Terms and Conditions

Terms and Conditions

General Obligations:

“We”, “us” or “our” in this agreement refers to ACD Pest Control and its employees and subcontractors.
Our registered address is 89 Glebe Road, Minchinhampton, GL69JY.
“You” or “your” refers to the Client requesting the service. You are a consumer if you are purchasing services for your own personal use, otherwise you are a business.
“Services” are the pest control services that we agree to carry out for you and to which these general terms and conditions will apply.
These are our terms and conditions for treating pests when you book an appointment with us.

General Terms:

An adult aged 18 or over must be in your property to let us in, otherwise the visit will not be able to take place and you will need to book another appointment and pay for it again.
We will expect you to show the pest controller the location of the pest problem.
Although we endeavour to attend the property within the 2-hour time slot given at the time of the booking we cannot be held responsible for events outside of our control which delay or prevent our arrival, such as traffic conditions, vehicle accidents, adverse weather conditions (some treatments cannot be undertaken in the rain) or delays due to being held up at a previous complicated visit. Where possible we will contact you to inform you we are running late, however as we are mobile we rely on network phone signal to allow us to contact you, should no signal be available we will contact you as soon as we are able to. If we cannot make the initial appointment for any reason, and we cannot offer an alternative visit within five working days a full refund will be offered.
For prepaid treatment programmes we will liaise with you to book in each subsequent visit. If our attempts to make contact with you receive no response within 28 days we will close the job, with no refund due of the fees paid.
If you have paid for the initial site survey in advance we will not give a refund if we do not find any evidence of pests, or if we identify that the pest you have is not one we treat. For example, honey bees rather than wasps.
You must follow all health and safety advice we give during our visit to safeguard yourself, others, animals and the environment. Failure to follow the advice given may lead us to discontinue any further service, with no refund due of fees paid.
Treatment/control programmes (e.g. rodent treatments), which have a preset number of visits will be invoiced at the onset of the programme. We reserve the right to discontinue any further service should payment of the invoice not be made within the timescales stipulated on the invoice.

Your Obligations:

You agree to undertake all pre-visit tasks (if stipulated) to ensure the premises are suitable for us to undertake the work.
You hereby permit us to apply approved products and/or deploy equipment as we deem necessary, to deliver an effective treatment, subject to our compliance with all legal requirements.
You agree to provide us with free access to all parts of the premises for the purpose of inspection, treatment or surveillance and agree to ensure that all safety and treatment instructions are followed during and post treatment.
You hereby agree not to request or permit us to access any part of the site or premises which you know or suspect to be hazardous, or in which a potentially hazardous process is carried out, without first briefing us on the nature of the hazard and the precautions to be observed.
You or a nominated representative must be available at the site during the agreed date and time slot, unless prior arrangements have been made in advance for us to carry out the visit in your absence. If no one is present when we call at the agreed time, there is no entitlement to a refund and you will still be liable for any fees agreed for that visit.
To minimise pest infestations by carrying out (within a reasonable time) any recommendations we make prior to, or following a visit.
To make payment within agreed timeframes and/or as stipulated on your invoice.

Our Obligations:

Our role is to attend your site or property, inspect the relevant area and treat the relevant pests you have identified. We will aim to either eradicate the pests or control them, depending on the type of pest, location and safety issues.
On arrival at your premises, we will identify ourselves to you, and will not commence any work without your consent. Where the premises consist of land or buildings which are unoccupied but are owned by you or under your stewardship, and which have free access, you hereby give us permission to enter onto the premises on arrival and to carry out the visit.
Safety data information advising of the materials/products used and any precautions that are required will be left with you or can be obtained from us at info@acdpestcontrol.co.uk. It is a requirement of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Control of Pesticides Regulations 1986 that you undertake to read this information, to comply with it, and to keep the information on your premises for ready reference in case of any accident or emergency.

Written Communications:

Applicable laws require that some of the information or the communications we send to you should be in writing.
When using our services, you accept that communication with us will be mainly electronic.
We will contact you by e-mail or provide you with links to the appropriate pages on our website.
For contractual purposes, you agree to this electronic means of communication and you acknowledge that all contracts, notices, information and other communications that we provide to you electronically comply with any legal requirement that such communications be in writing.
This condition does not affect your statutory rights.

