Definitions
The Client: The individual or organisation with whom the Company is entering into this agreement.
The Company: D20-One Structural Design.
Work or Works: The services to be provided by the Company.
Fee Proposals
The Fee Proposal will explain the services to be provided by the Company and are open for acceptance for a period of 60 days from the date of sending.
These Terms and Conditions must be read in conjunction with the details, assumptions and exclusions contained within the Proposal.
Fee Proposals may be submitted on a fixed price or hourly rates. Where estimates of charges are included, these are clearly identified, and the Client should regard these only as a guide and not a fixed amount.
Any disbursements or expenses due are shown within the Fee Proposal. Any additional expenses or disbursements are expected to be charged at cost however, the Company reserves the right to include an administration charge where appropriate. This is agreed with the Client in advance of works commencing.
Additional visits, works, alterations or variations to the scope of works for which the Fee Proposal is produced may be subject to additional fee. Additional works, alterations and variations to the Fee Proposal shall be agreed in writing between the Company and the Client prior to the Company proceeding with the additional works.
With respect to external specialist services and surveys which may be required in addition to the services of the Company, Fee Proposals will be prepared using rates and schedules of prices received from external specialists. Should such external services be subject to increased cost during the period between the date of the Fee Proposal and the date of the order to commence work, the Company will inform the Client of any such increases in writing prior to commencing the work.
The services outlined in the Fee Proposal will proceed only once the Client has accepted the Fee Proposal and these Terms and Conditions.
Any work instructed and subsequently cancelled may attract abortive costs. Abortive costs will be charged at the Company’s standard hourly rates plus reimbursable costs and expenses as appropriate. External specialist services and surveys will also be chargeable, or any part thereof, where costs are incurred prior to cancellation.
Acceptance of Fee Proposals
It is assumed that any instruction from the Client is an acceptance of these Terms and Conditions unless a separate agreement has been made.
Unless specifically agreed in writing to the contrary, the Client is the person, Company, Authority, or other body to whom our Fee Quotation is addressed, unless the Client is specifically identified otherwise and the Company, Authority or other body to whom the Fee Quotation is addressed holds full legal agency to agree to enter into a contract with the Company on the Client’s behalf.
These terms shall not be treated as varied or waived unless expressly agreed in writing by the parties to the contract that these terms are to be varied or waved. Subject to any agreement, these terms have precedence over any others contained in other documents, emails or letters.
It is agreed that neither the Company nor the Client intends that any of these Terms and Conditions of engagement will be enforceable by virtue of the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 by any person other than the Company and the Client.
In accepting these Terms and Conditions, the Client agrees to provide the Company with all necessary input information.
If the services are no longer required as agreed, notification should be provided in writing by the Client at the earliest opportunity. Should work have already commenced the Client is expected to settle any out-of-pocket expenses incurred by the Company and agrees to pay for the services undertaken to date.
Services
Unless expressly agreed in writing as a qualification to this clause, the Company shall not be liable for the performance of any other person or third-party, nor responsible for checking or reporting on their performance.
Whilst all reasonable efforts are made to check and validate information supplied, the Company cannot be responsible for errors arising directly or indirectly from incorrect information supplied.
Design is undertaken in accordance with relevant regulations and standards, and subject to professional judgment. Fee Proposals do not include for amendments due to preferences required by any reviewer or approver.
All services, reports or other communications shall be for the Client’s benefit and reliance only. No reliance, obligation or reliability is acknowledged to any other party unless specifically agreed in writing.
Whilst reasonable efforts are made to commence and complete the works in accordance with the agreed programme, the Company accepts no responsibility for losses associated with delays.
Consents not Obtained by the Company
Fee Proposals do not include for obtaining any consents unless specifically noted.
Native Format Files
All native format files remain the property of the Company and will not be released unless this provision is contained within the Fee Proposal. All documents will be issued in .pdf format unless a provision for other formats is contained within the Fee Proposal.
Unforeseen Conditions
The company shall be under no liability if it is unable to carry out any of its services for any reason beyond its control including (without limiting the foregoing); act of God, acts of terrorism, legislation, war, fire, flood, drought, failure of power supply, lock-out, strike or any other action taken by employees in contemplation or furtherance of dispute.
Clients are advised to appoint an independent Party Wall Surveyor if required. No responsibility is accepted for any costs associated with the failure to do so.
The Company takes no responsibility for any costs associated with the failure to advise on boundaries, easements, underground or overhead services and rights of light.
