Terms and Conditions

­Miss Maid Limited

Terms and Conditions for Cleaning Services

This document, together with any documents referred to in it) tells you the terms and conditions on which we supply any of our cleaning services (Services), whether detailed in our advertising materials or on our website at www.missmaid.co.uk (our website), or otherwise.  Please read these terms and conditions (Terms) carefully and make sure that you understand them before ordering any Services from us.  By ordering any of our Services (whether by telephone, fax, email, via our website or otherwise), you agree to be bound by these Terms. You should print a copy of these Terms for future reference.

1.             Information about us

1.1           We are Miss Maid Limited, a company registered in England and Wales under company number 6424475, with our registered office at 6 Millennium Drive, Unit 19, London E14 3GF. Our main trading address is Miss Maid Ltd, Docklands Business Centre, 10-16 Tiller Road, London E14 8PX. Our VAT number is 931 9928 89.

2.             Our Contract with You

2.1           These Terms will become binding on you and us when we confirm to you that we have accepted your order for Services (Order), at which point a contract will come into existence between you and us. We will discuss your requirements with you, either by telephone or email. Once you have confirmed that you wish to go ahead with the agreed work at the agreed price, we will accept your Order by sending you a confirmation of booking by email, at which stage the contract between us is made.

2.2           If any of these Terms conflict with any term of the Order, the Order will take priority, unless the conflict relates to clause 7 (our liability to you), which will take priority.

3.             Changes to Order or Terms

3.1           We may revise these Terms from time to time in the following circumstances:

(a)        if there are changes in how we accept payment from you;

(b)        if there are changes in relevant laws and regulatory requirements; or

(c)        when we carry out an annual review of the prices you pay for the Services.

3.2           If we 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 (other than where clause 3.1(b) applies, where the change will be immediate). You can choose to cancel the contract in accordance with clause 9.

3.3           You may make a change to the Order for Services at any time before the start date for the Services by contacting us at least 48 hours’ prior to service takes place. Where this means a change in the total price of the Services, we will notify you of the amended price in writing.

3.4           If you wish to cancel an Order before it has been fulfilled, please see your right to do so in clause 9

4.             Providing Services

4.1           Further details relating to our Services are set out in the Schedule to these Terms.

4.2           We will make every effort to complete the Services on time. There may, however, be delays due to an Event Outside Our Control. Please see clause 8 for our responsibilities where an Event Outside Our Control happens.

4.3           We will need certain information from you that is necessary for us to provide the Services, for example, your name, address, contact telephone number(s), email address and payment details. We will contact you about this, whether by email, letter or by telephone. If you do not provide us with this requested information, or you provide us with incomplete or incorrect information, we may make an additional charge of a reasonable sum to cover any extra work that is required, or we may suspend the Services by giving you written notice. We will not be liable for any delay or non-performance where you have not provided this information to us after we have asked. If we suspend the Services under this clause 4.3, you do not have to pay for the Services while they are suspended, but this does not affect your obligation to pay for any invoices we have already sent you.

4.4           We may have to suspend the Services if we have to deal with technical or staffing problems. 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 4.4 but this does not affect your obligation to pay for any invoices we have already sent you. Alternatively we reserve the right to offer to provide you with replacement personnel to perform the Services in the event of staffing issues, subject to your consent.  If you do not pay us for the Services when you are supposed to as set out in clause 5, we may suspend the Services with immediate effect until you have paid us the outstanding amounts (except where you properly dispute an invoice under clause 5.10). We will contact you to tell you this. This does not affect our right to charge you interest under clause 5.9.

5.             Price and Payment

5.1           The price of the Services will be set out in our price list in force at the time we confirm your Order. Our prices may change at any time, but price changes will not affect Orders that we have confirmed with you.

5.2           We reserve the right to review our prices for the Services. We will give you at least one month’s written notice of any changes to our rates before they take effect. You can choose to cancel the contract in accordance with clause 9.

5.3           Our prices are shown exclusive of VAT, which shall be added to our prices as the prevailing rate. If the rate of VAT changes between the date of the Order and the date of performance of the Services we will adjust the rate of VAT that you pay, unless you have already paid for the Services in full before the change in the rate of VAT takes effect.

5.4           For regular Services (such as weekly or fortnightly cleaning) we will invoice you monthly in advance for the Services. You must pay each invoice in cleared monies (without deduction or set off) within 14 calendar days of the date of the invoice by direct payment to our bank account or by credit/debit card.

