STATEMENT OF TRADING TERMS
Updated 1 January 2011
1. General
This document, along with our Privacy Policy and Data Protection Statement, sets out the terms and conditions governing the use of the website (http://co2census.com), use of the company blog (http://carboncensusanswers.blogspot.com/) and delivery of our home survey and energy advice services. We may update these terms and conditions from time to time as we develop and improve our service.
For the purposes of this document “Carbon Census” and the terms “We”, “Us”, “Our”, etc refers to The UK Carbon Census Ltd, a registered company in England & Wales No 6800963. “You”, “your”, etc refers to any person using or viewing the website and/or signing up for services offered on these website/s. “Website/s” refers to the company website and blog referenced above.
2. Use of the website/s
The content of the pages of these website/s is for your general information and use only, and is subject to change without notice. Neither we nor any third parties provide any warranty or guarantee as to the accuracy, timeliness, performance, completeness or suitability of the information and materials found or offered on these website/s for any particular purpose. You acknowledge that such information and materials may contain inaccuracies or errors and we expressly exclude liability for any such inaccuracies or errors to the fullest extent permitted by law.
Your use of any information or materials on our website/s is entirely at your own risk, for which we shall not be liable. It shall be your own responsibility to ensure that any products, services or information available through our website/s meet your specific requirements.
This website contains material which is owned by or licensed to us. This material includes, but is not limited to, the design, layout, look, appearance and graphics. Reproduction is prohibited other than in accordance with the copyright notice, which forms part of these terms and conditions. All trademarks reproduced in this website, which are not the property of, or licensed to the operator, are acknowledged on the website. Unauthorised use of this website may give rise to a claim for damages and/or be a criminal offence. Your use of this website and any dispute arising out of such use of the website is subject to the laws of England, Northern Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
From time to time, the website/s may also include links to other websites. These links are provided for your convenience to provide further information. They do not signify that we endorse the website(s). We have no responsibility for the content of the linked website(s).
3. Registering for the Carbon Census service
The registration feature of the website/s allows you to sign up for a home energy audit for a residential property. If you decide to use this feature, you agree that the information you provide will be complete and accurate and that we may use and store this information, in accordance with our Privacy Policy and Data Protection Statement.
In some cases it may not be possible to complete a registration for the address you enter, for instance when the address selected is not in an area we currently serve, if the user is not the owner of the property, or if the address to be registered is primarily occupied by a business or company. In these cases we will not collect payment, but will notify you in the future if / when we are able to offer a relevant service for the property in question.
4. Booking your appointment
Once your registration is complete, you will receive a confirmation email. This will be followed in the post by a proposed date and time for your appointment, based on daily itineraries we prepare for assessors in your area, which will be sent to the assessment address provided, or to the correspondence address provided in the case of private landlords. You can normally expect to receive a proposed appointment within 2-6 weeks of completing your registration, and at least 2 weeks in advance of the proposed appointment.
You are required to attend in person at the time and date of the appointment. If you cannot attend on the time and date proposed, you may reschedule by calling our office number, leaving a voicemail message or sending us a message by post or email. Our contact details will be provided in your appointment letter. If we do not hear from you 7 days before your appointment is due, you agree that we may assume the proposed time and date is acceptable. There is no additional cost for rescheduling an appointment, any number of times, on condition that at least one week’s notice is provided and that you do eventually accept and complete an appointment within 6 months of your initial registration date (or forfeit your registration fee).
Your appointment will be for a specific time slot, and our assessors will seek to arrive punctually. However in some cases our daily itineraries can be disrupted by sickness, bad weather, traffic or other factors. If we arrive more than 1 hour late, or are unable to complete your appointment on the time and date promised we will schedule a replacement appointment for you at no extra cost. We will endeavour to notify you in advance if any such disruption occurs. You agree that no further penalty or compensation will be due to you for any reason if we arrive late or miss an appointment for any reason.
5. Our home survey
The purpose of our home survey is to understand your current energy usage and to provide customised energy saving advice and recommendations for your household. To this end we carry out a visual inspection only of the physical characteristics of the property (including construction type and age; fuel type; heating system; glazing; insulation; controls; etc) and other characteristics related to energy demand (e.g. appliances; vehicles; water use; etc).
You understand that we do not offer a home condition report or any assessment of the condition of the property, such as would be necessary for example to identify building defects, deterioration or hazards. Similarly we will attempt to identify the type of boiler and heating system installed in order to estimate the normal environmental performance of this system; however, our assessors do not complete a safety inspection or assessment of the working condition of any installed appliances, equipment or vehicles.
Preparation of your complete home report will require some simple paperwork to be returned to us within 3 months of your survey. This paperwork includes simple feedback on the service you have received and details of the follow-up services you may wish to pursue. We will provide a prepaid / freepost return envelope. You agree to return this paperwork to us in order to receive your home report. If this paperwork is lost we can send a replacement, however a fee will be charged to cover the additional costs.
6. Energy Performance Certificates (EPC)
If you do not already have a valid EPC, and if such a survey is appropriate for your property, we will complete one for you as part of the service you have paid for. This certificate is valid for 10 years and can be used in the housing market when selling or renting a property. It is not valid for any new properties (including subdivisions of old properties) built since 2007. For these properties, architect’s plans are required. We will therefore complete a visual survey but not provide an EPC.
