Business Terms and Conditions
DEFINITIONS
1) The client is the person named on all documentation and will be the person for whom we are acting. The client will also be full responsible for paying all application fees and invoices raised.
2) The terms we / us / TCP refers to Andrew Stott trading as The Plan Centre.
GENERALLY
3) Before work can commence on site, it is usually necessary to obtain Planning and Building Control Approval. Sometimes Listed Building Approval is also required. Since the Party Wall Act came into force on 1st July, 1997 stricter controls have come into force. In order to avoid infringing your neighbour`s rights we recommend that you notify them of your intentions. In any case, if any foundations come within 3m of your neighbour and are likely to exceed the depth of your neighbours foundations you as owner, are required to notify your neighbour. As part of our brief, we will apply for Planning and Building Control approval for you. However, obtaining your neighbours consent is not part of our brief. You must ensure all approvals have been obtained prior to commencing work.
4) Please note, as agents we cannot guarantee the approval of any Planning Application. Should the application be refused by Planning, the invoice payable to TPC is still payable. Any additional work required to make amendments to drawings or make any further application will be invoiced at £50 per hour.
N.B.The plans must NOT be acted upon until they have been approved for by Building Control / Planning Permission / Permitted Development and the approval notices have been obtained. Should you (or your builder) commence work without receiving confirmation from us that the approvals have been obtained then you do so at your own risk. The approval from Building Control must be Full Plans - no a Building Notice.
5)Information may be required by other professionals such as structural calculations, energy performance reports. This third party information will be integrate into the plans where required, it is hereby agreed that Andrew Stott / TPC will not be held responsibly by the client for their work or performance. Where other professionals are engaged, TPC does so on the clients behalf. The client will be fully responsible for paying all fee where professional are engaged on their behalf.
SERVICE
6) The normal service carried out on your behalf by us is the initial survey of the affected parts of the property to allow the preparation of design drawings at scales 1:100 and 1:50 with sufficient details and information for interpretation of the proposed works for submission to Planning and Building Control where specifically detailed to do so within our agreed services. Please note that the survey undertaken is a measured survey to allow the drawings to be produced, we will not assess the condition of the existing property or make comment on any defects.
ON-SITE SUPERVISION OF THE WORKS
7) Our normal charge does not include on-site supervision unless agreed otherwise. You are advised to check the builders work carefully as it proceeds. If in doubt about any section of work. Ask your builder / Local Authority / Building Control Inspector.
PROVISION OF DRAWINGS FOR CLIENT APPROVAL (ERROR DETECTION)
8) Drawings will be provided for your approval approximately 14 days after we have visited your house. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of plans it is essential that you examine the plans / information carefully and ensure that the details are to your satisfaction. If you do not check your plans you could cause yourself a great deal of trouble on site if we misunderstand your instructions or an error escapes detection. In particular you should check that the major dimensions are as you instructed. No claim will be accepted at a later date for alleged defect or negligence on our part and it is a specific condition of contract that at no time will our liability exceed the value of the fee charged. Once we receive your instructions to proceed to make applications / instruct engineers or any other professional, this will be taken as approval of the drawings. All projects include 1 hour of amendments / revision time. Where the total revision time exceeds 1 hour, the additional time will be invoiced at £50 per hour.
BUILDING CONTROL / BUILDING CONTROL FEES
9) Most projects require Building Control approval and we will advise you regarding the appropriate fee charges levied by the Local Authority / Approved Inspector. You will be responsible for paying for the Building Control Fees direct. The application method we recommend is Full Plans where all information is provided at the application stage.
Should the client instruct for the Building Control application to be submitted as a Building Notice and then proceed to commence work, they do so knowing that they have instructed the project to start without Building Regulations approval in place. All work undertaken is at the clients own risk and we cannot confirm that the drawings will be free from any Building Regulations error. TPC will not be held responsible for any modification works which are required on site. The client takes full responsibility.
PLANNING PERMISSION / PLANNING FEES/ORDNANCE SURVEY FEES
10) Most projects require Planning Approval and we will advise you regarding the appropriate fee charges levied by the Local Authority. You will be responsible for paying for the Planning Fees direct. Please note that the application will be invalid until the application fee has been paid in full.
