Terms & Conditions

Small Business Websites » Terms & Conditions

Overview

Small Business Websites is a division of I.F. Web Solutions Ltd. Registered in England and Wales No. 8735971 and is referred to in these Terms and Conditions as SBW.

Please read our Terms and Conditions carefully. When you order any services via www.smallbusinesswebsites.co.uk you are agreeing to these Terms and Conditions.

We will always provide you with the best service we can, however sometimes it is important to have a few things written down and agreed upon before work starts so that both parties know where they stand.

Our Terms and Conditions include information about our service, payment, your rights and both of our obligations and liabilities. We do not wish to trick you into signing something you don’t understand or might later regret, so we’ve written them in plain English.

We want to do what is best for both parties to establish a positive working relationship that lasts for a long time.

 

Our Service

Website design and development process

SBW will design the layout for the home page of your website (the “Website”) and once you have approved that layout in accordance with these Terms and Conditions we will implement this across the rest of the Website. SBW requires you to provide appropriate content and images for each page, one page at a time, starting with the home page. Prior to the website going live, you must supply all content and images.

SBW will send initial designs to you within 5 to 10 working days, depending on the package, and SBW will aim to turn around revisions within 2-4 working days. In these Terms and Conditions, “working days” means Monday to Friday, excluding any days that the banks are closed for business in the City of London.

Occasionally there may be small delays in the turnaround which result from matters which are outside of SBW’s reasonable control, and SBW will not be held liable for any such delays.

Although we will always endeavour to meet your timeframes, we can’t be held responsible for a missed launch date or deadline under any circumstance and especially when you have been late in supplying materials or have not approved or signed-off work in a timely fashion.

 

Service response times

Website delivery

Although SBW will use best efforts to work within the turnaround times referred to on this site, those times are target times only and SBW accepts no liability for failure to meet these times, particularly at times of high demand. If you are concerned about timing please contact our customer helpline on 07913825832 or email and we will do what we can to work within your timing requirements (subject to demand).

Please note, to enable us to get the Website live quickly we need the following things from you:

  • Your domain name;
  • Details of your required email accounts;
  • Your logo in an editable format such as an Adobe Photoshop EPS or Illustrator file; and
  • The content and images that you would like to incorporate into the Website.

You’ll need to make sure your domain name, trade marks, content and images as well as any other materials you supply to us or require us to incorporate into the site do not infringe the rights (including intellectual property rights) of anyone else and do not constitute Unacceptable Content. For these purposes, Unacceptable Content will include any content or materials which are either obscene, defamatory or otherwise unlawful. You agree to hold us harmless against any losses, damages or liabilities we incur if you fail to get the necessary clearances, permissions, licences and consents or if you include any Unacceptable Content within any materials that you provide to us. If you are not sure whether your materials are cleared for use on the Website, or if any materials are likely to amount to Unacceptable Content, you should consider carefully whether or not you want to incorporate them into the Website and take legal advice as you see fit.

 

Our hours of work and conduct

SBW will try its best to meet the following response times within normal working hours (i.e. 9am to 5.30pm on working days):

Email response within 3 hours;
Phone call response – immediate, unless we are busy or talking to others, then we’ll do our best to come back to you within normal working hours (i.e. 9am to 5.30pm on working days):
If you have a hosting or maintenance problem outside normal working hours we will endeavour to respond as quickly as possible, and in any event by 11am on the next working day following receipt by us of an email sent to our support email address: .

SBW takes any form of harassment or aggressive behaviour against its staff very seriously and we reserve the right to cancel a project without refund in the event of unreasonable or inappropriate conduct. If you are concerned about the manner in which your query is being dealt with please contact us at and we will do what we can to help resolve the matter to our mutual satisfaction.

 

Launch and sign-off

We require an email confirmation to sign off and approve the first stage home page design before we will continue with the Website build (such approval not to be unreasonably withheld or delayed). We also require an email confirmation to sign-off on the final site before we make it live. Following final sign-off any further changes will be chargeable at our standard hourly rate of £50 per hour.