An EPC is an official document and is lodged on a government database. However, your EPC may only be accessed by you or by agents acting on your behalf. The Energy Saving Trust (a not for profit, government funded body) can access the address and overall rating of properties with a completed EPC and may write to you with further advice for your property. In the future the government may authorise the Energy Saving Trust to access more information from these certificates.
If you already have a valid EPC, you agree to show a copy to your assessor on the date of your assessment. We will discuss the recommendations and provide further information in areas not covered by the EPC. For an additional fee and if requested in advance, it may be possible to complete a new EPC for you.
In producing an EPC, we will follow the guidelines and procedures set by HM Government and by BRE, the independent certification body which accredits and audits our assessors. This includes recording photo evidence of the key features of the survey (e.g. boiler, hot tank, etc). If requested your assessor will show you all photos taken during the visit for your approval. The photos will not be used for any other purpose than to meet the requirements of the audit, unless you authorise us to do so (for example, in order to prepare a quote for works).
7. Free gift
On occasion we may be able to offer a free gift to customers registering for our service. This free gift will only be available if advertised on the main Carbon Census website (http://co2census.com) at the time of registration. The gift will be shipped to you on receipt of your paperwork after the survey, and may be shipped with other items that you may order from us. The gift may not be sent out if your paperwork is not returned to us within 6 weeks of your survey, and may be replaced at our discretion with a similar gift of equivalent value. In the case of a free gift offer, it is your responsibility to determine if the gift is suitable for your household and if you are able to install and /or use the item without further professional advice. You therefore accept full responsibility for the safe installation and use of these products.
In the event that an item shipped to you as a free gift is determined to be faulty on delivery, it will be replaced with a similar or equivalent item. However, the free gift is not refundable and cannot be replaced for any other reason. No more than one free gift will be shipped per household / individual address.
We are required to report the addresses to which free gifts are sent to the sponsoring body (usually a regulated energy company or managing agent). This is to prevent single households receiving the same energy saving subsidy multiple times through different schemes. You agree that we may provide your information in this way.
8. Payment & Cancellation
Payment for your home survey is taken in advance. Our assessors do not handle cash or cheques. If you decide you do not wish to go ahead, your payment is refundable provided that you give at least one week’s notice before your proposed appointment time. In the case of such a request a £10 admin fee will be applied to cover the costs of your registration and initial processing of your request.
No refund will be payable if you fail to attend the appointment or to notify us at least one week in advance that you cannot attend the appointment we have proposed. However, we understand that appointments can sometimes be missed in good faith and if you contact us promptly to explain this we will rebook your appointment once at no cost. Subsequent missed appointments will incur a re-booking fee. If you have made a misrepresentation, for instance if you register a property for which you are not the owner, or if we are unable to complete a survey because the property is deemed unsafe for a visual inspection, no refund will be paid.
9. Follow on services
In some cases we may be able to offer follow up services to help you carry out the recommendations we have provided. If appropriate we will discuss these options with you during your home visit, and if a payment is required for these services we will explain how this can be completed. You will therefore be able to decide on any follow up services after we have left the premises. Our assessors will not request or accept cash or cheques in person.
Our assessors do not receive commission. However in some cases our company may collect a deposit or complete payment for you (on behalf of a subcontractor) and our company may receive a subsidy or commission from the subcontractor providing you with a service. This reflects the costs we incur completing your home survey and helps us to keep the cost of our service low. Nevertheless, your engagement for any such follow-on services is not covered by this agreement and you will be provided with an additional documentation as required in each case.
In some cases you may also order energy saving products from us. If for any reason these cannot be delivered (e.g. you choose a signed for service, but you are not available for signature) they will be returned to our warehouse, and you will be liable for additional Post and Packing if we need to ship the products a second time.
10. Quality
We aim to provide a high quality service and customer experience. Our assessors will comply with the Code of Conduct for energy assessors provided by their accreditation scheme and the guidance provided by The Energy Saving Trust for giving energy saving advice. If you have questions about the advice you have received we will endeavour to answer these by phone, email or post and to resolve any queries you may raise as quickly and as effectively as possible.
11. Endorsements & Affiliations
The advice we provide is endorsed by The Energy Saving Trust, who provide training and assessment for all our in-home advisors. Our home assessors are also qualified Domestic Energy Assessors and are accredited and audited by BRE, an independent certification body which is part of the not-for-profit BRE Trust. In most cases our assessors will also have been trained by BRE and all will have passed a criminal record background check as part of their individual membership of the accreditation scheme for Domestic Energy Assessors. We may sometimes use assessors from other accreditation schemes.
In addition, our company is a member of The UK Green Buildings Council, an organisation campaigning for improvements in the Built Environment, and is registered as a Social Enterprise under a scheme established by HM Government Cabinet Office. You can read more about the requirements of this scheme at www.socialenterprisemark.org.uk.
12. Data protection
We undertake to protect and safeguard your data appropriately, and in accordance with our comprehensive Privacy Policy and Data Protection Statement. It is a condition of our service that you authorise us to create and store an electronic record of the data generated on your behalf, and in accepting these terms you agree to this condition.
© The UK Carbon Census Ltd, 72 Grove Park, LONDON SE5 8LF Registered Company in England & Wales No 6800963
