Terms &
Conditions

1. In these Terms, the following definitions apply:

“Order Confirmation” our confirmation that we will provide the Services to you following your acceptance of our Quotation;

“Price” the Price payable for the Services, as set out in our Quotation;

“Quotation” our quotation for the Services (including the Price) based on the information supplied by you as required under clause 4.3 below;

“Services” The house clearance services carried out for you by us as set out in our Quotation and Order Confirmation, including:

(i) the removal and disposal (including recycling where appropriate) all contents based on the information supplied by you; and

(ii) the breaking up of contents if they are too big, heavy or awkward to remove from the property in one piece or if such items pose an injury risk to staff or could cause potential damage to the property.

“Terms” the terms and conditions that apply to the Services as set out in this document.

“We/us/our” Abacus House Clearance ltd, 3 Hornton Place, London, United Kingdom, W8 4LZ with company number 13798435;

“You” or “your” the customer paying the Price and receiving the Services.

2. Basis of contract

2.1 These are the Terms on which we supply the Services to you. Please read these Terms carefully and ensure that you understand them.

2.2 When you accept our Quotation, this does not mean we have accepted your order for Services. Our acceptance will take place as described in clause 2.3 below. If we are unable to supply you with the Services, we will inform you of this in writing and we will not process any payment.

2.3 These Terms will become binding on you and us when we send you our Order Confirmation, at which point a contract will come into existence between you and us.

3. Changes to Terms

3.1 We may revise these Terms from time to time to reflect changes in relevant laws and regulatory requirements, changes to our Services[, or changes to our methods of operation].

3.2 If we have to revise these Terms under clause 3.1, we will give you at least one month’s written notice of any changes to these Terms before they take effect. You can choose to cancel the contract in accordance with clause 8.

3.3 You may seek a change to the Services requested within [7] calendar days of accepting our Quotation by contacting us. Where this means a change in the Price of the Services, we will notify you of the amended price in writing. You can choose to cancel your request for services in accordance with clause 8.1 in these circumstances.

3.4 If you wish to cancel before the Services have been fulfilled, please see your right to do so in clause 8.
4. Supply of Services

4.1 We will supply the Services to you from the date set out in the Order Confirmation (or as otherwise agreed between us in writing) until the estimated completion date set out in the Quotation.

4.2 We will need to be provided with the following information by you (or someone acting on your behalf and with your express authority), before we can carry out the Services:

4.2.1 the full address and postcode of the property requiring clearing;

4.2.2 client telephone contact details;

4.2.3 the size and type of property (i.e. mansion, terraced, detached, high rise tower block, nursing home accommodation etc.) and number of bedrooms, reception rooms, dining, halls etc.

4.2.4 full details of any lofts, sheds, cellars, greenhouses, garages or outer-buildings and their contents;

4.2.5 full details of any big, unusual, heavy or awkward pieces of furniture or contents (pianos etc);

4.2.6 full details of any pieces of furniture or contents which need unfixed (washers, cookers etc);

4.2.7 full details of any fixtures and fittings which need removed (carpets, curtains etc);

4.2.8 full details of any harmful substances or contents (hypodermic needles, chemicals etc);

4.2.9 full details of any verminous waste or decaying food;

4.2.10 full details of any pieces of furniture or contents (including fixtures and fittings) of the house which need to stay;

4.2.11 full details of any cleaning that is required;

4.2.12 full details of parking and access to the property and any entrance restrictions;

4.2.13 full details of gardening work required such as size of garden, (front, side and rear of premises) and type of work required (such as weeding, pruning, grass cutting, removal of trees or shrubs etc);

4.2.14 full details of wallpaper stripping required (description and sizes of rooms to be stripped, walls, ceilings, type of paper to be removed, woodchip, blown vinyl and how many layers to be removed); and

4.2.15 Other important information regarding services provided (restrictions of access, failure of water and/or power supply,  known dangers, work at height needed etc).

4.3 You are fully responsible for ensuring all information provided to us is correct and complete and that no information is knowingly or otherwise withheld from us. We will not be liable for any delay or failure to carry out the Services where you have not provided this information, or have provided inaccurate or incomplete information. Where photographs are provided in order to provide a quotation, it is your responsibility to provide a true and accurate account of the materials to be removed. We reserve the right to change, amend or increase our quotation if you fail to provide a true account of the materials to be cleared.

4.4 We strive to recycle up to 90% of all waste via a number of avenues which allows us to keep costs down and therefore fees low. However being able to recycle waste depends on local facilities and not all local facilities cater for recycling so we cannot always recycle waste.