11) If your property is a listed building or in a special area or if there are tree preservation orders in force, it is essential that you let us know during our visit so that we can make the necessary applications on your behalf. The responsibility for letting us know whether or not the property is listed or in a special area is your responsibility and no claims will be accepted at a later date if this information is not forthcoming at the quotation stage. If you are in doubt you must write / telephone your local council and let us know as soon as possible if these additional consents are needed. Applying for Listed Building Approval etc. should this be required it is an extra service and additional fee may be levied by us for this work.
12)Planning usually require an ordnance survey extract to be submitted with a planning application. You will be responsible for this cost. If required TPC will obtain the location map / site plan on your behalf at a costs of approximately £35.
USE OF THE DRAWINGS / COPY RIGHT
13) All information produced by TPC is purely for the use of you or your builder and are not for issue to third parties without permission and we will not be responsible for any alleged losses incurred should third parties act upon the details provided.
FOUNDATION DETAILS
14) It is beyond our terms and conditions to dig trial holes (inspection pits to check the sub-soil conditions) should you wish to have trial holes excavated, we will arrange for a local contractor to do so but you will have to bear the cost of this work. Without trial holes being excavated, it is impossible for us to know the exact condition of the sub-strata in your area. Dimensions given on foundations are therefore only indicative of normal soil conditions. It is necessary to revise the foundations on site once the works commence this is not a defect on the plans and the plans specifically advise the builder to agree exact foundations details with the building control inspector. Should it be necessary to provide calculations or amend the drawings in the light of on site excavation this is an additional service and a charge will be made.
DRAINAGE DETAILS
15) All drainage shown on the plans is provisional and may require on site agreement with the building control officer. All drainage runs indicated on plans are assumed, a full draiange survey has not been undertaken. We will not undertake a search with any service provided / United Utilities. If you are aware of any drainage or public sewer locations, you must advise TPC and we will include this information on the drawings. If you suspect your proposed building work will be built close to or over a public sewer you will be responsible for obtaining a Building Over Agreement from United Utilities.
DIMENSIONS ON THE DRAWING
16) As we are not supervising the works on site and will not be a party to the contract between yourself and your future builder we make it a condition on our plans that your builder accurately checks all dimensions on site before starting work and before ordering materials. This is specifically done so that all parties are protected against the possibility of an error getting through the checking procedure (see later for details). Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the dimensions on the plan are as accurate as possible, we are only human and errors can occur. In addition minor variations instigated by yourself; the local authority building inspector or your builder, once building works have commenced can have a knock-on effect elsewhere in the structure. We would stress that it is essential for you to insist that your builder carries out these checks before carrying out the work. Should the contractor need to make amendments you should tell the building control officer before carrying them out. We will not accept any claims for negligence or consequential loss, which are the result of non-compliance with the checking procedure.
NATURAL BOUNDARIES
17) We prepare the plans based upon dimensions taken on site. Where there are no obvious boundaries or they are hidden from view by debris, snow or existing buildings, we will agree the dimensions with you. Where fences and walls exist between properties we accept these `natural boundaries` as being correct. If you have any doubt regarding the ownership of any land we would advise you to speak to your neighbour and obtain a letter giving their consent to the proposals or contact your solicitor or building society for clarification.
FEE CHARGES
18) An estimate will be provided (if required) for the likely cost of fee charges. The estimate is based upon our normal hourly charges of £65 per hour. However, should your requirements or Local Authority requirements create excessive demands on time, we reserve the right to revise charges as necessary. An invoice to cover fees will be issued to you immediately the plans are complete and issued to you for your review. The invoice will be due for immediate payment. We reserve the right to charge interest after 14 days on unsettled invoices at a rate of 2% above the current National Westminster base rate.
FEES NOT INCLUSIVE
19) Our fees are exclusive of all Local Authority charges (i.e. planning and building control charges), ordnance survey charges and the cost of consultant Engineers charges for preparation of structural calculations, which may be required by Building Control.
DISBURSEMENTS
20) The cost of printing drawings for your personal use will be charged at a current local printer`s rate plus postage
V.A.T.
21) We are not VAT registered and statutory VAT will not be added to our fees.
PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE
22) We provide professional indemnity insurance to cover our design work. This insurance cover is renewed annually.
TERMINATION OF TPC SERVICES
23) Termination of the agreement by the client prior to submissions to the local authority will not affect the fees due to TPC and other specialist / consultants where work has been undertaken whether wholly or in part. The agreed fees shall be payable as set out in these conditions OR any agreement.