 

Website updates

Any changes requested by you following launch of the Website will be charged at our standard hourly rate of £50 per hour.

 

Open source software

We develop our websites on WordPress which is Open Source Software. You will not be charged for using Open Source Software. You are paying for the time it takes to design and build your website on the Open Source platform. WordPress is not owned by SBW or their customers.

 

Hosting

SBW offer unlimited website traffic to all customers and website space is limited to 1GB unless otherwise stated in a separate contract.

SBW will endeavour to provide a reliable and professional hosting service to you at all times but we do not guarantee that the Website will be available at all times, especially in the event of a technical failure beyond our control.

The operation of websites can often be subject to delays, interruptions, errors and omissions, including issues with the underlying network or communications infrastructure. We will do what we can to minimise, and where possible to remedy, such delays, interruptions, errors or omissions, but we will not be responsible for any losses, damages or liabilities arising through no fault of our own.

Renewal of hosting is due on an annual basis from the date that the Website is first made live. The invoice will be issued 30 days before the hosting renewal is due and payment is required by the renewal date. SBW may suspend the operation of and access to any website where any renewal payment is not paid in full and on time. There will be an admin fee of £50 for reactivating the website.

The customer has the right to cancel the hosting services at any time with no less than 1 months’ prior written notice. In such circumstances, no refund shall apply but the Website may remain online until the end of the year of the subscription.

Should you wish to move the Website to an alternative provider you are free to do so upon giving us no less than 1 month’s prior written notice. SBW’s only obligation will be to export the Website as a static website (HTML, CSS and JavaScript files) and provide them as a zip file. The customer will not retain access to or use of the custom WordPress platform. SBW will charge for the time spent outputting the files based on its standard rates.

 

Domains

A domain name will only be registered on your behalf once full payment has been received for the domain name concerned. So, please ensure funds are paid to us promptly to avoid missing out on your domain name. You agree that domain names will be registered in the name of SBW in order to enable us to maintain the relevant domains effectively. Although the domain names will initially be registered to SBW you will be entitled to request the transfer of the domains or make any changes you see fit to the registry data relating to a domain (including technical and administrative contact details), subject to the payment by you of an administration fee of £25. We take no responsibility for any issues that arise as a result of the domain names being held by any person other than SBW.

Unless you specifically indicate to the contrary, SBW will renew all domains annually upon receipt of the annual hosting renewal payment.

If a domain name is purchased by you, or you require it to be transferred to you or any other person, it is your responsibility to renew it when it is due and SBW bares no responsibility for this.

If you wish to move a domain name away from SBW, a £25 administration charge will be issued which is payable before the transfer can take place.

 

Search engine optimisation (SEO)

Where asked to provide SEO for a customer, SBW does not guarantee any specific placement in the Search Engine Results Pages (SERPs). We don’t take any responsibility for the Website’s rank on search engines. When updating, changing or creating a website there could be a change in the Website’s search engine ranking.

 

Royalty free stock imagery

All our packages come with 5 royalty free stock images which can be chosen from our designated stock image library, Thinkstock (this is subject to change at any time without prior notice).

 

Additional charges

We reserve the right to charge extra for the following additional services that are not included in the standard website packages:

  • Logo design
  • Additional domain purchase and renewal
  • Stock imagery that has been purchased by SBW on the express wish of the customer
  • Different page layouts requested by the customer once the initial design has been approved
  • Fundamental changes to the design requested by the customer once the initial design has been approved
  • Functionality beyond html/css (i.e. database/JavaScript)
  • To remove ‘Small Business Websites’ from the footer of your website.
  • We reserve the right to charge extra in the event that, whilst in the process of providing services to you, we receive no communication from you for 8 weeks or more, unless previously arranged.