4.5 We cannot remove and dispose of large amounts of any chemical substances and other similar materials such as paint, fuels, soil, explosives, rubber tyres and any type of other chemical based substances and materials, due to legislative and insurance restrictions.

4.6 We offer a 3.5 tonne Luton van to perform the Services. Where the Services require a verminous clearance or involves decomposing waste, we reserve the right to use other types of vehicles as appropriate. We will help advise as to what vehicle you will require based on information supplied to us in clause 4.2 above. In the event that the vehicle selected is unavailable due to breakdown, we will supply an alternative vehicle of our choosing.

4.7 We strictly adhere to our own and HSE health and safety regulations and guidance and therefore cannot pack our vans from floor to ceiling and end to end. As a result a gap of at least 1ft from the rear doors/tail-lift must be left free so that nothing will spill out from the van when the doors are opened after transit. This also applies to payload capacities which we are restricted and governed to carrying based on van sizes.

4.8 We may have to suspend the Services if we have to deal with technical problems, or to make improvements (agreed between you and us in writing), to the Services. We will contact you to let you know in advance where this occurs, unless the problem is urgent or an emergency. You do not have to pay for the Services while they are suspended under this clause 4.8 but this does not affect your obligation to pay any invoices we have already sent you.

4.9 In the unlikely event that there is any defect with the Services:

4.9.1 please contact us and tell us as soon as reasonably possible;

4.9.2 please give us a reasonable opportunity to repair or fix any defect; and

4.9.3 we will use every effort to repair or fix the defect as soon as reasonably practicable.

You will not have to pay for us to repair or fix a defect with the Services under this clause 4.9.

4.10 If you are a consumer, you have legal rights in relation to Services not carried out with reasonable skill and care. Advice about your legal rights is available from your local Citizens’ Advice Bureau or Trading Standards Office. Nothing in these Terms will affect these legal rights.

5. Price and payment

5.1 Based on the information supplied to us in clause 4.2 above by you, we will provide you with a Price. This Price will include the Services and any other specific requirements specified by you in relation to clause 4.2 above where this has been agreed by both you and us prior to us undertaking the Services.

5.2 The Price includes up to a maximum of 1.35 tonnes (or applicable volume depending on van size), of waste removal and disposal, the manual labour used to uplift all contents to remove, disposal costs, fuel costs and profit. Going over the maximum allowed gross weight we can carry in our vehicles is punishable by up to a £5,000 fine per offence and may result in licence disqualification. We have found from experience that this maximum weight covers the clearance of most average sized three bedroom properties. Should there be any additional contents requiring removal in excess of this weight (or volume as appropriate), we shall have no responsibility for, or liability in, removal of such contents. We reserve the right to charge an additional fee which will cover the additional removal and disposal costs, or recommend another option to you, you are responsible for any costs should any be incurred in choosing another option, If however the property is cluttered or partially cluttered, we will still ensure it is fully cleared on the day but we may need to do extra loads, every additional load is 50% of the Price. If it looks likely that there will be excess weight then we will strive to bring this to your attention at the beginning of the provision of Services, or as soon as it is recognisable that there will be excess weight to remove and dispose of.

5.3 The Price is due on the completion of the Services. We prefer payment by Bank transfer if you are a commercial business or organisation or cash, cheque, bank transfer, debit or credit card for the full amount if you are a private individual. Please note that all credit card payments will incur a 2% charge. We do not accept payments by American Express or Mastercard. All cheques must be sent within 10 days of the Services being completed. Where the premises are subject to sale by probate, we reserve the right to issue an invoice to the relevant solicitor. Subject to prior agreement in these circumstances we may accept payment on completion of the sale of the probate property. In this case, we require an acknowledgement letter from the solicitor. If our invoice is not settled within six months of completion (and the invoice relates to a probate property) we reserve the right to charge interest in accordance with clause 5.4 below.

5.4 Subject to clause 5.3 above in relation to properties subject to sale by probate, if you do not make a payment to us by the due date for payment, we may charge interest to you on the overdue amount at a rate of 3% a year above the base lending rate of the Bank of England from time to time. This interest shall accrue on a daily basis from the due date until the date of actual payment of the overdue amount, whether before or after judgment. You must pay us interest together with any overdue amount. You will also be responsible for and must pay us any legal fees (including court fees), trace agent or other related fees that we incur as a result of your late or non-payment, together with the overdue amount and any interest accrued.

