Office Maid Ltd – General Terms & Conditions
- Definitions
“The Company ” – means Office Maid Ltd (Company No. 10634960) and/or any associate companies
“Cleaner/ Cleaning Operative” – means the person or company carrying out cleaning services on behalf of the Company.
“Client” – means the person, company or corporate body together with any subsidiary or associated company as defined by the Companies Act 2006 to whom the cleaning services are supplied by the Company.
“Service” – means the cleaning services carried out on behalf of the Company.
“Cleaning Visit” – means the visit to the Client’s service address by the Cleaner in order to carry out the Service. - Contract
2.1. These Terms and Conditions represent a contract between Office Maid Ltd and the Client.
2.2. The Client agrees that any use of the Companies’ services, including placing an order for services by telephone, email or website forms shall constitute the Client’s acceptance of these Terms and Conditions.
2.3. Unless otherwise agreed in writing these Terms and Conditions shall prevail over any other terms of business or purchase conditions put forward by the Client.
2.4. No variation or alteration of these Terms and Conditions shall be valid unless approved in writing by a Director of the Company.
2.5. The Company operates a minimum charge of 2 hours per cleaning visit unless otherwise agreed in writing.
- Payment
3.1. All work carried out by the Company at your request, whether experimental or otherwise it will be charged accordingly. Any work undertaken by the Company on behalf of the Client is carried out on the basis that the Client has fully approved such work whether or not we have received an official order providing there is evidence of written or verbal confirmation to proceed, including letter, facsimile, text or email correspondence between the parties.
3.2. Payments of fees rendered by invoice are due within the dates stated on the invoice by CHAPS/ BACS payments to the Companies’ appointed Bank account.
3.3. Interest may be applied to any overdue accounts at the rate of 3% per annum above the Bank of England base rate from time to time until payment is made in full.
Where payment has not been received we reserve the right to withhold services and have the right to cease to work on your account, and to terminate the engagement if payments are unduly delayed.
3.4. Any additional expenses incurred whilst working on your behalf can be charged and appropriate records will be kept and will be available for inspection.
3.5. Ongoing late payments can incur a pre-payment terms for future work.
3.6. We have a statutory right to interest and compensation for debt recovery costs under the late payment legislation if not paid according to agreed credit terms.
3.6. Unless otherwise expressly stated, all prices shall be in ‘GBP’ and are exclusive of VAT at the rate of 20% and other duties.
3.7. We shall invoice monthly or at the end of a project dependent on the agreed terms.
3.8. All prices are net and no settlement discount is offered. All accounts are payable no later than 14 (fourteen) days from date or invoice unless otherwise agreed by the Company in writing. NB: The payment terms are required whether you have signed off on the copy or not.
3.9. After the 14-day payment period has passed all further work for the Client can cease.
3.10. All quotations offered by us are deemed valid for a period of 28 (twenty eight) days, after which time we reserve the right to revise the said quotation.
3.11. We provide services on a one-off and retainer basis.
3.12. Any additional work requested that is not covered in the original schedule will be quoted separately and added to the initial invoice. 28-days notice is required to discontinue the service unless otherwise agreed in writing by both parties.
3.13. All Cleaning service prices are reviewed each year and adjusted in line with inflation, minimum wage increases or any other reasonable circumstances however you will be notified in writing and given 28-days notice prior to any price increase.
- Equipment
4.1. Where cleaning materials are provided by the Company we operate such use under COSSH
Guidelines and regulations (www.office-maid.co.uk/compliance-training-documents/). If you require us to use your solutions or equipment they must be safe to use/operate, in full working order and must not require any special skills to be used for the purpose of cleaning.
4.2. If the Client has equipment that is complicated to operate, the Client must provide clear and detailed instructions to the Cleaner.
4.3. If the Client requires the Cleaner to use their own materials and equipment including vacuum cleaner the Company cannot accept any liability should anything go wrong with either the equipment or the outcome of using it.
