Terms and conditions of business for
Strachan Veterinary Group
Our company details
Company Name: Strachan, Tyson & Hamilton LTD
Trading Name: Strachan Veterinary Group
Registered Address:
36 Heaton Road
Newcastle Upon Tyne
NE6 1SD
Company number: 04078601
These terms include important information- please read them carefully. We recommend that you keep a copy of these terms for future reference.
By buying veterinary products or services from us you accept and agree to be bound by these terms.
General terms (applying to the provision of all goods and services)
Our services
We will provide veterinary services and goods in accordance with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) Code of Professional Conduct.
Veterinary services will be provided by suitably trained and/or qualified staff within our normal business hours. An out of hours service will be provided by a third party provider.
We operate as a first opinion, small animal veterinary practice. We may refer you to an alternative provider if we feel their services are more suited to your requirements.
Estimates
Estimates are provided verbally either at the time of booking the appointment or during the consultation itself. Written estimates are available on request. All estimates given are only approximate, and the final fee could be higher or lower then this estimate depending on complications during treatment and patient response to treatment. We will endeavour to contact you as soon as we have reason to believe that the costs could be significantly higher than the estimate.
Fees
All fees for services and prices for goods (including food, accessories and drugs) are subject to VAT at the applicable rate (currently 20% for standard-rated items). Prices for goods are as marked or notified at the point of purchase. A full fee breakdown will appear on your invoice.
Fees for services include our professional fees in respect of the veterinary services provided along with the cost of any drugs, materials or consumables used in the provision of the services. Professional fees vary according to the time spent on a case, and the level of expertise required of the staff looking after you animal.
Payments
You must pay for all goods (including drugs) at the point of purchase.
You must pay for all services as they are received. You will be advised exactly when payments are due depending upon the nature of the services that we provide to you but you should expect to make payments at the end of each consultation and upon the discharge of your pet from our care. In the event that your pet is hospitalised we may require part payment in advance of any period of hospitalisation and/or stage payments for longer periods of hospitalisation. If your pet is hospitalised we will try to phone you each day to discuss the progress of your animal and the fees incurred once the veterinary surgeon has completed their morning rounds.
Payment is accepted by cash, debit/credit card, or BACS transfer. Please note that if a pet is registered with our practice we will assume that any person other then the registered pet owner who may bring the pet in for treatment is duly authorised by the registered pet owner to seek treatment for the pet and to incur costs for which the registered pet owner will be liable. Where a pet is not registered with our practice we will assume that the individual requesting treatment accepts liability for all costs incurred.
If you become unable to pay your account according to the standard terms, this must be discussed with the veterinary practice as soon as possible.
In the absence of any other arrangement agreed with the veterinary surgeon, accounts not settled within our standard terms will be escalated to our debt management process, and we shall take such action as considered appropriate to recover our fees which may include engaging third party debt collection agencies to recover the outstanding fees and/or instigating proceedings against you in the county court. In such cases any costs levied by the debt collection agency will be added on to the outstanding balance owed by you and/or we will seek to recover any legal expenses from you. Please note that the use of debt collection agencies and the county court could affect your future credit rating.
We shall be entitled to suspend the provision of any further goods/services until you have paid the full outstanding sums in full. Where we consider it appropriate we may require payment on account before goods and/or services are provided.
Insurance
We strongly support the principle of insuring your pet against unexpected illness or accidents. Direct insurance claims are permitted for sums over £1000 on the basis that the insurance excess is paid at the beginning of treatment, and that the correct claim form is provided to the practice within 14 days of commencement of treatment. Pre-authorisation is required for all direct claims, and a 10% deposit is to be paid by the client in the event pre-authorisation cannot be confirmed at the time of commencement of treatment, which will be refunded once the full balance of treatment is paid via the insurer.
An admin fee of £15 applies for the processing of all new insurance claims, and £7.50 for continuation claims.
This facility is provided at the discretion of the lead veterinary surgeons, and is assessed on a case by case basis.
In the event that a claim is refused by the insurers, the client will remain liable for our fees. In the event that an insurer fails to acknowledge our claim or respond to communications from us within 30 days, we will treat this as a refused claim and seek to recover the full cost from the client.
Prescriptions
Repeat prescriptions need to be submitted at least 2 working days before required in most instances. This also applied to written prescriptions. Our policy regarding re-check intervals for prescription medications requires that a re-check is performed at least every 3 months or more regularly as deemed necessary by the veterinary surgeon.
Refunds cannot be issued for medications that have left the premises. For legal reasons we cannot re-stock the medications however we can dispose of them at no cost.
Consultations
All consultations are by appointment only. Clients are requested to inform the surgery in advance, preferably at least 24 hours before your appointment time, if you wish to cancel, or reschedule your appointment. We reserve the right to charge for missed appointments, or for appointments cancelled, or changed at short notice.
Every effort is made to accommodate clients and to find available appointment slots and we will never turn away an animal in the case of an emergency.
There is always a charge for repeat consultations.
All animals brought into the surgery must be accompanied by an adult over 18 years of age.
All cats must be kept in baskets in the waiting room and all dogs must be kept on a lead.
The safety of the pet, the client and our staff are of the highest priority and this may include measures to restrain the animal including the application of a muzzle or providing appropriate sedation. It is important for our clients to realise that our patients can have the potential to be dangerous and the advice of our professional staff is to be heeded. We reserve the right to refuse non-emergency treatment to any patient who cannot be safely treated or restrained.
For pet travel it is entirely the responsibility of the client to ensure that all the requirements are completely correctly and at the appropriate time. Our vets will be happy to provide advice regarding travel. It is also entirely the owner’s responsibility to ensure that any rabies boosters are given at the correct time- due to the differing lengths of duration between rabies manufacturers we currently do not send out reminders for rabies boosters.
Out of hours care and hospitalisation
Out of hours care is provided by Sheriffs Highway Veterinary Group who can be contacted on 0330 999 1750. This is a third party provider and as such any fees incurred during the out of hours times will be payable directly to Sheriffs Highway.
Any patients hospitalised on site at Strachan Veterinary Group will be checked as once or possibly twice through the night, but there is not a dedicated team on site. We will recommend that any animals needing more intensive treatment and monitoring are transferred to the out of hours provider.
Client records
Client and clinical records, and other such similar documents (including, but not limited to, digital imaging results), are and shall remain the property of Strachan Veterinary Group. Copies of clinical records may be passed to another veterinary surgeon on request should you move surgeries.
We never discuss or sell confidential records to any third party other then if you move surgeries or are referred to another veterinary surgeons.
Looking after our staff, clients and pets
We take the health, wellbeing and safety of our staff, clients and pets in our care very seriously. We therefore take a zero tolerance approach against intrusive, offensive, violent or aggressive behaviour. We reserve the right to refuse to provide services and terminate our contract with any persons engaging in unacceptable behaviour, and to contact the authorities where necessary.
Data protection
When you register your animal with our practice or request that we provide veterinary services, we will collect personal data about you and, where relevant, your employees and/or agents. We will only collect data that we need to perform the services, take payment or contact you, such as names, contact details, and possibly some financial details. Please note that we may pass your details on to debt collection agencies or our legal advisers for he purpose of recovering unpaid fees.
Complaints
Any complaints or feedback can be address to the Lead Veterinary Surgeon or Practice Manager either by telephone, in writing, or by email. A copy of our complaints policy is available on request.