1) The client is the person named on all documentation and will be the person for whom we are acting. The client will also be full responsible for paying all application fees and invoices raised.
2) The terms we / us / TCP refers to Andrew Stott trading as The Plan Centre.
GENERALLY
3) Before work can commence on site, it is usually necessary to obtain Planning and Building Control Approval. Sometimes Listed Building Approval is also required. Since the Party Wall Act came into force on 1st July, 1997 stricter controls have come into force. In order to avoid infringing your neighbour`s rights we recommend that you notify them of your intentions. In any case, if any foundations come within 3m of your neighbour and are likely to exceed the depth of your neighbours foundations you as owner, are required to notify your neighbour. As part of our brief, we will apply for Planning and Building Control approval for you. However, obtaining your neighbours consent is not part of our brief. You must ensure all approvals have been obtained prior to commencing work.
4) Please note, as agents we cannot guarantee the approval of any Planning Application. Should the application be refused by Planning, the invoice payable to TPC is still payable. Any additional work required to make amendments to drawings or make any further application will be invoiced at £50 per hour.
N.B.The plans must NOT be acted upon until they have been approved for by Building Control / Planning Permission / Permitted Development and the approval notices have been obtained. Should you (or your builder) commence work without receiving confirmation from us that the approvals have been obtained then you do so at your own risk. The approval from Building Control must be Full Plans - no a Building Notice.
5)Information may be required by other professionals such as structural calculations, energy performance reports. This third party information will be integrate into the plans where required, it is hereby agreed that Andrew Stott / TPC will not be held responsibly by the client for their work or performance. Where other professionals are engaged, TPC does so on the clients behalf. The client will be fully responsible for paying all fee where professional are engaged on their behalf.
SERVICE
6) The normal service carried out on your behalf by us is the initial survey of the affected parts of the property to allow the preparation of design drawings at scales 1:100 and 1:50 with sufficient details and information for interpretation of the proposed works for submission to Planning and Building Control where specifically detailed to do so within our agreed services. Please note that the survey undertaken is a measured survey to allow the drawings to be produced, we will not assess the condition of the existing property or make comment on any defects.
ON-SITE SUPERVISION OF THE WORKS
7) Our normal charge does not include on-site supervision unless agreed otherwise. You are advised to check the builders work carefully as it proceeds. If in doubt about any section of work. Ask your builder / Local Authority / Building Control Inspector.
PROVISION OF DRAWINGS FOR CLIENT APPROVAL (ERROR DETECTION)
8) Drawings will be provided for your approval approximately 14 days after we have visited your house. Whilst every effort is made to ensure the accuracy of plans it is essential that you examine the plans / information carefully and ensure that the details are to your satisfaction. If you do not check your plans you could cause yourself a great deal of trouble on site if we misunderstand your instructions or an error escapes detection. In particular you should check that the major dimensions are as you instructed. No claim will be accepted at a later date for alleged defect or negligence on our part and it is a specific condition of contract that at no time will our liability exceed the value of the fee charged. Once we receive your instructions to proceed to make applications / instruct engineers or any other professional, this will be taken as approval of the drawings. All projects include 1 hour of amendments / revision time. Where the total revision time exceeds 1 hour, the additional time will be invoiced at £50 per hour.
BUILDING CONTROL / BUILDING CONTROL FEES
9) Most projects require Building Control approval and we will advise you regarding the appropriate fee charges levied by the Local Authority / Approved Inspector. You will be responsible for paying for the Building Control Fees direct. The application method we recommend is Full Plans where all information is provided at the application stage.
Should the client instruct for the Building Control application to be submitted as a Building Notice and then proceed to commence work, they do so knowing that they have instructed the project to start without Building Regulations approval in place. All work undertaken is at the clients own risk and we cannot confirm that the drawings will be free from any Building Regulations error. TPC will not be held responsible for any modification works which are required on site. The client takes full responsibility.
PLANNING PERMISSION / PLANNING FEES/ORDNANCE SURVEY FEES
10) Most projects require Planning Approval and we will advise you regarding the appropriate fee charges levied by the Local Authority. You will be responsible for paying for the Planning Fees direct. Please note that the application will be invalid until the application fee has been paid in full.