Time Charge Arrangements
Accurate records of all hours spent undertaking the works agreed are held and can be provided as required. These hours will be charged at the rates stated in the Fee Proposal.
Invoices
The Company will generally issue invoices on completion of the design work or as agreed within the Fee Proposal. If design co-ordination or Client approval is prolonged, then the Client agrees to pay for the services undertaken to date.
If no schedule of payments is included in the Fee Proposal, the full balance must be paid prior to release of information.
The Company reserves the right to request payment from the Client for any third-party costs that are to be paid by the Company on the Clients behalf.
Where fees are quoted on the basis of a percentage of the total construction cost, initial and interim invoices will be based upon appropriate agreed estimates of the total construction cost at the time of invoice. As work proceeds and actual construction costs are known, from calculation by a quantity surveyor or through tendering, interim invoices and final invoices will be raised based upon the actual total construction cost and will include any uplift in the fee as a result of increased construction costs over and above the original estimate. Should a scheme be designed as instructed by the Client and then be subject to value engineering to reduce the total construction cost, invoices for work completed up to the commencement of the value engineering will be based upon the higher total construction cost prior to the value engineering commencing. Design work required to modify the original scheme for value engineering purposes will be charged as an additional fee. Valuing ongoing work after completion of the value engineering process will be based upon the reduced construction cost resulting from the value engineering process.
If the Client intends to withhold any payment, they shall notify the Company not less than one day before the final date for payment, stating the grounds for withholding payment and the deduction attributable to each ground.
Liability and Insurances
The Company will have, before the commencement of this agreement, Professional Indemnity Liability Insurance adequately covering its professional liability under this agreement.
Notwithstanding anything to the contrary in this agreement, the liability of the Company under or in connection with this agreement whether in contract or in tort [delict], in negligence, for breach of statutory duty or otherwise (other than in respect of personal injury or death) shall not exceed in aggregate the sum of 10 x the value of the agreed fee.
No action or proceedings under or in respect of [this Agreement] whether in contract, in tort [delict], in negligence, for breach of statutory duty or otherwise shall be commenced against [the Company] after the expiry of [six] years from the date of completion of services or the termination of the services if earlier.
Net Contribution
Further and notwithstanding anything to the contrary contained in [this Agreement] and without prejudice to any provision in [this Agreement] whereby liability is excluded or limited to a lesser amount, the liability of [the Company], if any, for any loss or damage (“the loss or damage”) in respect of any claim or claims shall not exceed such sum as it would be just and equitable for [the Company] to pay having regard to the extent of [the Company’s] responsibility for the loss or damage and on the assumptions that:
(i)All other consultants and advisers, contractors and sub-contractors involved in [the Project] shall have provided contractual undertakings to [the Client] on terms no less onerous than those set out in [this Agreement] in respect of the carrying out of their obligations in connection with [the Project]; and
(ii)There are no exclusions of or limitations of liability nor joint insurance or coinsurance provisions between [the Client] and any other party to [the Project] and that any such other party who is responsible to any extent for the loss or damage is contractually liable to [the Client] for the loss or damage; and
All the parties referred to in (i) above, have paid to [the Client] such proportion of the loss or damage which it would be just and equitable for them to pay having regard to the extent of their responsibility for the loss or damage.
Intellectual Property
The copyright of all drawings, reports, specifications and other documents and information prepared by the Company on behalf of the Client shall remain the property of the Company. The Client will not, without the written consent of the Company, disclose to any person any information obtained by it in connection with this agreement.
The Company’s work will remain the exclusive property of the Company until the relevant invoice is paid in full. The Company accepts no liability or obligation for any reports, designs, drawings or other services, for which our rendered invoices remain unpaid.
Archiving
The Company will store original reports, designs, drawings, and other documentation prepared for the Client in the Company’s archive at no additional cost. However, should the Client (or the Company, to enable the Company to deal with any further instructions from the Client) require further copies of the original reports, designs, drawings, and other documentation, then the Company may charge the Client for the work necessary to comply with the Client’s instruction at the Company’s standard hourly rates plus disbursements.
GDPR
The Company shall hold personal information of the Client only that which it believes is necessary for the Company to provide the agreed services. The Client has the right under the General Data Protection Regulation, 2018 to request the information The Company holds and to make any necessary changes to ensure that it is accurate and kept up to date. The Company, will not, without prior consent by the Client, pass any personal information onto any third-parties except where required to do so by statue, legal reasons or requested by the government.