- Checklists
5.1. On request, we shall provide the client a checklist or ask the Client to leave a list of priorities for the cleaner so they can tick off top to bottom what they are able to do within the allocated time. - Refunds
6.1. No refund claims will be given once the cleaning service has been carried out. If for any reason the Client is dissatisfied with any aspect they must notify the Company within 24-hours and this will be rectified.
6.2. Refund will be issued only if the Client has cancelled a cleaning visit within the allowed time (24-hours) prior to the start of the cleaning session and a payment has been already received by the Company.
6.3. A refund will be issued if a Cleaner does not attend a cleaning visit, payment for which has been already received by the Company. - Cancellation
7.1. The Client agrees to pay the full price of the cleaning visit, if: a) The Client cancels or changes the date/time less than 24-hours prior to the scheduled appointment; b) The Client fails to provide access to the service premises thus preventing the Company to carry out the booked work; c) There is a problem with the Client’s keys and the Cleaner cannot let themselves in (if keys are provided they must open all locks without any special efforts or skills.)
7.2. If the Client needs to change a cleaning day or time the Company will do its best to accommodate them – a minimum of 24-hours notice is required.
NB: The Company cannot guarantee that the same operative will be available on the new day and at the time the Client requires. Any changes in the cleaning schedule are subject to availability.
7.3. The Company’s cleaning operatives work on any day of the week including Bank Holidays. If the Client’s cleaning has been arranged on a Bank Holiday and they have not called or emailed the Company to cancel the visit 24-hours prior to the start of the cleaning session, the Client agrees to and understands that the regular amount due for that cleaning visit will be charged regardless of whether the cleaning operative has cleaned the Client’s property or not. - Termination
8.1. The Client may terminate this contract by giving 28-days prior notice in writing once the initial contracted term has ended.
8.2. If the Client wishes to terminate the contract within the initial contracted term, the Client must pay the outstanding balance for the remainder of the contract.
8.3. The Client agrees to pay a cancellation fee equivalent to 28-days service if: 1) No notice is given; 2) The Client provides a termination of notice less than 28-days
8.4. Prior to termination of the Contract, the Client is obliged to provide details of any incoming contractor for the purposes of compliance with the Transfer of Undertaking (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 - Claims
9.1. The Company’s public liability insurance will cover damages caused by a cleaning operative working on behalf of the Company up to £1,000,000.00. Acopy of our policy is available upon request.
9.2. The Client agrees that due to the nature of the service the Company guarantees only to correct any problems reported within 24-hours. If a problem occurs on a Saturday it must be reported by midday on the following Monday in order to be accepted as a valid claim. Failure to do so will invalidate any Client claim. The Company may require entry to the location of the claim within 24-hours to correct the problem. Any refunds or adjustments must be requested to the Company directly and subject to approval by the Company.
9.3. The Client waivers their right to stop payment unless the Company fails to make good on the guarantee as per clause 14.
9.4. While the Cleaners make every effort not to break items, accidents do happen. Identical replacement items are always attempted to be found but not guaranteed. For this specific reason, the Company requests all irreplaceable items (whether monetarily or sentimentally valuable) be stored away and /or not cleaned by the cleaning operatives.
9.5. In case of damage, the Company will repair the item at its cost. If the item cannot be repaired the Company will rectify the problem by crediting the customer with the item’s present actual cash value towards a like replacement from a Company’s source upon payment of cleaning services rendered.
9.6. The Company shall not be responsible for damage due to faulty and/or improper installation of any item. All surfaces (i.e: marble, granite, etc.) are assumed sealed and ready to clean without causing harm.
9.7. The Company will endeavour to clean stained walls and/or floor covering but cannot be held responsible for the outcome especially where drink/ food stains have occurred, nicotine staining has arisen and/ or mould/ mildew has formed.
9.8. Where necessary it is recommended that the Client unplugs and makes safes any electrical equipment as the Company cannot be held responsible for any lost of data or any recalibration of such items.
9.9. Any attempt to commit insurance fraud or any use of false information to commit any type of fraud will be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the Law together by the Company and the Insurance Provider(s). Monetary compensation as well as legal fees may incur.