11) If your property is a listed building or in a special area or if there are tree preservation orders in force, it is essential that you let us know during our visit so that we can make the necessary applications on your behalf. The responsibility for letting us know whether or not the property is listed or in a special area is your responsibility and no claims will be accepted at a later date if this information is not forthcoming at the quotation stage. If you are in doubt you must write / telephone your local council and let us know as soon as possible if these additional consents are needed. Applying for Listed Building Approval etc. should this be required it is an extra service and additional fee may be levied by us for this work.
12)Planning usually require an ordnance survey extract to be submitted with a planning application. You will be responsible for this cost. If required TPC will obtain the location map / site plan on your behalf at a costs of approximately £35.
USE OF THE DRAWINGS / COPY RIGHT
13) All information produced by TPC is purely for the use of you or your builder and are not for issue to third parties without permission and we will not be responsible for any alleged losses incurred should third parties act upon the details provided.
FOUNDATION DETAILS
14) It is beyond our terms and conditions to dig trial holes (inspection pits to check the sub-soil conditions) should you wish to have trial holes excavated, we will arrange for a local contractor to do so but you will have to bear the cost of this work. Without trial holes being excavated, it is impossible for us to know the exact condition of the sub-strata in your area. Dimensions given on foundations are therefore only indicative of normal soil conditions. It is necessary to revise the foundations on site once the works commence this is not a defect on the plans and the plans specifically advise the builder to agree exact foundations details with the building control inspector. Should it be necessary to provide calculations or amend the drawings in the light of on site excavation this is an additional service and a charge will be made.
DRAINAGE DETAILS
15) All drainage shown on the plans is provisional and may require on site agreement with the building control officer. All drainage runs indicated on plans are assumed, a full draiange survey has not been undertaken. We will not undertake a search with any service provided / United Utilities. If you are aware of any drainage or public sewer locations, you must advise TPC and we will include this information on the drawings. If you suspect your proposed building work will be built close to or over a public sewer you will be responsible for obtaining a Building Over Agreement from United Utilities.
DIMENSIONS ON THE DRAWING
16) As we are not supervising the works on site and will not be a party to the contract between yourself and your future builder we make it a condition on our plans that your builder accurately checks all dimensions on site before starting work and before ordering materials. This is specifically done so that all parties are protected against the possibility of an error getting through the checking procedure (see later for details). Whilst every effort is made to ensure that the dimensions on the plan are as accurate as possible, we are only human and errors can occur. In addition minor variations instigated by yourself; the local authority building inspector or your builder, once building works have commenced can have a knock-on effect elsewhere in the structure. We would stress that it is essential for you to insist that your builder carries out these checks before carrying out the work. Should the contractor need to make amendments you should tell the building control officer before carrying them out. We will not accept any claims for negligence or consequential loss, which are the result of non-compliance with the checking procedure.
NATURAL BOUNDARIES
17) We prepare the plans based upon dimensions taken on site. Where there are no obvious boundaries or they are hidden from view by debris, snow or existing buildings, we will agree the dimensions with you. Where fences and walls exist between properties we accept these `natural boundaries` as being correct. If you have any doubt regarding the ownership of any land we would advise you to speak to your neighbour and obtain a letter giving their consent to the proposals or contact your solicitor or building society for clarification.
FEE CHARGES
18) An estimate will be provided (if required) for the likely cost of fee charges. The estimate is based upon our normal hourly charges of £65 per hour. However, should your requirements or Local Authority requirements create excessive demands on time, we reserve the right to revise charges as necessary. An invoice to cover fees will be issued to you immediately the plans are complete and issued to you for your review. The invoice will be due for immediate payment. We reserve the right to charge interest after 14 days on unsettled invoices at a rate of 2% above the current National Westminster base rate.
FEES NOT INCLUSIVE
19) Our fees are exclusive of all Local Authority charges (i.e. planning and building control charges), ordnance survey charges and the cost of consultant Engineers charges for preparation of structural calculations, which may be required by Building Control.
DISBURSEMENTS
20) The cost of printing drawings for your personal use will be charged at a current local printer`s rate plus postage
V.A.T.
21) We are not VAT registered and statutory VAT will not be added to our fees.
PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE
22) We provide professional indemnity insurance to cover our design work. This insurance cover is renewed annually.
TERMINATION OF TPC SERVICES
23) Termination of the agreement by the client prior to submissions to the local authority will not affect the fees due to TPC and other specialist / consultants where work has been undertaken whether wholly or in part. The agreed fees shall be payable as set out in these conditions OR any agreement.
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