What are terms and conditions?
Terms and conditions are a business contract between a company and its customers. The contract specifies the terms under which a company will provide its products or services.
Your company's terms and conditions should be brought to your potential customer's attention as soon as possible. It is advisable to incorporate them into business contracts and quotations and to publish them on your website.
Why use terms and conditions?
It is crucial to have your own standard terms and conditions because every company is unique.
Without terms and conditions in place, there is a greater risk that misunderstandings with customers will occur.
Terms and conditions can prevent a dispute from arising because a customer understands their rights and your company's legal obligations from the start. For example, they know when payment is due for a product or service and what action will be taken if they default on payment.
How can terms and conditions offer maximum legal protection?
If a dispute with a customer arises, you will have greater legal protection if your terms and conditions:
- Are tailored to cover your business's particular risks.
- Easy to read, without legal jargon.
- Have been brought to your customer's attention, and better still, that they have signed to say they agree to the contract terms.
If a customer cannot understand or find your terms and conditions, they will not provide your company with adequate legal protection.
Your terms and conditions are as important to protect your business as professional indemnity insurance.
How Parkinson Wright can help
Our commercial law team can work with you to create standard terms and conditions that are customised to your business.
We can draft clear, comprehensive terms and conditions that reduce the risk of disputes occurring and escalating to expensive litigation. Well drafted terms and conditions also communicate professionalism, enhancing your company's reputation.
Businesses evolve over time, so it is important that your terms and conditions reflect your business activities today. If you already have terms and conditions in place, our solicitors can review them for you to make sure they continue to protect your interests.
Types of terms and conditions
Our terms and conditions solicitors can create and review the following contracts:
Business terms and conditions
These are legal terms and conditions between a business and a customer for the supply of services or goods. Essentially, they are the rules and circumstances under which a business will supply its services or goods to a customer.
Website terms and conditions
Online terms and conditions protect a website owner from legal action being taken against them. This particular contract also protects a website owner from someone else misusing their website.
Website terms and conditions set out how website content is protected (copyright), how users may interact with one another while using the website, rules relating to the suspension or cancellation of an account, compliance with data protection laws and more.
What should be included in your standard terms and conditions?
Standard terms and conditions usually cover:
- Details of goods and services provided. This details what a business is selling. Each service or product should be described in detail.
- Delivery arrangements. This explains how services or products are distributed and delivered to customers.
- Payment terms. This covers how a company wishes to be paid; for example, bank transfer, PayPal, etc., as well as including debt collection procedures that may be followed if payment is not received after a reasonable period.
- Prices. This includes all the variations of price, as well as provisions for price increases.
- Credit terms. This sets out how long customers have to pay for services or products; for example, pay by bank transfer within 14 days of receipt.
- Data protection clauses. This informs customers how a company complies with the Data Protection Act and GDPR.
- Complaints. This clause details the complaints procedure customers can follow if a product or service is not up to standard.
- Interest charged on late payments. Here customers are made aware that a business can charge interest on any late payments.
- Variation of contract. Such a clause states that if both parties agree in writing to vary the legal responsibilities of the contract, changes can be made.
- Termination of contract. If a business offers repeat services such as monthly subscriptions, they will include instructions on how these services can be terminated.
Why choose Parkinson Wright legal services?
Our commercial law team has years of experience in drafting standard terms and conditions for a variety of business types. We have helped solo entrepreneurs, small and medium sized companies and large corporations. Whatever your business, our dedicated solicitors can assist you.
We will start by sitting down with you to find out about your business and identify the areas of risk. Once we have all the relevant information, we will draft easy-to-understand terms and conditions that offer maximum protection for your business.
Accreditations
Parkinson Wright solicitors have several accreditations, so you can rest assured you will receive expert legal assistance and the highest level of customer service.
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Solicitors Regulation Authority
Regulated and authorised by the Solicitors Regulation Authority (SRA). -
Lexcel Quality Mark
We have achieved the Law Society’s Lexcel Legal Practice quality mark, which sets the standard for client care.
Get in touch
We offer a Free Initial Assessment, so you can call us for initial advice without charge or obligation to discuss how we can assist you.
To arrange your Free Initial Assessment at a time convenient to you, please call 01905 401 893.