9.10. Key replacement/locksmith fees are paid only if keys are lost by our operatives. There is a £50 per location liability limit.
- Complaints
10.1. All complaints are taken extremely seriously. If you are not happy with any aspect of our service please call us as soon as possible and give us the chance to rectify it. Your custom is very important to us and we want you to be happy with our service.
10.2. If the Client is dissatisfied with our service, the Company asks that the Client notifies us immediately by emailing clean@office-maid.co.uk or by calling 0330 088 2623 or by recorded delivery mail to:
Office Maid Ltd
7D Lakeside Enterprise Park
Birkdale Road
South Park Industrial Estate
Scunthorpe DN17 2AU
- Liability
11.1. The Company shall not be liable under any circumstances for any loss, expense, damage, delay, costs or compensation (whether direct, indirect or consequential) which may be suffered or incurred by the Client arising from or in any way connected with a late arrival of Company operatives at the service address. The Company endeavours to be on time on any visit but sometimes due to logistical issues or where force majeure applies and any other problems which are beyond the Companies’ control, the Company operative’s arrival maybe delayed or in some circumstances the cleaning visit may be re-scheduled.
11.2. The Company shall not be liable under any circumstances for any loss, expense, damage, delay, costs or compensation (whether direct, indirect or consequential) which may be suffered or incurred by the Client arising from or in any way connected with – 1. A cleaning job not complete due to the lack of hot water or electricity 2. Third party entering or present at the Client’s premises during the cleaning process; 11.3. Any existing damage to Clients property in the form of old stains/burns/spillages etc. which cannot be cleaned/removed completely by the cleaning operative.
11.3. There shall be a de minimis of £100 for any claims (but not claims in respect of YOUR statutory Rights to claim for defective workmanship) for damage, consequential loss or rectification costs
- Supplementary Terms
12.1. If the Client requests keys to be collected/ returned by the Company’s operatives from a third parties’ address then a charge can apply.
12.2. The Company reserves the right to re-evaluate rates at any time should the Client’s initial list of tasks changes.
12.3. The Company reserves the right to amend the initial quotation, should the Client’s original requirements change.
12.4. If any estimates of how long it will take the cleaning operatives to complete the job are being provided those are only estimates based on the average time it takes to clean a home or an office of similar size to the Client’s, it being difficult to calculate precisely how long such tasks may take and that a degree of flexibility may be required. Please note that one off cleans may take longer to complete due to longer intervals between cleaning sessions, number and type of cleaning tasks required, when compared to the regular maintenance cleaning of the same property.
12.5. With prior written notice the Client understands that the price quoted may vary according to condition of property and room sizes etc.
12.6. The Company shall endeavour to arrange a replacement cleaner if your regular cleaner cannot attend a scheduled visit, and will inform the Client prior to the visit.
12.7. Post Construction Cleaning (Builders Cleans), event-cleaning, office/ factory cleans or badly neglected properties can take up to three times longer than general cleaning but the Company cannot be held to airborne settlement dust that occurs thereafter.
12.8. The cleaning operatives are not allowed to hand wash any items of clothing belonging to the Client or operate the Client’s washing machine, dishwasher or tumble dryer – only load/ empty such items.
12.9. All fragile and highly breakable items must be secured or removed.
12.10. The Company reserves the right to make reasonable changes to the Terms and Conditions in agreement with the other party.
- The Company is Health and Safety compliant and follows the relevant standards/ recommendations that can be found at www.hse.gov.uk/guidance
- Our Guarantee
14.1. The Company has built its business and reputation by providing its clients with the best possible cleaning service available. Still, the Company realises, that because its operatives are only human, they sometimes make mistakes. For this reason, the Company offers a Guarantee – if the Client is not satisfied with any areas that have been cleaned, the Company’s operative(s) will come back to the Client’s home/ premises and re-clean those areas free of charge. NB: This guarantee will not apply if the condition of the home/ premises has deteriorated since the original cleaning was undertaken. (END)