Terms and Conditions of Business

This page (together with the documents referred to on it) tells you the terms and conditions on which you make an application for membership with us via our site (Membership Application) and you receive the benefits of membership that we offer (APHC Benefits) or we supply any of the products (Products) or any of the services (Services) listed on our website www.aphc.co.uk (our site) to you. Please read these terms and conditions carefully before ordering any Products or any Services or APHC Benefits from our site. You should understand that by ordering any of our Products or our Services or APHC Benefits, you agree to be bound by these terms and conditions.

You should print a copy of these terms and conditions for future reference.

Please click on the button marked "I Accept" at the end of these terms and conditions if you accept them. Please understand that if you refuse to accept these terms and conditions, you will not be able to order any Products or any Services or APHC Benefits from our site.

1. Information about us

www.competentplumber.co.uk is a site operated by the Association of Plumbing and Heating Contractors Limited (we, us, our). We are registered in England and Wales under company number 05302003 and with our registered office at 12 The Pavilions, Cranmore Drive, Solihull B90 4SB. Our main trading address is 12 The Pavilions, Cranmore Drive, Solihull B90 4SB. Our VAT number is 234 2142 06.

2. Service availability

Our site is only intended for use by people resident in England and Wales. We do not accept orders from individuals outside England and Wales.

3. Your status

3.1

By placing an order through our site for Products and/or for Services and making an application for the APHC Benefits, you warrant that:

You are legally capable of entering into binding contracts;
You are at least 18 years old;
You are resident in England and Wales;
You are accessing our site from that country; and
You will comply with these terms and conditions.

3.2

By making a Membership Application for APHC Benefits through our site, you warrant that:

You (or senior employees of your organisation) are suitably qualified to:
1. NVQ level 2 in plumbing, heating and ventilating or gas fitting; or
2. (Pre 1995) City and Guilds certificate in plumbing, heating and ventilating or gas fitting;
You have a current public liability insurance policy (with a reputable insurer) to at least the value of £2,000,000;
If you have employees, you have a current employers liability insurance policy (with a reputable insurer);
Save for a sole trader, you have a current professional indemnity insurance policy (with a reputable insurer);
You provide adequate supervision for people and/or employees that are not suitably qualified pursuant to paragraph 3.2(a);
You shall comply in all material respects with the consumer charter; and
the information you supplied to us through our website (or otherwise) is correct and accurate in all material respects.

4. How the membership application is made between you and us for access to the APHC Benefits

4.1: After submitting your details online via our site, you will receive an e-mail from us acknowledging that we have received your online application. Please note that this does not mean that your application has been accepted. Your online application constitutes an offer to us to buy the APHC Benefits. All online applications are subject to acceptance by us, and we will confirm such acceptance to you by sending you an e-mail that confirms that access to our site has been granted and you will be supplied with a user id and password (the password must be changed when accessing our site for the first time) to access the secure area of our site (the Access Service Confirmation). The contract between you and us for APHC Benefits (Access Service Contract) will only be formed when we send you the Access Service Confirmation and the Access Service Contract shall be subject to the provision of additional information and your consents set out in paragraph 15.
4.2: The Access Service Contract will relate only to those APHC Benefits we have confirmed in the Access Service Confirmation. We will not be obliged to supply any other APHC Benefits which may have been part of your online application until the provision of such APHC Benefits has been confirmed in a separate Access Service Confirmation.
4.3: The Access Service Contract shall be for a term of 12 months and shall continue thereafter until terminated by not less than twelve months' notice in writing from either party to the other, subject to earlier termination in accordance with paragraph 16.

5. How the contract is formed between you and us for the purchase of products

5.1: After placing an order, you will receive an e-mail from us acknowledging that we have received your order. Please note that this does not mean that your order has been accepted. Your order constitutes an offer to us to buy a Product. All orders are subject to acceptance by us, and we will confirm such acceptance to you by sending you an e-mail that confirms that the Product has been dispatched (the Product Confirmation). The contract between you and us (Product Contract) will only be formed when we send you the Product Confirmation.
5.2: The Product Contract will relate only to those Products whose dispatch we have confirmed in the Product Confirmation. We will not be obliged to supply any other Products which may have been part of your order until the dispatch of such Products has been confirmed in a separate Product Confirmation.

