Full Terms and Conditions
1. Fees
1.1 VAT is charged at the prevailing rate on all fees, diets and drugs.
1.2 Charges are determined according to the drugs, materials, consumables and diets used, together with the type of work undertaken and time required.
1.3 Upon Request you will receive a detailed fee note for every consultation, surgical procedure or transaction with us. 1.3 Our fee list is available on request.
2. Methods of Payment
2.1 Accounts are due for settlement at the end of the consultation, on the discharge of your pet or upon collection of drugs/diets
2.2 You may settle your account using the following:
• Cash
• Cheque or BACS/FPS
• Credit/Debit Card Switch, Solo, Mastercard, Visa, Delta (not Amex)
2.3 Accounts are only available by prior agreement.
3. Estimate of Treatment Costs
3.1 We will happily provide a written estimate as to the probable costs of a course of treatment.
3.2 Please bear in mind that any estimate given can only be approximate. A pet's illness may not follow a conventional course and your pet's welfare is our primary concern.
4. Settlement Terms
4.1 Should an account not be settled within 14 days; a reminder will be sent with an additional fee in respect of administrative costs incurred.
Interest may be added to overdue accounts at the rate of 8% over base lending rate.
4.3 Should it be necessary for further reminders to be sent; further charges may be incurred.
4.4 After due notice to you the client, overdue accounts will be referred to our debt collection agency or solicitors and further charges will be levied in respect of costs incurred in collecting the debt, such as:
• Production of Reports and Calls
• Home Visits, etc.
• Court Fees
4.5 Any cheque returned by our bank as unpaid, any credit card payment not honoured and any cash tendered that is found to be counterfeit will result in the account being restored to the original sum, with further charges being added in respect of bank charges and administrative costs, together with interest on the principal sum.
5. Inability to Pay
5.1 If for any reason you are unable to settle your account as specified, we ask you to discuss the matter as soon as possible with a member of staff.
5.2 Please note that instalments or part payments of accounts may only be sanctioned with the express written permission of the Practice Principal, or the Practice Manager.
6. Pet Health Insurance
6.1 We strongly support the principle of insuring your pet against unexpected illness or accidents. Please ask for details about insurance from any member of staff.
6.2 Please note that it is your responsibility to settle your account and then reclaim the fees from your insurance company.
6.3 We do not conduct any treatment or procedure subject to the costs being covered by your insurance company.
7. Complaints and Standards
7.1 We hope you never feel the need to complain about the standards of our service. However, if you feel that there is something you wish to complain about, please direct your comments in the first instance to the Practice Manager.
8. Ownership of Records
8.1 Case records and similar documents are the property of and shall be retained by the practice.
8.2 Copies with a summary of the history will be passed, on request, to another veterinary surgeon taking over the case.
9. Ownership of Radiographs and Similar Records
9.1 The care given to your animal may involve performing some specific investigations, for example taking radiographs, performing ultrasound and CT scans.
9.2 Even though we make a charge for carrying out these investigations and interpreting the results, ownership of the resulting record, for example, a radiograph, remains the property of the practice.
10. Out-of-Hours Service
10.1 The practice operates an out-of-hours service for emergencies.
10.2 The out-of-hours service can be accessed by telephoning any branch and the call will be diverted to a telephonist or the duty veterinary surgeon as necessary.
10.3 Out-of-hours small animal emergency cases are seen at a nominated branch.
10.4 You will be expected to transport your animal to the nominated surgery for treatment.
10.5 House visits may be undertaken at the vet’s discretion. Clients are not entitled to a house visit unless the animal is judged un-movable or is trapped.
11. Variations in Terms of Trading
11.1 No addition or variation of these conditions will bind the practice unless it is specifically agreed in writing and signed by one of the practice principals.
11.2 No agent or person employed by, or under contract with the practice has the authority to alter or vary these conditions in any way.
12. Applicable Law
12.1 These terms are governed by and constructed in accordance with, English law. The Courts of England will have exclusive jurisdiction in relation to any claim, dispute or difference concerning these terms and any matter arising from it. Each party irrevocably waives any right it may have to object to any action being brought in these courts, to claim that the action has been bought in an inappropriate forum, or to claim that those courts do not have jurisdiction.
12.2 If any provision in these standard terms of business, or its application, is found to be invalid, illegal or otherwise unenforceable in any respect, the validity, legality or enforceability of any other provision shall not in any way be affected or impaired.
13. General Data Protection Regulations
13.1 Client information and records
Client name, address, contact phone number, and email address is recorded in a dedicated customer relation management system; our CRM is designed and maintained by Teleos systems ltd. This is required to set up a personal account for the client where any additional information can be stored. We also record clients’ pet details including species, breed, DOB and any additional medical history obtained from previous vets. All client information and clinical notes are recorded on a single dedicated system. We are required by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons to retain clinical histories indefinitely and diagnostic records such as X rays and CT scans for 7 years. Our clients still retain the right for their personal information to be erased from the record.
Information is stored within an onsite server and duplicated across branches. This information is not accessible by, or shared with, any third parties. Information is backed up to an encrypted hard drive every 24 hours. No additional personal information is stored. Server backup copies are retained for 30 days.
13.2 Phones and card machines
Our incoming and outgoing phone calls are recorded and retained for 30 days at which point they are overwritten. Phone calls are recorded for reference and dispute resolution only. We do not share this information with any third parties.
Our card machines are run in compliance with current data protection regulations. Card details are not retained on phone recordings. Time, date, and last 4 digits of the card number are recorded within the customer service system. No additional card details are recorded in any additional locations.
13.3 Insurance Policy information
Insurance details relating to the client accounts are kept in a secure location at the corresponding branch. The individual insurance folder contains information relating to the animal’s policy only, this includes claim history, dates, and amounts. Personal information for the client is referenced in our CRM system.
13.4 CCTV
Some of our sites operate CCTV systems to help ensure staff and client safety. The CCTV footage is recorded to an onsite dedicated server. We retain images for 30 days, following this the data is overwritten. We do not share any of this information with any other companies or organisations, but this information may be shared when requested with Police forces and other official government organisations and agencies.
13.5 Internet and social media
We use a website to advertise as well as third party services such as Yell Business. If you contact us via our website third parties Yell.com will share with us your name and email address and your enquiry so we can process your request. Third parties use and store cookies under their own information and policies compliant with relevant GDPR regulations. We do not use or share cookies for with third parties. We do not retain any personal information through our online website.
We also use the social media site Facebook to promote the company and its services. By commenting, liking or friending the company Facebook account you and your friends may receive posts from our company Facebook account.
13.5 Marketing and advertising
We do not send any general marketing information, emails or text messages unless prior consent has been given. This is done in the form of “opt-in” at the point the account is set up or by our data protection questionnaire you will be asked to complete when visiting our practice. We may send you specific medical information about your ongoing care such as booster reminders. If you do not wish to receive this information, it can be stopped by not selecting the corresponding “opt-in” box on the GDPR questionnaire update.
14. Overnight Care Provision
14.1 Our staff are not on-site 24hrs a day, however, will remain at the practice should a patient require round the clock treatment.
14.2 Regular inpatient checks are set between the vets and nurses according to patient requirement. The minimum attendance to any patient out of hours is a single check during the night as well as regular care during our opening hours.
14.3 Poor or infirm patients are reviewed and will receive more regular checks as they require. Additional out of hours checks can be arranged by discussion with the Veterinary Surgeon, this may incur additional fees.
Willow Veterinary Clinic Ltd is a trading name of Willow Veterinary Clinic Ltd, 385 Leek Road, Endon, Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, ST9 9BA - VAT Number 536785896 Company registration 06523302.