Severability:

If any of these terms and conditions or any provisions of a Contract are determined by any competent authority to be invalid, unlawful or unenforceable to any extent, such term, condition or provision will to that extent be severed from the remaining terms, conditions and provisions which will continue to be valid to the fullest extent permitted by law.

Entire Agreement:

These terms and conditions and any document expressly referred to, constitute the whole agreement between us and supersede all previous discussions, correspondence, previous arrangements, understanding or agreement between us, relating to the subject matter of any service.
We each acknowledge that, in entering into a Contract, neither of us relies on, or will have any remedies in respect of, any representation or warranty (whether made innocently or negligently) that is not set out in these terms and conditions or the documents referred to in them.
Each of us agrees that our only liability in respect of those representations and warranties that are set out in this Agreement will be for breach of contract.
Nothing in this clause limits or excludes any liability for fraud.

Complaints:

We aim to provide an excellent service to everyone, but we understand that we do not always get things right. If you have a concern or complaint, please raise this with us by calling us in the first instance.
If you are unsatisfied with the response or do not feel that an adequate solution has been obtained, please e-mail us at info@acdpestcontrol.co.uk. It would be useful if you set out full details of how you feel we have failed to deliver the services to a satisfactory standard or failed to meet your expectations. Your concerns will then be investigated and the outcome of the investigation will be explained to you by email, where feasible within 14 working days of receipt of the complaint.
Whilst we appreciate that you may also refer a complaint to Trading Standards or the relevant local authority, we recommend that this is only done once you have exhausted the above process with us first.
A full copy of our Complaints Procedure is available on request.

Warranty:

We warrant to you that our treatment aims to eradicate/control the relevant pests, subject to critical safety and access factors.
All the products we use conform to all Statutory Requirements, Codes of Practice, and accepted good practice for pest control work, and the service will be provided using reasonable care and skill.

Limitation of our Liability:

If we fail to comply with these terms and conditions, we shall only be liable to you for the price paid (if any) for the service.
We will not be liable for consequential or indirect loss or damage caused from the treatment (or omission to treat the habitat), damage caused by the relevant pests, or losses that result from our failure to comply with these terms and conditions that fall into the following categories: loss of income or revenue, loss of business, loss of opportunity, loss of profits, loss of anticipated savings, loss of data or waste of management or office time.
However, this will not prevent claims for loss of/damage to your tangible property that is foreseeable and due to our negligence.
If we believe that it would be unsafe to carry out the treatment we shall not be liable for any consequential loss, whether direct or indirect, including the costs of paying an alternative contractor.
Nothing in these conditions excludes or limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, any breach of the obligations implied by section 2 of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982, or any other matter for which it would be illegal for us to exclude or attempt to exclude our liability.

Cancellation and Refund Policy (separate terms apply to drain surveys):

By making an appointment over the phone or by email you are entering into a binding contract with ACD Pest Control.

Statutory Rights to Cancel:

N.B. This section only applies if you are a consumer and you have entered into a distance or off-premises contract.
If this paragraph applies to you, then under the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 you have a legal right to cancel this agreement at any time within 14 days (the “Cooling off Period”) beginning on the day after you signed these terms and conditions in our presence, in your home or entered into a distance contract with us over the phone, via email or over the internet. Unless you give us permission in writing we will not begin to provide you with services until this cooling off period has expired.
If you requested us to begin the performance of the services during the cooling off period, you still have the right to ask us to stop providing the services at any time during that period, but you will be liable to pay us for the services we have provided up to the date on which you cancel.
You do not have the right to cancel once the cooling off period has ended although you can terminate this agreement if the following apply: There is a risk that our performance of the services will be significantly delayed because of events outside of our control/we have told you about an error in the charges or the description of the services and you do not wish to proceed/we have been unable to perform the services within any time critical constraints you have told us about in writing and before we commence the services, unless the delay is due to something you have done or failed to do.
To cancel you may complete the ‘model cancellation form’ below.
All cancellations must be sent to info@acdpestcontrol.co.uk
If you want to cancel or make changes, you must contact us at least 24 hours before the appointment.
If you cancel less than 24 hours prior to your visit you will be charged £40 plus VAT (unless an alternative fee is otherwise stated within these terms and conditions), unless you change your booking date (whether you have paid in advance or not). This is to cover our costs of the booking, plus a reasonable administrative fee. If the visit is rescheduled the future date cannot be cancelled and no further refunds will apply.
No access or missed appointments count towards your total number of treatment visits.
For cancellations received more than 24 hours prior to the visit – if you have paid for the visit in advance we will provide a full refund, if you have not made payment in advance no fee will be payable.