5.5           Where you require one-off Services, we reserve the right to request you to make an advance deposit payment of 50% of the price of the Services. In such circumstances we will invoice you for the balance on or at any time after we have performed the Services. Unless otherwise agreed in writing by us, you must pay the balance immediately upon completion of the Services before our operative leaves your premises, either by cash or debit/credit card. If you are not present at the time, you authorise us to take the outstanding balance from the credit/debit card you used to pay your advance deposit.

5.6           In the event that you request us to provide Services on a regular basis, but later cancel such Services after one visit, we reserve the right to charge you a supplement to reflect our higher prices for one-off Services.

5.7           If we are forced to refer your account for collection to a third party, then extra costs may be added to the outstanding amount by the debt collection company.

5.8           We reserve the right to levy a card processing charge of 3% of the fees paid where you choose to pay our fees by credit card. Where you pay by cheque and it is returned unpaid, we will charge you a flat fee of £25 in addition to any outstanding fees.

5.9           If you do not make any payment due to us by the due date for payment, we may charge interest to you on the overdue amount at the rate of 3% a year above the base rate of the Bank of England from time to time. This interest shall accrue on a daily basis from the due date until the actual payment of the overdue amount, whether before or after any judgment. You must pay us interest together with any overdue amount. In addition to our right to charge you interest or as an alternative (in our sole discretion) we reserve the right to suspend the provision of Services until you have paid all overdue amounts in full.

5.10        If you dispute an invoice in good faith and contact us to let us know promptly (and no more than 14 days after receiving an invoice), clause 5.9 will not apply for the period of the dispute.

5.11        We reserve the right to set off against any sums we may owe to you any sums you owe to us.

6.             If there is a problem with the Services

6.1           Our business reputation is based upon the quality of our Services. We acknowledge, however, that we do sometimes make mistakes. If you are not satisfied with our Services, we offer to reclean your premises to your reasonable satisfaction, subject to the remaining provisions of this clause 6.

6.2           All Services shall be deemed to have been performed to reasonable satisfaction unless you notify us in accordance with the provisions of this clause 6.2. In the unlikely event that there is a defect with the Services:

(a)        you are required to contact us in writing (by letter or email) and tell us as soon as reasonably possible (and in any event within 24 hours of the Services being provided;

(b)        you agree to give us a reasonable opportunity to repair or fix any defect caused by us or to reclean any disputed areas/items;

(c)        we will use every effort to repair, remedy or fix the defect caused by us to your reasonable satisfaction as soon as reasonably practicable free of charge;

(d)        if a broken or damaged item cannot be repaired, we may provide a replacement or reimburse you for the fair market value of the item;

(e)        you agree to provide us with such assistance and cooperation as we shall reasonably require to remedy a problem, including providing us with access to the relevant premises within 24 hours of you reporting an issue so that we can use our best endeavours to resolve any issues to your reasonable satisfaction;

(f)         where you or your representatives are on site at the time of performance of the Services, you agree to draw our personnel’s attention to any alleged defects before they leave your premises;

(g)        you agree to notify us before completion of the Services if you are appointing a third party to check the Services;

(h)        you will not appoint a third party to attempt to remedy any defect, damage or breakage without consulting us first and any attempt to do so may prejudice your right to require us to remedy, repair or replace items.

6.3           Whilst we make every effort not to break or damage items, accidents do happen. Please ensure that any valuable items (whether in monetary or in sentimental value) are safely stored prior to our Services being performed.

6.4           Please note that we will not be liable for any damage where caused by faulty materials or installation. We will assume that all surfaces (such as marble, glass, wood or natural stone) are appropriately sealed for us to provide our Services, unless you notify us to the contrary in writing before we commence the Services.

6.5           We will cooperate with all relevant authorities, including insurance companies and/or the police, in the event that we believe you to be involved in the provision of any misleading information, misrepresentation or fraud in relation to any claim.

6.6           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.

7.             Our Liability to You

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

(a)        death or personal injury caused by our negligence or the negligence of our employees, agents or subcontractors;

(b)        fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation;

(c)        (if you are a consumer), breach of the terms implied by section 2 of the Supply of Goods and Services Act 1982 (title and quiet possession);

(d)        (if you are a consumer), 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); and

(e)        (if you are a consumer), defective products under the Consumer Protection Act 1987;

(f)         any other liability which cannot be excluded or limited by law.

