Terms Of Service

Thank you for entrusting the care and attention of your pet to Vet Eye Care. We, Vet Eye Care, aim to provide the highest standards of veterinary care. These are the terms on which we supply veterinary services and related products to you. These terms and conditions shall apply to all supplies of veterinary services and products by us to you, to the exclusion of all other terms and conditions. Please ensure that you read these terms carefully before accepting the services. Please note that some aspects of these terms may not be relevant to you and we suggest you ask for further clarification from us if required.

1. Supply of Veterinary Services

1.1 We shall ensure that all veterinary services are supplied by suitably qualified staff, taking into account the nature of the veterinary service to be supplied in each instance.

1.2 Wherever practicable and on your request, a treatment plan for the supply of veterinary services will normally be agreed with you following an initial consultation and in advance of any further treatment. This treatment plan will provide an estimate regarding the likely costs of the course of treatment in such plan. In an emergency we reserve the right to provide such veterinary services as are deemed reasonably necessary, in the professional judgement of the veterinary surgeon or Vet Eye Care colleague providing the veterinary services, without first agreeing a treatment plan.

1.3 Please note that any estimate given can only be an approximation of the costs of any treatment required. If our original estimate looks as if it will be exceeded, then the Veterinary Surgeon responsible for providing the veterinary services will discuss any increased fees with you before any further procedures are undertaken (unless in the event of an emergency and at the professional discretion of the relevant Veterinary Surgeon acting in the best interest of your pet).

1.4 We will endeavour to provide veterinary services in accordance with reasonable standards denoted by the RCVS guidelines for practice standards and the professional conduct of veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses. All veterinary services shall be supplied in accordance with normal professional standards.

1.5 Veterinary services shall be supplied during our normal business hours (these may change from time to time, the current opening hours of Vet Eye Care can be found on our website at www.veteyecare.co.uk). At our discretion we may arrange for veterinary services to be supplied at various locations and at other times. In case of an out-of-hours emergency, a veterinary surgeon will see you outside these opening hours, but this service will carry an extra charge.

1.6 We reserve the right to decline to supply veterinary services at our discretion. You are always free at your cost and subject to the payment obligations in these terms and conditions, to seek a second opinion on or concerning any veterinary services provided.

2. Supply of Products

2.1 In the event of any defect or failure in any product our liability to you shall be restricted to replacing the product or refunding the price paid by you for the product.

2.2 You acknowledge and agree that all products must only be used in accordance with the instructions supplied with them or issued verbally by the Veterinary Surgeon providing the veterinary services or other staff of Vet Eye Care. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the use of any product, you should consult the Veterinary Surgeon providing the veterinary services or another member of our staff for clarification.

2.3 Any products supplied by us shall be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose expressly agreed by the Veterinary Surgeon providing the veterinary services or other Vet Eye Care colleague and shall comply with any description given. All other warranties, expressed or implied, are hereby excluded.

3. Payment

3.1 All veterinary services and products provided by us shall be charged to you in accordance with our then current price list, a copy of which is available on request and which is subject to change without notice. If you have any question with regards the level of charge that will be incurred, you should consult the Veterinary Surgeon in charge of your pet’s treatment or Vet Eye Care staff, for clarification. There may be a charge for all administration services, including processing insurance claims. We accept cash, card and BACS payments.

3.2 Our normal practice is for payment to be made in full by you at the time the veterinary services or the products are supplied, either at the end of the consultation, the discharge of your pet or upon collection of the products. All invoices must be settled in full on receipt of the invoice. We may at our absolute discretion agree that you may delay payment of an invoice pending recovery of the sum from your insurer for such reasonable period as we may agree in writing. You remain liable in full for all invoices and all sums shall become due and payable in full by you at the end of this extended payment period irrespective of whether your insurer has made payment to you.

3.3 We accept direct insurance claims at the discretion of our Clinical Director and Practice Manager. A direct insurance claim is one where you do not pay us; rather we claim the money directly from the insurance company. We may charge a direct insurance claim administration fee. In the event that all or any part of the insurance claim is not paid by your insurance company for any reason you will be liable for the outstanding balance.

3.4 We may refer overdue accounts to our debt collection agency.

3.5 In the event that any invoice or other sum owed by you is not paid when due, then without prejudice to any other remedies available to us, we may at any time:

3.5.1 add additional charge(s) to your outstanding account in order to recover fees and costs in connection with the collection of the sum owed (including but not limited to administrative costs and debt collection agency fees); and

3.5.2 issue notice to you that no further veterinary services and/or products will be supplied to you.

3.6 In the event of non-payment of any invoice in its entirety within the required period, further administrative and debt recovery charges may be applied to your account as well as referral to a Debt Recovery Agency.