Model Cancellation Form

Send to: info@acdpestcontrol.co.uk

I hereby give notice that I wish to cancel the agreement for the supply of services.

Ordered on:

Name of consumer(s):

Address of consumer(s):

Signature of consumer(s) (only if this form is notified on paper).

Date:

Our Right to vary these Terms and Conditions:

We have the right to revise and amend these terms and conditions from time to time.
You will be subject to the policies and terms and conditions in force at the time that you order services from us, unless any change to those policies or these terms and conditions is required to be made by law or governmental authority, or if we notify you of the change to those policies or these terms and conditions before we send you your booking confirmation (in which case we have the right to assume that you have accepted the change to the terms and conditions, unless you notify us to the contrary within seven working days of receipt by you of the services).

Pest Specific Terms and Conditions:

All Treatments:

We reserve the right to withdraw from any treatment we have started where we have concerns that continuing any treatment may not be safe, that you have not adhered to our conditions or requirements or where you have interfered with or moved our poisons or bait. In such cases no refund will be provided.
All equipment and poisons remain the property of ACD Pest Control, should any damage occur to the equipment, or the equipment cannot be located, the cost for replacement will be charged to the Client.

Insect Spray Treatments:

Our role is to attend your premises, inspect the relevant area and subsequently treat the active insect habitat with the intention of eradicating the insects. These insects may include, but are not limited to, ants, bed bugs, beetles, mites, flies, fleas, moths and silverfish.
The price of the treatment is determined by the size of the property and type of infestation/s. We complete an initial site survey prior to undertaking any insect spray treatments to assess and provide a price for the treatment and explain what preparation works need to be completed prior to the treatment.
We expect you to have read the preparation advice for the pest we are treating before our arrival, if the preparation advice is not carried out and we cannot carry out the treatment we will abort the treatment and apply a call out charge of £30 plus VAT. Prior to the treatment you will be sent a guidance leaflet detailing what preparation works need to be undertaken.
It is your responsibility to ensure there are no children, pets or livestock in the area or rooms that we are treating. Exclusion times will be detailed on the guidance leaflet provided to you prior to the treatment.
Some minor water staining may occur from a water-based insecticide being sprayed onto surfaces. We cannot be held responsible for making good any subsequent damage to painted surfaces or papered walls.
Please protect your items. The insecticide may damage furniture and/or possessions. By reading these conditions you acknowledge that we do not accept any liability for any loss or damage caused as a result of the use of insecticide.

Wasp/Hornet Nest Treatments:

Our role is to attend your premises, inspect the relevant area and treat the active nest with the intention of eradicating the wasps/hornets.
If we inspect the area but do not find an active nest (whether there is no active nest or the relevant insects are another species, such as honey bees), we will not treat the area and you will still be charged. The time taken to inspect the area is often longer than the time taken to treat a nest.
Wasp, hornet and bee nest (exc. honey bee) treatments are charged at £70 plus VAT and come with a guarantee, if you continue to see activity (from exactly the same point, or very close by), after 3-4 days of the treatment you can contact us to arrange a revisit. Re-treatment of the same nest is free of charge. The revisit can be scheduled after 4 days, but must be undertaken within four weeks of the original treatment. After this period any new activity will be considered an additional nest and will be chargeable.
Should any additional wasp, hornet or bee nests be identified at the time of the initial treatment you have the option of having these treated at the same time at £40 plus VAT per additional nest.
Treatment of a wasp, hornet or bee nest does not include (nor necessitate) removal of the nest once it has been killed, should removal be requested/required this will incur additional charges, which will vary depending on the size and location of the nest.
Customers are advised that nest/s can remain active for 48 hours after treatment. All windows and doors in close proximity to the treated areas should kept closed and children and pets kept away from treated area/s.

Initial Site Surveys – Inactive nest removals:

If no removal is undertaken a call out fee of £30 plus VAT is charged, for example if the location of the nest is assessed and removal is not feasible. Costs for inactive nest removals vary depending on the location and size of the nest, the cost will be confirmed following the initial site survey. If removal of the nest is undertaken at the time of the initial site survey the call out fee will not be charged, as the cost of the removal itself is charged instead.

Initial Site Surveys – Identification of active nests/type of insect:

If no treatment is undertaken a call out fee of £30 plus VAT is charged, for example if the nest is identified as a honey bee nest.