7.2           Subject to clause 7.1, we shall not be responsible to you for:

(a)        existing damage to your property, such as (but not limited to) old stains/burns/spillages which cannot be cleaned or removed completely using the industry standard cleaning methods;

(b)       damages caused to natural surfaces (such as marble, glass, wood or natural stone), unless you have notified us in writing of their presence before we commence the Services

(c)       items of sentimental value, art, antiques, china and porcelain, cash and jewellery;

(d)        your dissatisfaction with the Services caused by you or anyone else walking on wet floors or using appliances during or shortly after the cleaning process;

(e)        any odours arising during or after the performance of the Services due to such factors as lack of ventilation and/or inappropriate heating;

(f)        any faulty equipment and/or materials provided by you;

(g)        our inability to access your property owing to faulty or incorrect keys/locks.

(h)        malfunction or fault of any household appliance, including (but not limited to) electrical or electronic devices, and any damages caused as a result of such malfunction or fault.

7.3           Subject to clauses 7.1 and 7.2:

(a)        we shall under no circumstances whatever be liable to you, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, for any loss of profit, or any indirect or consequential loss arising under or in connection with these Terms; and

(b)        our total liability to you in respect of all other losses arising under or in connection with these Terms, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, shall in no circumstances exceed £5,000,000.

7.4           We hold insurance to cover our liabilities under these Terms.

8.             Events Outside Our Control

8.1           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.

8.2           An Event Outside Our Control means any act or event beyond our reasonable control, including (without limitation) strikes, lock-outs or other industrial action, 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, failure of any electricity or water supplies, failure of any public transport network, or failure of public or private telecommunications networks, inability to enter your premises, or failure or absence of any keys, equipment or materials to be provided by you. If an Event Outside Our Control takes place that affects the performance of our obligations under these Terms:

(a)        we will contact you as soon as reasonably possible to notify you; and

(b)        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 is over.

8.3           You may terminate 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 9. We will only terminate the contract if the Event Outside Our Control continues for longer than 30 days in accordance with our cancellation rights in clause 9.

9.             Your Rights to Cancel and to Receive a Refund

9.1           The cancellation rights set out in clause 9.2 below apply only if you are a consumer and they only apply in relation to the first occasion we provide any Services of any kind to you.

9.2           Before we begin to provide Services to you for the first time, you may cancel your initial Order for Services at any time before the start date for the initial Services by giving us at least 48 hours’ notice by contacting us by telephone, email or fax before the Services are due to take place. You also have the right to cancel our Services by contacting us because we are affected by an Event Outside Our Control. We will confirm your cancellation in writing to you.

9.3           If you cancel an Order under clause 9.2 and you have made any payment in advance for Services that have not been provided to you, we will refund these amounts to you.

9.4           However, if you cancel an Order for Services under clause 9.2 and we have already started work on your Order by that time, you will pay us any costs we reasonably incurred in starting to fulfil the Order, and this charge will be deducted from any refund that is due to you or, if no refund is due to you, invoiced to you. We will tell you what these costs are when you contact us. In all other circumstances if you wish to cancel or change the date of any Services you must give us not less than 48 hours’ prior notice before the Services are due to be performed. Such cancellation notice may be given by telephone, fax, post or email. Please note that our incoming emails and telephone messages are checked between the hours of 08.00 to 19.00 Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays) and between 09.00 and 16.00 on Saturday and Sunday, so any cancellation or change notification received during that period shall be deemed to have been received on the next working day.

9.5           If we are prevented from carrying out our scheduled Services because you have failed to provide us with at least 48 hours’ notice of cancellation under clause 9.4 or if you fail to provide us with access to the property at which the Services are due to take place, or you have not provided us with the necessary electricity and water supplies, or you have provided faulty or defective equipment or insufficient cleaning materials  we reserve the right to retain your advance deposit (where you have requested one-off Services) or to charge you in full for the cancelled Services and levy an additional cancellation charge of £25 (where you have requested regular Services).

9.6           We may have to cancel an Order before the start date for the Services, due to an Event Outside Our Control or the unavailability of key personnel or key equipment/materials without which we cannot provide the Services. We will promptly contact you if this happens. In such circumstances, if you have made any payment in advance for Services that have not been provided to you, we will refund these amounts to you or provide you with a credit note where you require Services on a regular basis.