6. How the contract is formed between you and us for the purchase of services

6.1: After placing an order, you will receive an e-mail from us acknowledging that we have received your order. Please note that this does not mean that your order has been accepted. Your order constitutes an offer to us to buy a Service. All orders are subject to acceptance by us, and we will confirm such acceptance to you by sending you an e-mail that confirms that the that the Service will be performed (the Service Confirmation). The contract between us (Service Contract) will only be formed when we send you the Service Confirmation.
6.2: The Service Contract will relate only to those Services whose dispatch we have confirmed in the Service Confirmation. We will not be obliged to supply any other Services which may have been part of your order until the dispatch of such Services has been confirmed in a separate Service Confirmation.

7. Our status

7.1: Please note that in some cases, we accept orders as agents on behalf of third party sellers. The resulting legal contract is between you and that third party seller, and is subject to the terms and conditions of that third party seller, which they will advise you of directly. You should carefully review their terms and conditions applying to the transaction.
7.2: We may also provide links on our site to the websites of other companies, whether affiliated with us or not. We cannot give any undertaking, that products or services you purchase from third party sellers through our site, or from companies to whose website we have provided a link on our site, in relation to the supply of goods will be of satisfactory quality and fit for purpose or in relation to the provision of services will be performed with reasonable skill and care and any such warranties are DISCLAIMED by us absolutely. This DISCLAIMER does not affect your statutory rights against the third party seller. We will notify you when a third party is involved in a transaction, and we may disclose your customer information related to that transaction to the third party seller.

8. Rights of cancellation

8.1: If you are contracting for the purchase of a Product, you may cancel a Product Contract at any time within seven working days, beginning on the day after you received the Products. In this case, you will receive a full refund of the price paid for the Products in accordance with our refunds policy set out in paragraph 10.
8.2: To cancel a Product Contract, you must inform us in writing. You must also return the Product(s) to us immediately, in the same condition in which you received them, and at your own cost and risk. You have a legal obligation to take reasonable care of the Products while they are in your possession. If you fail to comply with this obligation, we may have a right of action against you for compensation.
8.3: You will not have any right to cancel an Access Service Contract for access to APHC Benefits or a Service Contract for the supply of any Services provided by us.
8.4: Details of your statutory rights, and an explanation of how to exercise it, are provided in the Product Confirmation and/or the Service Confirmation. This provision does not affect your statutory rights.

9. Availability and delivery

9.1: We shall use reasonable endeavors to fulfil your order for Product(s) and Service(s) by the date set out in the Product Confirmation and/or the Service Confirmation or, if no delivery date for the Product(s) or commencement date in respect of the Service(s) is specified, then within 30 days of the date of the Product Confirmation and/or the Service Confirmation, unless there are exceptional circumstances.
9.2: Your order for APHC Benefits will be fulfilled by the date of receipt of the Access Confirmation, unless there are exceptional circumstances.