 

Payment

Payment can be made via our site by PayPal. All payments must be made in full prior to work commencing.

We store details of your order in our database and we send you a receipt of your order following payment. Your order is not accessible by you via an online account.

 

One-off payment for design/build

You make a one off payment at the outset of the project that covers the design, build and launch of the website. The charge also includes hosting and domain purchase for the first 12 months which starts the day the site is made live.

 

Annual renewal for hosting/domain/email

An invoice will be issued 30 days before the renewal is due and payment is required by the renewal date.

You can cancel your renewal at any time on providing us with 1 month’s written notice. Should you cancel your renewal your site will remain accessible until your hosting/domain expires. At which point the site will be taken down and will be inaccessible. To cancel you must email stating explicitly that you wish to cancel your renewal.

 

Refunds

You are entitled to a full refund up to 7 days after purchasing via our website if no work has commenced on your Website. If work has commenced on your website a refund will not be paid.

Any refunds are provided at the sole discretion of SBW. If for any reason you wish to apply for a refund please contact

If your account is terminated due to a breach of these Terms and Conditions, no refund of any kind will be due.

 

Data Protection

We make every effort to comply with the current law on data protection.

SBW intends to use commercially reasonable efforts to follow our privacy policy and as such our privacy policy may be changed from time to time at our sole discretion. Any data gathered from you about you or your company will not be disclosed to any third party. We will use our best endeavours to ensure that your data that is critical to the operation of your Website is protected, and that we put in place appropriate technical and organisational measures to prevent unauthorised access to that data. However, we may be required to reveal information, including personal information, if dictated by any applicable law. We do not assume any responsibility or liability for any information provided by you which may be disclosed by accident or by third parties’ illegal acts. We cannot assume any responsibility or liability for any information submitted to us via our online form, or for the use or misuse of any information submitted by you or any other person, including, without limitation, any information accessed by a hacker or as a result of any other malicious act, virus or other contaminant.

 

Intellectual Property

Provided that you comply with these Terms and Conditions, we agree to transfer you ownership of the final web design provided to you by SBW for the Website (the Final Design), but you will not own any source code (or other software), methods, methodologies, products, processes, tools, techniques, databases, know how, media, content or other materials generated by SBW in the production of the Website or otherwise.

You acknowledge and grant to SBW the right to use initial web designs and revised web designs, as well as individual designs provided to you, for internal and filing purposes, and in order to display and promote the SBW service. You acknowledge that your rights under the preceding paragraph shall be limited to the Final Design chosen by you.

Until you have notified your approval of the Final Design to SBW, all artwork, concepts and designs, excluding the Customer Materials, remain the copyright and exclusive property of SBW. This material may not be reproduced in any other way without the prior written consent of SBW. We reserve the right to use and reproduce any image, logo or illustration created by SBW, in connection with the promotion of SBW and its services from time to time.

All intellectual property rights owned by you in any text, software, music, sound, photographs, graphics, video, page layout and design or other material which you upload or post to your site (Customer Materials) shall remain your property.

By providing to us, or uploading to the Website, any Customer Materials, you are allowing us, a non-exclusive, world-wide, royalty free, perpetual, irrevocable licence to display, reproduce and otherwise use those Customer Materials in any medium for the purposes of performing our obligations under these Terms and Conditions and promoting SBW and its services.

You agree to prominently display the SBW name and logo on the Website’s homepage or other landing pages as may reasonably be required by SBW. To this effect, we grant you a personal, non-transferable and non-exclusive licence to use the SBW name and logo, and you will remove this upon termination of your account with SBW (including if you decide to move to another hosting services provider).

Unless we otherwise authorise you to do so in writing, you agree not to modify, copy, reproduce, republish, upload, post, transmit, rent, loan, sell, lease, licence, sub-licence, distribute or create content and/or derivative works relating to SBW, other than the Final Design and/or the Customer Materials.

