Terms of Business

1. About Us

Party Wall Online is a party wall surveying practice. All surveying work is carried out under the supervision of our Principal Surveyor, who is a Member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (MRICS) and individually regulated by the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS). Every Party Wall Award we produce is reviewed and signed off by our Principal Surveyor before it is served on the parties. Our registered office address and company registration number are stated on our engagement documentation.

By instructing Party Wall Online you confirm that you have read and accept these Terms of Business.

2. Scope of Services

We will provide the party wall surveying services set out in our written fee proposal. Unless expressly stated, the fixed fee covers the following services up to and including the service of the Party Wall Award:

• Preparation and service of party wall notices under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 • All statutory correspondence with adjoining owners • Preparation and service of the Party Wall Award

Work undertaken after the Party Wall Award has been served, including but not limited to damage claims made by a party under the Award, disputes arising between the parties during or after the works, and variations or amendments to the Award, is not included in the fixed fee. Such work will be charged at our then-current hourly rates set out in our fee schedule, and we will confirm the scope and an estimate in writing before undertaking it.

A Schedule of Condition is not included in the standard scope. It is a separate service charged at a fixed fee of £395 (plus VAT where applicable) for the first adjoining property, whether produced remotely from photographs or video provided or from a physical site visit (up to 2 hours). Where a Schedule of Condition is prepared on additional adjoining properties on the same site visit, each additional property is charged at £195 (plus VAT where applicable). Any additional services requested beyond this scope will be subject to a separate written fee proposal.

3. Fees & Payment

Our fees are as stated in our written fee proposal and are fixed unless otherwise agreed in writing. Fees are exclusive of VAT, which will be charged at the prevailing rate.

A 50% deposit is payable upon instruction. The remaining balance is payable prior to service of the Party Wall Award. We reserve the right to withhold the Award until fees are paid in full.

We accept payment by bank transfer. Our bank details are provided on our invoice.

4. Our Obligations

We will:

• Provide our services with reasonable skill and care, in accordance with the professional standards applicable to a practice supervised by an MRICS Principal Surveyor • Act in accordance with the Party Wall etc. Act 1996 • Maintain professional indemnity insurance throughout the instruction • Handle your personal data in accordance with our Privacy Policy and applicable data protection legislation • Keep you reasonably informed of material developments in your case

5. Your Obligations

You agree to:

• Provide accurate and complete information about the proposed works and your property • Inform us promptly of any changes to the works or to your contact details • Not commence notifiable works before notices have been served and the requisite notice period has expired (or an Award has been made) • Pay our fees in accordance with these Terms • Instruct your contractor to comply with any conditions set out in the Party Wall Award

6. Limitation of Liability

Our total liability to you in connection with any instruction shall not exceed the total fees paid by you for that instruction, except in the case of death or personal injury caused by our negligence, or fraud.

We accept no liability for losses caused by circumstances beyond our reasonable control, including delays caused by your neighbours' conduct or third parties.

7. Complaints

We are committed to providing an excellent service. If you are unhappy with any aspect of our work, please contact us in writing at hello@partywallonline.co.uk. We operate a formal complaints handling procedure. Full details are available on our Complaints page.

If you remain dissatisfied following our internal complaints process, you may refer your complaint to the RICS Dispute Resolution Service in respect of our Principal Surveyor, who is individually regulated by RICS.

8. Termination

Either party may terminate the instruction by giving written notice. In the event of termination, fees will be payable for all work completed up to the date of termination. Where notices have been served, we reserve the right to charge the full agreed fee as our statutory obligations as surveyor may continue beyond termination of our client relationship.