10. Risk and title

10.1: The Products will be at your risk from the time of delivery. Delivery of the Products shall take place at the time the Products leave our premises.
10.2: The Products shall normally arrive at the location set out in the Product Confirmation between 9:00 and 17:00 (Monday to Friday) except national holidays. You shall ensure that we are able to deliver the Products to the location set out in the Product Confirmation.
10.3: If you refuse to take delivery of the Products and/or the performance of the Services we shall be entitled to withhold delivery of the Products and/or the performance of the Services and treat the contract as repudiated by you and we shall have the right to rescind the Product Contract and/or the Service Contract.
10.4: Ownership of the Products will only pass to you when we receive full payment (in cleared funds) of all sums due in respect of the Products, including without limitation delivery charges.
10.5: Until such time as ownership of the Products has passed in accordance with paragraph 10.4 you shall store all Products, at the location specified in the Product Confirmation, separately from any other goods belonging to you or any third party. The Products shall be clearly marked and identified as the Products.
10.6: Until such time as ownership of the Products has passed in accordance with paragraph 10.4 you shall permit us, our employees and/or agents upon the provision of notice in writing to enter any of your premises to collect the Products and dispose or otherwise sell the Products owned by us in order to discharge any sums due to us pursuant to a Product Contract.
10.7: Until such time as ownership of the Products has passed in accordance with paragraph 10.4 you shall not re-sell, use or part with possession of the Products unless you have our express consent to do so in writing.
10.8: Until such time as ownership of the Products has passed in accordance with paragraph 10.4 we reserve the right to withhold the delivery of Products in transit.
10.9: Until such time as ownership of the Products has passed in accordance with paragraph 10.4 we reserve the right to terminate the Product Contract without liability to you.
10.10: Dates for delivery of Products and/or the performance of Services and/or for access to APHC Benefits are estimates only. Time shall not be of the essence in respect of the delivery of Products and/or the performance of Services and or access to APHC Benefits.
10.11: Until such time as sums due and payable in respect of a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract have been received (in cleared funds) for the Services or APHC Benefits we reserve the right to suspend the performance of the Services or access to APHC Benefits or to terminate the Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract without liability to you and subject to our reasonable administration charges.
10.12: You shall have no right to reject the Products and/or the performance of the Services or to rescind a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract for late delivery of Products and/or the performance of the Services and/or access to the APHC Benefits unless you provide us with 7 days notice in writing to deliver the Products and/or to perform the Services and/or provide access to the APHC Benefits and the notice has not been adhered to.

11. Price and payment

11.1: The price of any Products or any Services or the APHC Benefits shall be as quoted on our site from time to time, except in cases of obvious error.
11.2: The prices are ex-works and exclude VAT (chargeable at the prevailing rate) and any delivery costs, packaging costs and insurance which will be added to the total amount due as set out in our Product Confirmation and/or our Service Confirmation and/or our Access Confirmation.
11.3: Prices are liable to change at any time, but changes will not affect orders in respect of which we have already sent you a Product Confirmation and/or Service Confirmation and/or an Access Service Confirmation. We reserve the right to change our prices in respect of a Product Contract or Service Contract or Access Contract at any time during the contract term subject to the provision of notice in writing to you.
11.4: Our site contains a large number of Products and/or Services and/or APHC Benefits and it is always possible that, despite our best efforts, some of the Products and/or Services and/or access to the APHC Benefits listed on our site may be incorrectly priced. We will normally verify prices as part of our dispatch procedures so that, where the Product(s) and/or the Service(s) and/or access to the APHC Benefits correct price is less than our stated price, we will charge the lower amount when dispatching the Product or providing the Service to you or providing access to the APHC Benefits. If the Product(s) and/or the Service(s) and/or access to the APHC Benefits correct price is higher than the price stated on our site, we will normally, at our discretion, either contact you for instructions before dispatching the Product or providing the Service or providing access to the APHC Benefits, or reject your order and notify you of such rejection.
11.5: We are under no obligation to provide the Product and/or the Service and/or the APHC Benefits to you at the incorrect (lower) price, even after we have sent you a Product Confirmation and/or a Service Confirmation and/or an Access Confirmation, if the pricing error is obvious and unmistakeable and could have reasonably been recognised by you as a mis-pricing.
11.6: Payment for all Products and/or all Services and/or all APHC Benefits must be by credit card, debit card or via direct debit. Payment shall not be deemed to have been made until we are in receipt of cleared funds in respect of the full amount due. If payment is not made in full to us when due we reserve the right to withhold the right to suspend current or future deliveries of Products and/or the performance of Services and/or access to the APHC Benefits. We also reserve the right to charge you an administration charge in respect of late payment of sums due under any agreement with you.
11.7: Payment for Products and/or for Services and/or access to APHC Benefits shall be made within 30 days of the date of invoice. Time shall be of the essence with respect to payment for Products and/or for Services and/or the APHC Benefits.
11.8: If you fail to make any payment due to us in full on the due date pursuant to a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or Access Service Contract we shall be entitled to charge you interest (both before any after judgement) on the amount unpaid under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest Act) 1998 or at the rate of 4% above the base rate of HSBC Bank Plc (whichever is higher).
11.9: You shall pay all sums due to us under a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract without any set-off, deduction, counterclaim and/or any other withholding of monies.
11.10: We reserve the right to set a credit limit for you (at our sole discretion) in respect of the supply of Products and/or the provision of the Services and/or access to the APHC Benefits. Any credit limit shall be notified to you by us in writing.