9.7           Any requests for refunds or price adjustments must be referred to us in writing.

10.             Termination of the Contract between Us

10.1           Where we provide the Services to you on a regular basis, you may terminate the contract for the Services at any time by providing us with at least 30  calendar days’ notice in writing or where we are providing you with one-off Services you may terminate the contract for Services by giving us not less than 48 hours’ notice in writing. Any advance payment you have made for Services that have not been provided will be refunded to you.

10.2           Once we have begun to provide the Services to you, you may terminate the contract for Services with immediate effect by giving us written notice if:

(a)        we breach this contract in any material way and we do not correct or fix the situation within 14 days of you asking us to in writing;

(b)        we go into liquidation or a receiver or an administrator is appointed over our assets;

(c)        we change these Terms under clause 3.2 your material disadvantage;

(d)        we are affected by an Event Outside Our Control.

10.3           Once we have begun to provide the Services to you, we may terminate the contract for the Services at any time by providing you with at least 30 days’ notice for regular Services or 24 hours’ notice for one-off Services. If you have made any payment in advance for Services that have not been provided to you, we will refund these amounts to you.

10.4           We may cancel the contract for Services at any time with immediate effect by giving you written notice if:

(a)        you do not pay us when you are supposed to as set out in clause 5. This does not affect our right to charge you interest under clause 5.9; or

(b)        you breach the contract in any other material way and you do not correct or fix the situation within 14 days of us asking you to in writing;

(c)        if you are a business, you go into liquidation or a receiver or an administrator is appointed over your assets.

11.             Notices

11.1           If you have any questions or if you have any complaints, please contact us by telephoning our customer service team on 0207 0606 606 or by e-mailing us at mail@missmaid.co.uk.

11.2           If you wish to contact us in writing, or if any clause in these Terms requires you to give us notice in writing (for example, to cancel the contract), you can send this to us by e-mail, by hand, or by pre-paid post to Miss Maid at Docklands Business Centre, 10-16 Tiller Road, London E14 8PX and/or  mail@missmaid.co.uk. We will confirm receipt by contacting you in writing. If we have to contact you or give you notice in writing, we will do so by e-mail, by hand, or by pre-paid post to the address you provide to us in the Order or you have otherwise given to us.

12.             How We may use Your Personal Information

12.1           We will use the personal information you provide to us to:

(a)        provide the Services;

(b)        process your payment for such Services; and

(c)        inform you about similar products or services that we provide, but you may stop receiving these at any time by contacting us.

12.2           You agree that we may pass your personal information to credit reference agencies and that they may keep a record of any search that they do.

12.3           We will not give your personal data to any other third party, other than to our cleaning operatives and anyone assisting us in the performance of the Services.

12.4           We reserve the right to take property pictures and record all telephone conversations for training,
quality control, record keeping and fraud prevention purposes.

13.             Other Important Terms

13.1           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. In this context we hereby notify you that some of our Services may be performed by our group company, Field Task Limited, but the contract will be between you and us and we will remain liable for Field Task Limited’s acts or omissions.

13.2           You may only transfer your rights or your obligations under these Terms to another person if we agree in writing.

13.3           These Terms and each Order constitutes the entire agreement and contract between the parties and you acknowledge that you have not relied on any statement, promise or representation made or given by us or on our behalf which is not set out in that contract.

13.4           These Terms and each Order apply to the contract between us to the exclusion of any other terms that you seek to impose or incorporate, or which are implied by trade, custom, practice or course of dealing.

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

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

13.7           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.

13.8           These Terms are governed by English law. You and we both agree to submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

Schedule
General Cleaning Provisions

1.             General Provisions for All Cleaning Services

1.1           When we provide general cleaning Services on a regular basis:

(a)       a detailed list of cleaning tasks should be provided by you before each time the Services start. If there have been only verbal descriptions, we shall not be responsible for any cleaning tasks not completed by us;

(b)       we cannot guarantee that the same cleaner will perform the Services on each occasion, although we shall use our best efforts to accommodate your reasonable requests;

(c)       you must notify us at least 48 hours before the day of your regular Services if that day is a bank holiday and you do not require the Services on that date.

1.2           You shall not without our prior written consent at any time during the period from the date of 18 months after the date of termination, completion or expiry of the contract between us (as the case may be) solicit or endeavour to entice away from or discourage from being employed by us any of our employees or sub-contractors engaged in providing the Services. Any consent given by us in accordance with this paragraph shall be subject to the payment by you to us of £1500 per employee or sub-contractor, plus any applicable VAT.