Please note that upon referral to a debt recovery agency of our choice you will incur additional fees. You agree to reimburse us for all debt recovery charges we incur in the pursuit of recovering the debt due to the additional correspondence, phone calls, reports, administration costs and other debt recovery actions. You contractually agree to pay these additional debt recovery sums and interest as a result of your non-payment under the agreed payment terms.

If the account remains in arrears 30 days after referral to the debt recovery agency, we reserve the right to commence legal proceedings. You agree that you will be liable for any additional debt recovery costs thereafter as well as legal costs. You agree to be liable for our legal costs on an indemnity basis in addition to the principal sum and interest.

We reserve the right to not undertake any further commercial dealings while the debt is outstanding and we can suspend the provision of any further goods and/or services until the outstanding sum is paid in full. Please note county court judgments can impact your credit rating.

Interest will be applied at 8% above the Bank of England base rate.

3.7 All prices quoted are exclusive of value added tax or other indirect taxes, duties or levies which shall be added as appropriate.

3.8 If you are unable to pay for the veterinary services, we are only obliged to fulfil our minimum legal responsibilities and professional obligations in respect of your pet.

4. Liability

4.1 We carry professional indemnity insurance in the sum of £150,000 for criminal or disciplinary action, £10m per claim for human injury, £250,000 domestic pet (“Insured Sum“) for any single claim. We supply veterinary services and products to you on the condition that our liability for any loss, claim, cost or expense arising out said supply shall not exceed and shall be limited to a maximum of the Insured Sum.

4.2 If you wish us to assume a level of liability greater than the Insured Sum then we shall so agree on condition that:

4.2.1 you so request in writing; and

4.2.2 we are able to obtain insurance cover for said higher level of liability; and

4.2.3 that you pay in advance to us the additional premium incurred by us in respect of the additional cover.

4.3 Nothing in these terms and conditions shall:

4.3.1 exclude or limit our liability for death or personal injury caused to a human being;

4.3.2 renders us liable for any indirect or consequential loss (including, but not restricted to, loss of profit or loss of savings) which liability shall be excluded to the maximum extent permitted by law.

5. Complaints

5.1 It is our intention that all our clients should be satisfied with the veterinary services and any products supplied. In the event that you are dissatisfied with any aspect of the veterinary services or products supplied by Vet Eye Care, or its staff, in the first instance you should contact the Clinical Director or Practice Manager to discuss your concerns and they shall endeavour to address any issues arising.

5.2 If you remain dissatisfied, then please refer to our complaints policy, we can provide you with further details at the practice or on our website.

5.3 In the case of a complaint, we may share your information with our insurers or our indemnity providers or other professional advisors if we believe that this will enable us to resolve your complaint more effectively.

6. Pet Insurance

6.1 We may advocate pet insurance, but any contract of insurance is between you and your insurer. Please ensure that you refer to the terms and conditions of your insurance policy.

7. Data Protection

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

7.1.1 provide the veterinary services and products;

7.1.2 process your payments for the veterinary services and products; and

7.1.3 inform you about the products and services that we or selected third parties provide, but you may stop receiving these at any time by contacting us.

7.2 In order to provide the services above, we may use selected third parties to process your data. More information can be found about third party processing can be seen in our privacy policy, or requested from the practice.

8. Miscellaneous

8.1 No alteration may be made to these terms and conditions without our express written consent. We may update or amend these terms and conditions at any time by placing a notice to that effect in our premises.

8.2 These terms and conditions shall be governed by English Law and we and you submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts, without prejudice to our right to seek recovery of any sum due by you before any complaint court.

8.3 The care given to your pet may involve making some specific investigations, for example taking radiographs or performing ultrasound scans or blood tests. Case records including x-rays and ultrasound scans, or blood tests are the property of Vet Eye Care, and shall be retained by us. Copies with a summary of the history of any patient can be passed to another veterinary surgeon taking over a case, on written request to us and upon settlement in full of all sums due to us in respect of such patient’s treatment by us.

8.3.1 When you request a repeat prescription for your pet we can only supply the medication if: the Veterinary Surgeon caring for your pet has authorised the repeat prescription;

8.3.2 your pet has been seen by one of our Veterinary surgeons within the last 6 months. There will be a charge for such repeat prescriptions to cover the time, responsibility and professional insurance costs involved.

8.4 We are a company registered in England and Wales. Our registered VAT number is GB441035634. If you have any questions, please contact us. You can contact us by writing to us at Vet Eye Care, 16 Trent Way, Enterprise Park, Yaxley, Peterborough, PE7 7AT or email info@veteyecare.co.uk