12. Our refunds policy and guarantee

12.1

When you return a Product to us:

because you have cancelled the Product Contract between us within the cooling-off period (in accordance with paragraph 8.1 above), we will process the refund due to you as soon as possible and, in any case, within 30 days of the day you have given notice of your cancellation. In this case, we will refund the price of the Product in full, including the cost of sending the item to you. However, you will be responsible for the cost of returning the item to us.
for any other reason (for instance, because have notified us in accordance with paragraph 24.2 that you do not agree to any change in these terms and conditions or in any of our policies, or because you claim within 14 days of delivery that the Product is defective), we will examine the returned Product and will notify you of your refund via e-mail within a reasonable period of time. We will usually process the refund due to you as soon as possible and, in any case, within 30 days of the day we confirmed to you via e-mail that you were entitled to a refund for the defective Product. Products returned by you because of a defect will be refunded in full, including a refund of the delivery charges for sending the item to you and the cost incurred by you in returning the item to us.

12.2

We shall guarantee that the Products shall be free from defects in materials and/or workmanship for a period of 12 months from the date of delivery of the Products to you (the "Guarantee").

12.3

The Guarantee shall not apply in respect of any:

faults arising after risk in the Products has passed which is caused by any subsequent mechanical, chemical, electrolytic or other damage not due to a defect in the Products; and/or
faults or defects caused by wilful damage, abnormal working conditions, failure to follow our instructions, misuse, alteration or repair of the Products without our approval, improper maintenance or negligence on your part or on the part of a third party.

12.4

In the event you find a Product to be defective outside the time limits set in paragraphs 12.1 (a) and (b) and the Product is covered by the Guarantee we reserve the right, at our sole discretion, to repair or replace such Products or refund the price for such Products provided you notify us within 14 days of the defect in the Product becoming apparent.

12.5

We will usually refund any money received from you using the same method originally used by you to pay for your purchase.

13. Our liability

13.1

We warrant to you that any Product purchased from us through our site is of satisfactory quality and reasonably fit for all the purposes for which products of the kind are commonly supplied.

13.2

We warrant to you that any Service and/or APHC Benefits purchased from us through our site with reasonable skill and care for all the purposes for which services of the kind are commonly supplied.

13.3

Our liability for losses you suffer as a result of us breaking these terms and conditions is strictly limited to the purchase price of the Product and/or the purchase price of the Service and/or use of the APHC Benefits you purchased (as the case may be).

13.4

This does not include or limit in any way our liability:

For death or personal injury caused by our negligence;
For fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation; or
For any matter for which it would be illegal for us to exclude, or attempt to exclude, our liability.

13.5

We are not responsible for indirect losses which happen as a side effect of the main loss or damage, including but not limited to:

loss of income or revenue
loss of business
loss of profits or contracts
consequential losses
loss of anticipated savings
loss of data
loss of data, or
waste of management or office time

however arising and whether caused by tort (including negligence), breach of contract or otherwise, even if foreseeable.

13.6

We shall have no liability to you to the extent you are covered by any policy of insurance.

13.7

We shall have no liability to you to the extent you contract with a third party as a result of any information and/or your data is published on our site on our ‘Find a Plumber’ pages if your express consent has been provided to publish such information in accordance with our privacy policy.

13.8

We shall have no liability to you if you fail to notify us of defects in the Products within the time limits set out in paragraph 12.41.

13.9

Where you buy any products and/or any services from a third party seller through our site, the seller's individual liability will be set out in the seller's terms and conditions.