2.             Equipment

2.1           Unless you have elected to provide your own materials under paragraph 2.2 or if the Services comprise spring cleaning, steam cleaning, end of tenancy cleaning, after party cleaning, after building cleaning  and/or event cleaning, you are responsible for providing all relevant cleaning materials (such as detergents and solutions towels, dusters, cloths and gloves) and equipment (vacuum cleaner, bucket, mop, iron, ironing board, brushes and broom) in good and safe working order to allow us to perform the Services. No specialist skills should be required for the operation of any equipment you provide for us to perform the Services, although you should provide clear instructions for the use of any complex equipment. If you do not provide any or all of the cleaning materials required, we may purchase the required items on your behalf. You will be responsible for repaying the direct costs of such cleaning materials, plus an additional service charge.

2.2           If you would prefer us to provide our own equipment and cleaning materials, there will be an additional charge for equipment and materials, depending on the size of your property.

3.             Cleaning at the end of a Tenancy,  at the end of Building Works, after party cleaning, spring cleaning, event cleaning or other one-off cleaning

3.1           Where we have agreed in an Order that the Services shall include cleaning at the end of a tenancy, at the end of building works, after party cleaning, spring cleaning, event cleaning or other one-off cleaning, the provisions of this paragraph 3 shall apply.

3.2           Our fees for one-off Services are charged per hour, taking into account the current condition of the premises, the number of rooms, bathrooms, showers and WCs.

3.3           Additional charges will be levied for steam cleaning, dishwashing, removing more than 5 items from cupboards for cleaning and replacement, dusting books, cleaning walls and ceilings, cleaning external spaces (such as balconies, terraces, patios and gardens). Where our fees for particular Services are quoted (whether in whole or in part) on a per room basis, we use national average room sizes when calculating quotations without having examined your premises.

3.4           If your actual room sizes differ by more than 10% or if your initial requirements change we will discuss revised rates with you before we commence the Services. If you do not accept the revised rate you will be liable to forego your 50% advance deposit payment.

3.5           All quotations made in writing by us shall be valid for 30 days. We reserve the right to change our prices if your original requirements change.

3.6           Our quotations exclude the costs of clearing any debris created by tradesmen or building work unless otherwise agreed by us.

3.7           We will move furniture to assist us to perform the Services, provided that any items of furniture can easily and safely be moved by one person.

3.8           We provide any estimates in good faith, based upon average times taken to clean homes of a similar size, but you acknowledge that it is difficult to predict actual timings with certainty and some degree of flexibility will be required. For example, after building cleaning, event cleaning and the cleaning of badly neglected properties may take up to three times longer than for cleaning a well-maintained home on a regular basis.

4.             Steam Cleaning

4.1           Where we have agreed in an Order that the Services shall include steam cleaning of carpets and/or upholstery, the provisions of this paragraph 4 shall apply.

4.2           Please note that the steam cleaning we provide is not suitable for suede, coir, sisal, jute, sea grass or any other natural plant fibres. You should seek alternative advice regarding the dry cleaning of natural plant fibres, a service which we do not provide.

4.3           Please note that we do not clean net curtains.

4.4           For steam cleaning, we shall provide all cleaning equipment and solutions, but you will be responsible for providing us with running water and an electricity supply which are pre-requisites for such steam cleaning.

4.5           Our charges for carpet cleaning are based on national average sized rooms or on a per metre basis.

4.6           Where we provide steam cleaning, you will be responsible for reimbursing us for the London Congestion Charge (where applicable) and for any parking charges, where there is not free roadside or off-road parking at your premises. If no free or paid parking is available at or within a reasonable distance of your address, you will be required to provide a temporary/visitor’s parking permit for us to use. Please contact your local authority for further details regarding temporary/visitor’s parking permits.

5.             Keys

5.1           If you ask us to collect keys from or deliver keys to an address more than 300 metres from the address at which the Services are to be performed, we reserve the right to levy an additional charge for each collection and for each delivery. If the wrong keys are provided, a further charge will be levied. We are not responsible for any faulty keys/locks.

5.2          Key replacement/locksmith fees are paid only if keys are lost by our operatives. There is a £30 per location liability limit.

6.             Venetian Blinds

6.1           Please ask for our price list for cleaning venetian blinds, which is not included within our standard cleaning Services.