5.5 If you dispute an invoice in good faith and contact us to let us know promptly after receiving an invoice that you dispute it, clause 5.4 will not apply for the period of the dispute.

6. Our Liability to You

6.1 Subject to clause 6.4 below, if we fail to comply with these Terms, we are responsible for loss or damage you suffer that is a foreseeable result of our breach of the Terms or our negligence, but we are not responsible for any loss or damage that is not foreseeable. Loss or damage is foreseeable if it is an obvious consequence of our breach or if it was contemplated by you and us at the time we entered into this contract.

6.2 If we are providing Services in your property we will make good any damage to your property caused by us in the course of performing the Services. However, we are not responsible for the cost of repairing any pre-existing faults or damage to your property that we discover in the course of installation and/or performance by us.

6.3 We do not exclude or limit in any way our liability for:

6.3.1 death or personal injury caused by our negligence or the negligence of our employees, agents or subcontractors;

6.3.2 fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation;

6.3.3 breach of the terms implied by section 2 of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 (title and quiet possession); or

6.3.4 breach of the terms implied by sections 3, 4 and 5 of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 (description, satisfactory quality, fitness for purpose and samples).

6.4 If you are purchasing the Services as a business and not as a consumer, our liability to you in respect of losses arising under or in connection with the Services, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, shall in no circumstances exceed the price paid by you for the Services to which the loss relates.

7. Events Outside Our Control

7.1 We will not be liable or responsible for any failure to perform, or delay in performance of, any of our obligations under these Terms that is caused by an Event Outside Our Control.

7.2 An Event Outside Our Control means any act or event beyond our reasonable control, including without limitation strikes, lock-outs or other industrial action by third parties, civil commotion, riot, invasion, terrorist attack or threat of terrorist attack, war (whether declared or not) or threat or preparation for war, fire, explosion, storm, flood, earthquake, subsidence, epidemic, other natural disaster, or adverse weather conditions, unforeseen vehicle breakdown or failure of public or private telecommunications networks.

7.3 If an Event Outside Our Control takes place that affects the performance of our obligations under these Terms:

7.3.1 we will contact you as soon as reasonably possible to notify you; and

7.3.2 our obligations under these Terms will be suspended and the time for performance of our obligations will be extended for the duration of the Event Outside Our Control. Where the Event Outside Our Control affects our performance of Services to you, we will restart the Services as soon as reasonably possible after the Event Outside Our Control has come to an end.

7.4 You may cancel the contract if an Event Outside Our Control takes place and you no longer wish us to provide the Services. Please see your cancellation rights under clause 8. We will only cancel the contract if the Event Outside Our Control continues for longer than [four (4)] weeks in accordance with our cancellation rights in clause 9.

8. Your Rights to Cancel

8.1 Before we begin to provide the Services, you may cancel any order for Services within 14 calendar days of placing such order, provided that you have not asked us to provide the Services within those 14 days in which case you waive your right to cancel.

8.2 Please note that if you cancel all or part of the Services within 48 hours before the Services are to be provided, we may require you to pay for all or part of the agreed Services as we deem appropriate.

9. Our Rights to Cancel

We may have the right to cancel before the start date for the Services, due to an Event Outside Our Control or the unavailability of key personnel or key materials without which we cannot provide the Services. If this happens:

9.1 we will promptly contact you to let you know; and

9.2 where we have already started work on the Services, we will not charge you anything and you will not have to make any payment to us.

10. Other Important Terms

10.1 We may transfer our rights and obligations under these Terms to another organisation, and we will always notify you in writing if this happens, but this will not affect your rights or our obligations under these Terms.

10.2 This contract is between you and us. No other person shall have any rights to enforce any of its terms.

10.3 Each of the provisions making up these Terms operates separately. If any court or relevant authority decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining provisions will remain in full force and effect.

10.4 If we fail to insist that you perform any of your obligations under these Terms, or if we do not enforce our rights against you, or if we delay in doing so, that will not mean that we have waived our rights against you and will not mean that you do not have to comply with those obligations. If we do waive a default by you, we will only do so in writing, and that will not mean that we will automatically waive any later default by you.

10.5 These terms are governed by English Law. You and we both agree to submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts. However, if (acting as a consumer), you are a resident of Northern Ireland you may also bring proceedings in Northern Ireland, and if you are a resident of Scotland, you may also bring proceedings in Scotland.

Call us today for more information: 0800 0465 555