14. Import duty

14.1: If you order Products from our site for delivery outside the UK, they may be subject to import duties and taxes which are levied when the delivery reaches the specified destination. You will be responsible for payment of any such import duties and taxes. Please note that we have no control over these charges and cannot predict their amount. Please contact your local customs office for further information before placing your order.
14.2: Please also note that you must comply with all applicable laws and regulations of the country for which the Products are destined. We will not be liable for any breach by you of any such laws.

15. Additional information and consents

15.1

You undertake to provide, within 12 months of the commencement of the Access Service Contract and on an ongoing basis as required from time to time by us, the following documents:

certificates that you and/or your employees have obtained the necessary qualifications set out in paragraph 3.2 (a);
copies of current and future insurance policies set out in paragraph 3.2 (b), (c) and (d);
any other information we request in writing from you from time to time.

15.2

You consent to us carrying out a credit check in relation to you and/or the company if you are a limited company or a limited liability partnership.

15.3

You consent to our terms of use and our privacy policy.

16. Termination

16.1

We shall be entitled to terminate a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract with immediate effect by notice to you in writing in the event:

you commit any material breach of your obligations under these terms and conditions, a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract which, being a breach capable of remedy, is not remedied within 14 days of notice of the breach by us specifying the breach and requiring its remedy. (For this purpose, clauses 3, 10, 11 and 15 constitutes a non-remediable material breach); or
any meeting of your creditors being held or any arrangement, moratorium or composition with or for the benefit of your creditors (including any voluntary arrangement as defined in the Insolvency Act 1986) being proposed or entered into; or
a supervisor, receiver, administrative receiver, trustee or other encumbrancer taking possession of or being appointed over, or any distress, execution or other process being levied or enforced (and not being discharged within seven days) on, the whole or any substantial part of your assets; or
you cease, or threaten to cease, to carry on business or being, becoming or appear unable to pay your debts within the meaning of sections 123 or 268 of the Insolvency Act 1986; or
a petition is presented or a meeting being convened for the purpose of considering a resolution for the making of an order for the winding up, bankruptcy or dissolution of your business; or
any step is taken with a view to the appointment of an administrator to your business; or
you are unable for any reason to perform any of your obligations under these terms and conditions and/or any Product Contract and/or any Service Contract and/or any Access Service Contract for a continuous period of 90; or
any event analogous to any of the events listed in paragraph 16.1 occurring in relation to you in any jurisdiction; or
you (being an individual), die or, by reason of illness or incapacity (whether mental or physical), is incapable of managing your own affairs or becomes a patient under any mental health legislation; or
your credit rating is unsatisfactory (at our sole discretion); or
in respect of an Access Service Contract you fail to supply any documents pursuant to paragraph 15.1; or
you fail to comply with the consumer charter.

16.2

Upon termination of a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract for any reason whatsoever all sums owed by you to us shall immediately become due and payable.

17. Written communications

Applicable laws require that some of the information or communications we send to you should be in writing. When using our site, you accept that communication with us will be mainly electronic. We will contact you by e-mail or provide you with information by posting notices on our website. For contractual purposes, you agree to this electronic means of communication and you acknowledge that all contracts, notices, information and other communications that we provide to you electronically comply with any legal requirement that such communications be in writing. This condition does not affect your statutory rights.

18. Notices

All notices given by you to us must be given to the Association of Plumbing and Heating Contractors Limited at 12 The Pavilions, Cranmore Drive, Solihull B90 4SB or via e-mail to info@aphc.co.uk. We may give notice to you at either the e-mail or postal address you provide to us when placing an order, or in any of the ways specified in paragraph 13 above. Notice will be deemed received and properly served immediately when posted on our website, 24 hours after an e-mail is sent, or three days after the date of posting of any letter. In proving the service of any notice, it will be sufficient to prove, in the case of a letter, that such letter was properly addressed, stamped and placed in the post and, in the case of an e-mail, that such e-mail was sent to the specified e-mail address of the addressee.