Honey bee nests:

We do not offer treatments for honey bee nests and instead recommend the nest is removed. We do not perform removal of honey bee nests ourselves so we advise visiting the following websites to enquire about honey bee removal: www.ukbr.org or www.bbka.org.uk

Rodent Treatments:

It is your responsibility to keep children and pets away from traps, poisons and bait stations for the duration of the treatment.

Once/if toxic bait is in use on the site the safety measures that must be followed are:

You must check for any dead rodent carcasses. Should you locate any carcasses immediately cover with a bucket and place a heavy object on top and contact us on 07854 945 709 for us to visit and dispose of them.
You must supervise any pets and children to ensure they do not access any uneaten bait which may have been removed from the station by rodents.
Do not relocate any bait stations that are installed in or around the property as this can have a detrimental effect on controlling the infestation.
Once/if toxic products are in use on the site this will be indicated on your treatment report.
If you suspect accidental poisoning, immediately contact the Accident and Emergency Department/local hospital/local GP and take your treatment report with you.
The pest control technician will remove any dead rodents found when completing their scheduled site visits, alongside any uneaten bait at the end of the treatment period.
Most rodent treatments will require 3 visits on average, although it may be more depending on the circumstances. Any further visits will be at our discretion and will depend very much on whether any advice we have given regarding proofing and/or repairs has been followed.
If after 3 visits the problem has not been resolved the pest control technician may recommend that further visits are required. It is at the discretion of the customer if they wish to continue with additional treatments recommended by the technician. The options available to the customer will be discussed prior to any further works being undertaken.
We may suggest ways to help reduce the risk of the pests coming back, for which there shall be no additional fee. However, we shall not be under any obligation to provide such advice and we shall not accept any responsibility for any such advice we give.
We are legally obliged to remove all rodenticides laid at your property when our treatment ends for whatever reason. You shall ensure that we have free access to do this.
Where there is evidence of infestations emanating from private or public sewers or from breaches in the sewer system we may recommend a drain survey or sewer repair works. We undertake drain surveys and repairs at an additional cost, which will be confirmed to you prior to the works being undertaken.

Drain Surveys:

To allow a drain survey to be undertaken we will require access to the property for water tests to be undertaken and the presence of a property resident over the age of 18 throughout the duration of the survey.
Drain surveys are charged per manhole surveyed. During the initial site survey the number of manholes which could be clearly identified will have been assessed. Should any additional manholes (concealed at the time of the initial visit) be identified following the initial site survey they will be charged accordingly, per additional manhole surveyed.
It is not uncommon to find buried manholes when drain surveys are undertaken. Although we recommend that all manholes are accessed and surveyed when inspecting sewer systems, it is at the property owners discretion if they wish us to undertake a subsequent visit to survey any buried manholes also.
If additional works are required (beyond the survey itself) to enable access into the buried manhole e.g. removal or movement of objects/grounds above the manhole, these will be charged in addition to the cost of the drain survey and will be assessed and quoted prior to the works being undertaken. Once accessible, the surveying of previously buried manhole(s) is charged at £100 plus VAT per manhole.
The information supplied in our survey is as thorough as is possible given the access available into the drainage system(s) during our visit.
We will not be held liable for any defects, junctions or connections obscured by silt, debris, tree roots, high water levels or steam during the survey works. Likewise, any concealed connections, inlets or branch lines that enter manholes, chambers or additional drainage systems that were inaccessible during our visit.
The lifting and replacement of floor coverings, floor boards, decking or the removal of kitchen units and bathroom furniture is to be undertaken by specialist contractors at your own cost unless otherwise stated within our report.
We will not be held liable for any costs or damage caused by the lifting/replacement of flooring if the Client decides to have this work undertaken to allow access to any concealed connections, inlets or branch lines that enter manholes, chambers or additional drainage systems.
Likewise, we will not be held liable for any costs or damage caused by the removal of fixtures, fittings or ‘boxing in’ if the Client decides to have this work undertaken to allow access to any manholes, concealed connections, inlets or branch lines that enter manholes, chambers or additional drainage systems.
The prices supplied for repair works include all plant, labour and materials.
Unfortunately, rats can become trapped within a property after a drain repair. Once we have cut off their main water and food supply they are more likely to go to any traps or rodenticide put down. For this reason, we strongly recommend that you continue using pest control services prior to, during and after any drain repairs and for at least six weeks after the last known rodent activity.
On average, activity may continue for a couple of weeks depending on any available food or water, we have known rats to survive for 6 to 8 weeks on many occasions if they access and store food and/or if they can access roof gutters for water.
Good house-keeping is vital in containing rodent activity so any dry food such as dog biscuits, crisps, biscuits, fruit bowls etc should be put out of reach.
We will not be held liable for any ongoing or additional pest control costs incurred after any drain repairs or any damaged caused by rats as a result of them being trapped within the property after a drain repair.
Rats leave a pheromone trail wherever they go, and they will work hard to return to a nesting site, for this reason we will highlight any defects such as displaced joints or fractures that may be manipulated by rodents to regain access to your property
Rats have also been known on rare occasions to gnaw through certain pipe materials such as plastic (including pan connectors at the rear of a WC) or pitch fibre to regain entry after a repair has blocked their original entry point. We will not be liable for any additional works or costs that this creates.
On rare occasions rats will find a defect in a neighbour’s drainage system and try to return to your property. Whilst we are always happy to return to site and confirm that any repair works undertaken by ourselves are sound, additional costs will be incurred for the survey of neighbouring systems. We cannot access and survey a neighbour’s drainage system without their consent, regardless of who is paying for the survey works.
The defects highlighted in the report are the most likely cause of rodent access from your drainage system into your property. We will not be liable for any further investigation or repair costs if rats are entering your property via a neighbour’s drainage system after the specified repair works in our report have been undertaken.

