Legal
Terms and conditions
The terms on which Universal Cleaning Ltd provides cleaning services, and the terms on which you use this website.
The terms on which Universal Cleaning Ltd provides cleaning services, and the terms on which you use this website.
Universal Cleaning Limited is a company registered in England and Wales under company number 01833186. Registered office: Unit 13 Branksome Business Park, Bourne Valley Road, Poole, Dorset, BH12 1DW. VAT registration number: 393 0393 44. You can reach us at [email protected] or 01202 892002.
These terms apply to cleaning services we provide, unless we have signed a separate written contract with you, in which case that contract takes precedence over anything here that conflicts with it.
Most of our work is for businesses, local authorities and housing associations. Some of it, such as end of tenancy cleans, is for individuals. Where a section applies only to one or the other, it says so.
We usually quote after a site visit, because premises vary more than a description conveys. A quote is valid for 30 days unless it says otherwise, and is based on what we were shown or told at the time.
A contract is formed when you accept our quote in writing, or when we start work at your request, whichever happens first.
We will tell you before doing anything that changes the price, and we will not charge for extra work you have not agreed to. A price may change where the premises differ materially from what we quoted on, where the area, frequency or specification changes, where we cannot get access at the agreed time, or where specialist equipment or materials turn out to be needed.
VAT is charged at the prevailing rate and our VAT registration number is 393 0393 44. Quotes given to businesses are exclusive of VAT unless stated otherwise. Quotes given to consumers are inclusive of VAT, so the price we quote is the price you pay.
Contract cleaning is invoiced monthly in arrears. One-off work is invoiced on completion. Payment is due within 30 days of the invoice date.
Where a customer is a business, we may charge statutory interest on late payment under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998. That right exists whether or not we mention it, and we would always ask first.
So that we can work safely and on time, we need access to the premises at the agreed times, somewhere to park where parking is controlled, working power and water, and to be told about anything on site that could affect safety. If we are given keys, alarm codes or access cards, we will keep them securely and return them when the contract ends.
If we arrive and cannot get in, we will contact you and try to reschedule. We may charge for a wasted visit where the reason was outside our control.
We will not handle clinical or biohazardous material, asbestos, or anything requiring a licence or permit we do not hold. We will not work in conditions that are unsafe, and we may stop work and leave if a situation on site becomes unsafe, telling you why as soon as we can. Where a task is outside the agreed specification, we will quote for it separately rather than absorb it.
Hazardous waste is the exception to the first sentence, and only within our registration. We are registered with the Environment Agency as an upper tier waste carrier and dealer, registration CBDU67704, so we can collect and transport household and trade hazardous waste such as paints, solvents, oils and batteries under our waste removal service, and we issue a Waste Transfer Note for every collection, or a hazardous waste consignment note where the load is hazardous. That registration does not extend to clinical waste or asbestos, which stay on the list above.
Please secure cash, jewellery, confidential papers and anything of unusual value before we attend, and tell us about anything fragile or valuable that needs particular care. We cannot take responsibility for items we were not told about and would not reasonably have known were there.
Our work is carried out by our own trained, vetted staff. Occasionally, for a large job or to cover absence, we may bring in another crew or contractor. Where we do, we remain fully responsible to you for the work and for the people doing it.
Please do not offer employment directly to a member of our staff during a contract or for six months afterwards without discussing it with us first. Recruiting and training a cleaner is a real cost and this clause exists to protect that, not to restrict anyone's career.
We hold public liability and employer's liability insurance. Certificates are available on request.
If we damage something, tell us within seven days of the visit so that we can inspect it while the cause is still established. We will put right or pay for damage we cause.
We do not exclude or limit our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or for anything else that cannot lawfully be excluded. Beyond that, and except where you are dealing with us as a consumer, our liability for any one claim is limited to the amount you have paid us under the contract in the 12 months before the claim, and we are not liable for loss of profit, loss of business or other indirect losses.
Nothing in these terms affects a consumer's statutory rights under the Consumer Rights Act 2015, including the right to services carried out with reasonable care and skill.
Tell us. Call 01202 892002 or email [email protected] and we will look into it. If any part of a clean has not been done properly, we will return and put it right at no charge, provided you tell us within 24 hours of the visit.
We are not a member of an alternative dispute resolution scheme, and we are not required to be.
If you are a consumer and you booked without meeting us in person, you have a legal right to cancel within 14 days of entering into the contract, without giving a reason. If you ask us to start work during those 14 days and then cancel, you pay for what has already been done. To cancel, tell us in writing at [email protected]; you can use the form at the end of these terms but you do not have to.
Rescheduling a one-off clean. Please give us at least 48 hours' notice. Less than that and we may charge for the booked time, because the slot cannot usually be refilled.
Ending a regular contract. Either of us may end a regular cleaning contract by giving one month's notice in writing. Where you have signed a separate contract with us, the notice period in that contract applies instead.
We may end a contract immediately if invoices go unpaid after we have asked, if the premises become unsafe, or if our staff are treated abusively.
If something genuinely outside our control stops us working, such as severe weather, a utility failure, or the premises being inaccessible, we will contact you and rearrange. Neither of us is liable for a delay caused this way, and you will not be charged for a visit that did not happen.
We sometimes take before and after photographs of our work. We will ask you before using any photograph taken at your premises publicly, and saying no changes nothing about the job or the price.
How we handle personal information is set out in our privacy notice.
We may update these terms. The version that applies to your work is the one published when your contract was formed. We will tell existing contract customers in writing before any change that affects them.
These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales, and the courts of England and Wales have jurisdiction. If you live in Scotland or Northern Ireland you may bring proceedings there.
The content of this site is provided in good faith and for general information. It is not a quote or a binding offer, and specifications and prices for your premises come from a written quote.
The text, images, logo and design of this site belong to us or are used with permission. You may read, print and share pages for your own use. Please do not republish our content as your own, or use the site in a way that damages it or interferes with anyone else's use of it.
We link to other websites occasionally. We are not responsible for their content.
Consumers cancelling under section 12 may use this wording. You do not have to.
To Universal Cleaning Limited, Unit 13 Branksome Business Park, Bourne Valley Road, Poole, Dorset, BH12 1DW, [email protected]:
I hereby give notice that I cancel my contract for the supply of the following service: ______________________
Ordered on: ______________ Name: ______________________
Address: ______________________________________________
Signature (only if this form is sent on paper): ______________ Date: ______________