 

Our Liability

We will try our best not to breach any of our obligations under these Terms and Conditions. If we do, and a court decides that we are liable to compensate you, you agree that our liability is limited as follows:

Only SBW will be liable to you for any breach of obligations, not any individual or member of staff connected with SBW.

SBW’s maximum liability for any claim by you whether in contract, tort (including negligence or breach of statutory duty) or otherwise arising in connection with the provision of services pursuant to these Terms and Conditions shall be limited to the price paid by you for our services in the twelve months preceding the event that gives rise to liability.

We will only be liable for losses which are a direct result of our breach, and not for any indirect or consequential loss (including loss of profits, loss of business, loss of data, loss of anticipated savings, loss of goodwill or loss of opportunity). We will not be liable to the extent that any breach by us results from something you do or fail to do (such as, providing incorrect or inaccurate information and failing to provide information or Customer Materials when required).

 

Your Commitments

Eligibility requirements

You must be at least 18 years of age, and by completing our online form you agree to these Terms and Conditions and our website Privacy Policy. By asking for our services, you agree that you meet these eligibility requirements, that the information you include as part of the ordering process is complete and accurate and, if you are ordering services on behalf of a company, that you have the permission to do so. SBW may reserve the right to accept or reject your order in its sole discretion.

 

Your work

We will agree with you at the outset the scope of the work. We are not responsible for matters that are outside the scope of the work agreed. All prices are as quoted on our website. You must pay to us, on demand, all reasonable costs, charges or losses sustained or incurred by us (including, without limitation, any direct, indirect or consequential losses, loss of profit and loss of reputation, loss or damage to property and those arising from injury to or death of any person and loss of opportunity to deploy resources elsewhere) arising directly or indirectly from any of the following acts or omissions by you: fraud, negligence, failure to perform or delay in the performance of any of your obligations.

 

Confidentiality

Your information

We will keep confidential all information about you and your business and not disclose it to anyone outside SBW without your consent. You hereby consent to disclosure in the following circumstances:

  • in the proper handling of your work;
  • to our professional indemnity insurers;
  • to assessors in relation to any application by us for or the maintenance of a quality standard such as Investors in People,
  • where compelled by law, such as a court order;
  • in case studies for our own promotion.

 

Our information

Subject to (a) to (c) below you must keep in strict confidence all technical or commercial knowhow, specifications, inventions, processes or initiatives which are of a confidential nature and have been disclosed to you by us, our employees, agents, consultants or subcontractors and any other confidential information concerning our business or our products or services which you may obtain.

(a) You may disclose such information:

(i) to your employees, officers, representatives, advisers, agents or subcontractors who need to know such information for the purposes of carrying out your obligations relating to the work you have instructed us to carry out; and

(ii) as may be required by law, court order or any governmental or regulatory authority.

(b) You must ensure that any employees, officers, representatives, advisers, agents or subcontractors to whom you disclose such information comply with these provisions about confidentiality.

(c) You must not use any such information for any purpose other than to perform your obligations to us.

All materials, documents, equipment and tools, drawings, specifications and data supplied by us to you shall, at all times, be and remain our exclusive property, but shall be held by you in safe custody at your own risk and maintained and kept in good condition by you until returned to us, and shall not be disposed of or used other than in accordance with our written instructions or authorisation.

 

Ending our relationship

You may ask us to stop work on your project at any time. If so, please confirm that in writing. We may choose to stop acting for you, but only if we have good reason to do so (for example, if you continually do not give us clear and constructive feedback, or do not make a payment when due). If we stop working for you we are still entitled to be paid for what we have done, and may keep your work until we have been paid.

 

Jurisdiction

These terms and our relationship will be governed by English Law. We each submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English courts.

 

Agreement

Unless otherwise agreed, these terms of business apply to any instructions you have already given us and all future instructions you give us. Your continuing instructions in this matter will amount to your acceptance of these Terms and Conditions.

 

LAST UPDATED: 22/08/2016