Payment:

Payment in full is due within 7 days of invoice.
If the property owner is present during the survey the findings will be discussed at the time of the visit. On occasions where the owner is not present a brief report of the findings will be sent via email following the survey, alongside any recommendations.
Following the drain survey we will prepare a written report with still photographs of any defects found and recommendations of how to repair any defects identified.
Should no defects be identified we will prepare a report confirming this, alongside any additional recommendations or observations made during the survey.
The full written report will be sent via email within 7 working days of payment being received.

Cooling-off Period:

You have a legal right to change your mind within 14 calendar days after the day we contact you to confirm your drain survey booking. However, once we have completed the drain survey you cannot change your mind, even if the 14-day cancellation period is still running.
If you cancel after we have undertaken the drain survey, you must pay us for the services provided up until the time you tell us that you have changed your mind.
If we arrive at the appointment and it is decided you no longer require a drain survey, or we arrive on the day and time agreed and nobody is present at the property, a charge of £100 plus VAT will be payable.

Cancellation Charges:

Cancellations received during the 14-day cooling off period:

No charge.

Cancellations received after the 14-day cooling period has concluded:

More than 48 hours prior to the appointment: £50 plus VAT.
Less than 48 hours prior to the appointment: £100 plus VAT.

Squirrel Treatments:

It is your responsibility to keep children and pets away from traps/cages for the duration of the treatment.
Do not relocate any traps/cages that are installed in or around the property as this can have a detrimental effect on controlling the infestation.

Mole Control Programmes:

It is your responsibility to keep children and pets away from traps for the duration of the treatment.
Do not relocate any traps/stick markers that are installed in or around the property as this can have a detrimental effect on controlling the infestation.
Most mole trapping programmes will require 2 visits on average, although it may be more depending on the circumstances. If after 2 visits the problem has not been resolved the pest control technician may recommend that further visits are required. It is at the discretion of the customer if they wish to continue with additional visits recommended by the technician. The options available to the customer will be discussed prior to any further works being undertaken.

Control where the use of firearms is required:

On occasion we will suggest culling of pests, such as feral pigeons, as a method of control.
We will collect and dispose of any culled pests where access to the fallen pest is feasible and safe to do so, we will not be held liable for the removal of any carcasses which are not retrievable due to restricted access/safety concerns.
Shooting will be used strategically, as part of a coordinated programme designed to achieve sustained effective control. It should only be used as an adjunct to more effective methods to remove problem animals that cannot be disposed of by other means.
Shooting will only be performed by skilled operators who have the necessary experience with firearms and who hold the appropriate licences and accreditation. Storage and transportation of firearms and ammunition will comply with relevant legislation requirements.
It is the responsibility of the Client to inform all members of the public/site staff that a shoot is being undertaken. We will inform you prior to the shoot that the visit has been scheduled, to allow this to be communicated to those on site.

ACD PEST CONTROL

our services

SUPPORT