable by you.
(v) If we are instructed to do the work and then they are cancelled we reserve the right to charge you for the cost of any time and materials purchased by us. Charges will be those of our normal terms and conditions.
(vi) Verbal estimates are strictly subject to survey of works. All estimates will be based on the information made available at the time and could be subject to change under certain circumstances.
5. Customer Obligations
(i) The Customer shall ensure that the property is accessible to employees and contractors of Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited and any third party suppliers providing services throughout the duration of the works. You will be required to pay any fees or rates suffered from access being denied or delayed.
(ii) The Customer will ensure that utilities such as electricity and water are available for use at the property throughout works and at no cost to Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited, Should temporary disablement of such services be required for safety or
practicality, Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited will request in advance that the Customer will allow temporary disabling of such services such as electricity and water for the safety and/or convenience of all parties, and no compensation will be due in respect
of this to the Customer.
(iii) The Customer shall make Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited aware of any delays they may have with providing any relevant information partaking to the project and if delays are caused which stop Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited for fulfilling the contract, Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited is obliged to terminate the contract after 48 days or place a break on the contract until a later date if appropriate.
(iv) Parking must be arranged or made available for Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited’s team or outside contractors when working on project days. Any fees for this are payable by you if required – that includes the use of a skip or other hired on site
equipment and essentials.
6. Materials (including small tools, consumables and all parts required to complete the works)
(i) Parts and materials supplied by us will be charged at cost plus 10% handling charge. We try to minimise collection of materials by carrying everyday items. If we do need to collect materials we will always try to keep the time to a minimum. If the time is likely to be
more that 45 minutes you will be informed before our representative leaves the job. Only one person will collect parts at a time when possible.
(ii) Goods supplied and delivered by us to you or to the premises shall remain our property until paid by you in full. Whilst goods remain our property we have the absolute authority to retake, sell or otherwise dispose of all or any part of these goods. At any time and without notice we shall also be entitled to enter any premises in which our goods or any part of them are installed, stored or kept or it is reasonably believed to be so. We shall be entitled to seek court injunction to prevent you from selling, transferring or otherwise
disposing of such goods. However, the risk in the goods will pass to you upon delivery to you. You must insure them at replacement value and if asked you must provide evidence that they are properly insured.
(iii) If you instruct us to purchase materials and then cancel we reserve the right to charge you for the cost of any time and materials incurred by us. Charges will be those of our normal terms and conditions.
7. Timekeeping
(i) We will make every effort to attend each job at the time and date agreed with you according to our standard terms and conditions of sale. However, we cannot accept any liability for either arriving late or not at all and for the late delivery or failure to supply
materials.
8. General
(i) As a general policy, Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited does not carry out surveys or any form of work unless there is an adult present, that is a person over the age of 18 of authority (i.e Home owner / Manager).
(ii) Animals / Pets and children are requested to stay out of the area(s) we are expected to work throughout the duration of our attendance.
(iii) We reserve the right to refuse or decline to undertake any work.
(iv) We reserve the right, at our absolute discretion, to chose who will represent us.
(v) These terms and conditions may not be released, discharged, supplemented, interpreted, verified or modified in any manner except by an instrument in writing signed by our duly authorised representative and you.
(vi) These terms and conditions and all contracts awarded between Southern Mechanical and Electrical and you shall be governed and construed in accordance with English Law and shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English Law.
9. Guarantee
(i) We have a 30 day guarantee period of our labour and the duration of the manufacturers guarantee for all parts or equipment supplied by us. If you are not satisfied with our work, you must contact us, in writing, within 12 months of finishing the work and let us
come and inspect the work and carry out the necessary remedial work at our expense. You agree that if you do not contact us within 12 months we shall have no liability. You agree to let our insurers inspect any works carried out by us.
(ii) We are unable to guarantee our work, parts of equipment supplied to you; if they are misused, treated negligently or if our work is repaired, modified or tampered with by anyone other than us. Where we carry out works for you using materials we can take no
responsibility for the quality, fitness or purpose or otherwise of these materials so we cannot accept responsibility for them.
(iii) We cannot guarantee work where you order us to carry out work against the advice of our representative. This advice will be given to you verbally, or in writing. Our guarantee is void if we indicate that further works need to be carried out.
(iv) We cannot guarantee any work to unblock waste or drainage pipes. Nor can we guarantee further damage or defects caused by work that is not fully guaranteed or where recommended work has not been carried out.
(v) We cannot guarantee work on existing installations that are either inferior or over 10 years old not can we guarantee the effectiveness or otherwise of our work in these cases.
10. Liability
(i) We will only be liable for rectifying our own work and shall not be held responsible for any ensuing damage or claims resulting from this or other work overlooked or subsequently requested and undertaken at that time.
(ii) We shall not be held liable for any delay or consequences of any delay in performing our obligations if such a delay is due to any cause beyond our reasonable control and we shall be entitled to reasonable time extensions.
(iii) We shall be entitled to recover the costs or damages from any person or contractor whose negligence or faulty workmanship makes us liable to pay for those damages or rectification of work.
(iv) Whilst every care will be taken, should existing sanitary wear or furniture need to be remove and later reinstated, Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited cannot be held responsible for any unavoidable damage which may occur.
(v) Power flushing to remove debris from a central heating system can, on rare occasions, expose previously undetectable faults, weak points or breaches. Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited cannot be held responsible for any such pre-existing conditions, which
might be revealed or for any resulting damage which might occur. We cannot guarantee a power flush or the effectiveness due to the nature of the job and therefore the length of time the heating system will stay free from debris.
11. Privacy Policy
As of the 25th May 2018 our Privacy Policy has updated to be in compliance with GDPR. We are committed to your privacy and will always be transparent with how we store and use your data.
(i) We collect your data when you place orders with us, enter a competition online, make an enquiry or take part in a design service. We have a secure database that stores the details that you give us.
(ii) We collect your data for giving quotations and advice, delivering goods and providing the best overall customer experience – this can also include sending out newsletters and promotions. When receiving newsletters you have the option to opt in or out of our
mailing list. When using a service we store your data in a secure system for 1 year in case you would like to return for further service. This can be extended or reduced upon request.
(iii) We never sell or share your data to third parties. We only ever share your data with trusted transport or service companies on your behalf (upon request) when you place an order for us to purchase, so that we can deliver your goods. We will always ask first if
we are needed to share any information otherwise.
(iv) Our updated Privacy Policy will automatically come into effect for our existing Customers.
12. Copyright
(i) The copyright, design right and all other intellectual property rights in any materials and other documents or items prepared or produced for the Customer by or on behalf of Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited. in connection with the Services shall belong
to Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited. absolutely and any such materials, documents or items or use them for any commercial purpose.
(ii) Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited. shall be permitted to take and use photographs of the Customer’s property which demonstrates the Services provided by Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited. for its items shall be or remain the sole property of Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited.
(iii) The Customer shall be entitled to use any such materials, documents or other items in connection with the Services but shall not be entitled to copy, share or distribute any such materials including Quotations.
(iv) In accessing the website you agree that you will access the content solely for your personal, non-commercial use. Southern Mechanical and Electrical Limited are insured for both Commercial and Domestic development work. Acceptance of our goods, services or quotations is automatic acceptance of these terms and conditions.