19. Transfer of rights and obligations

19.1: The contract between you and us is binding on you and us and on our respective successors and assigns.
19.2: You may not transfer, assign, charge or otherwise dispose of a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract, or any of your rights or obligations arising under it, without our prior written consent.
19.3: We may transfer, assign, charge, sub-contract or otherwise dispose of a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract, or any of our rights or obligations arising under it, at any time during the term of the Product Contract and/or the Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract.

20. Events outside our control

20.1

We will not be liable or responsible for any failure to perform, or delay in performance of, any of our obligations under a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract that is caused by events outside our reasonable control (Force Majeure Event).

20.2

A Force Majeure Event includes any act, event, non-happening, omission or accident beyond our reasonable control and includes in particular (without limitation) the following:

Strikes, lock-outs or other industrial action.
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 or other natural disaster.
Impossibility of the use of railways, shipping, aircraft, motor transport or other means of public or private transport.
Impossibility of the use of public or private telecommunications networks.
The acts, decrees, legislation, regulations or restrictions of any government.

20.3

Our performance under any Product Contract and/or any Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract is deemed to be suspended for the period that the Force Majeure Event continues, and we will have an extension of time for performance for the duration of that period. We will use our reasonable endeavours to bring the Force Majeure Event to a close or to find a solution by which our obligations under the Product Contract and/or the Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract may be performed despite the Force Majeure Event.

21. Waiver

21.1: If we fail, at any time during the term of a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract, to insist upon strict performance of any of your obligations under the Product Contract and/or the Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract or any of these terms and conditions, or if we fail to exercise any of the rights or remedies to which we are entitled under the Product Contract and/or the Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract, this shall not constitute a waiver of such rights or remedies and shall not relieve you from compliance with such obligations.
21.2: A waiver by us of any default shall not constitute a waiver of any subsequent default.
21.3: No waiver by us of any of these terms and conditions shall be effective unless it is expressly stated to be a waiver and is communicated to you in writing in accordance with paragraph 14 above.

22. Severability

If any of these terms and conditions or any provisions of a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract and/or this agreement are determined by any competent authority to be invalid, unlawful or unenforceable to any extent, such term, condition or provision will to that extent be severed from the remaining terms, conditions and provisions which will continue to be valid to the fullest extent permitted by law.

23. Entire agreement

23.1: These terms and conditions and any document expressly referred to in them represent the entire agreement between us in relation to the subject matter of any Product Contract and/or any Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract and supersede any prior agreement, understanding or arrangement between us, whether oral or in writing.
23.2: We each acknowledge that, in entering into a Product Contract and/or a Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract, neither of us has relied on any representation, undertaking or promise given by the other or be implied from anything said or written in negotiations between us prior to such Product Contract and/or such Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract except as expressly stated in these terms and conditions.
23.3: Neither of us shall have any remedy in respect of any untrue statement made by the other, whether orally or in writing, prior to the date of any Product Contract and/or any Service Contract and/or an Access Service Contract (unless such untrue statement was made fraudulently) and the other party´s only remedy shall be for breach of contract as provided in these terms and conditions.

24. Our right to vary these Terms and Conditions

24.1: We have the right to revise and amend these terms and conditions from time to time to reflect changes in market conditions affecting our business, changes in technology, changes in payment methods, changes in relevant laws and regulatory requirements and changes in our system's capabilities.
24.2: You will be subject to the policies and terms and conditions in force at the time that you order Products, Services or APHC Benefits from us, unless any change to those policies or these terms and conditions is required to be made by law or governmental authority (in which case it will apply to orders previously placed by you), or if we notify you of the change to those policies or these terms and conditions before we send you the Product Confirmation and/or the Service Confirmation and/or the Access Confirmation (in which case we have the right to assume that you have accepted the change to the terms and conditions, unless you notify us to the contrary within seven working days of receipt of the Product Confirmation and/or the Service Confirmation and/or the Access Confirmation).

25. Law and jurisdiction

These terms and conditions and all Product Contracts, Service Contracts and Access Service Contracts for the purchase of Products and/or Services and/or APHC Benefits through our site will be governed by English law and you and us irrevocably submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England to deal with any dispute arising therefrom.