Terms and Conditions for Gardeners West Wickham

These Terms and Conditions set out the basis on which gardening services are supplied by Gardeners West Wickham. They are designed to give customers a clear understanding of how bookings are made, how payments are handled, what happens if a visit is cancelled, and how responsibility is managed for property, waste, and access. By requesting services, the customer agrees to these terms in full.

For the purposes of these terms, references to “we”, “us”, and “our” mean the gardening service provider, and references to “you” and “your” mean the customer receiving the service. These terms apply to all standard gardening work, including but not limited to lawn care, hedge trimming, pruning, planting, clearance, and related maintenance tasks. Any special instructions or changes to the original request must be confirmed before work begins.

Gardeners West Wickham may update these terms from time to time to reflect changes in law, business practice, or the services offered. The version in force at the time of booking will usually apply to that booking unless otherwise agreed in writing. If any part of these terms is found to be invalid or unenforceable, the remaining provisions will continue to apply.

Booking Process

A booking is normally made when you provide details of the service required and we confirm availability. This may include the type of work, the size or condition of the area, preferred dates, access arrangements, and any relevant risks or restrictions. A booking is not guaranteed until it has been accepted by us, and we may refuse or amend a request where the work is unsuitable, unsafe, outside our service scope, or beyond our capacity at the requested time.

When assessing a request for gardeners in West Wickham, we may ask for photographs, measurements, or further information so that we can provide an accurate estimate or quote. You are responsible for ensuring that all information supplied is complete and correct. If the actual work differs materially from the details given at the time of booking, we may revise the price, alter the timescale, or decline to proceed until the issue is resolved.

Bookings may be accepted for one-off visits or recurring maintenance. If you are arranging repeated sessions, each visit may be subject to confirmation based on weather, workload, seasonal demand, and access. We reserve the right to allocate a suitably qualified operative or team member to carry out the work, and where necessary to use subcontracted assistance under our supervision or contractual arrangements.

Payments and Charges

Charges will be based on the agreed quote, hourly rate, fixed fee, or another pricing method notified to you in advance. Unless stated otherwise, prices are quoted in pounds sterling and may be exclusive or inclusive of VAT depending on our trading status and the service arrangement. Any estimate is given in good faith but is not necessarily a fixed price unless expressly confirmed as such.

Payment terms will be agreed at the time of booking or upon issue of the invoice. We may require full or partial payment in advance for certain jobs, especially where materials are purchased specifically for your project, where the appointment is made at short notice, or where the work involves a larger commitment of labour or equipment. If payment is due on completion, it must be made without unreasonable delay and, unless otherwise stated, within the period shown on the invoice.

We accept payment only by the methods we specify at the time of booking or invoicing. If a payment is not received on time, we may charge reasonable late-payment interest and recovery costs to the extent permitted by law. We may also suspend future work until outstanding balances are settled. Any discounts, promotional offers, or package prices are personal to the booking to which they relate and may be withdrawn if the booking is changed or cancelled.

Cancellations, Rescheduling, and Access

If you need to cancel or reschedule a booking, you should notify us as soon as reasonably possible. Cancellations made with adequate notice may not incur a charge, but we reserve the right to apply a reasonable cancellation fee where costs have already been incurred, including travel, labour allocation, materials, or wasted preparation time. In some cases, the fee may reflect the portion of the work that has already been reserved for your appointment.

If we need to cancel or reschedule due to adverse weather, staff illness, vehicle failure, safety concerns, or other circumstances beyond our reasonable control, we will try to offer an alternative appointment. For services from West Wickham gardeners, timing can be affected by seasonal conditions, and certain tasks may need to be postponed if they cannot be carried out safely or effectively. We will usually communicate any change as soon as practical.

You must ensure that we have safe and reasonable access to the property at the agreed time. This includes access to gates, driveways, side passages, water supplies if needed, electricity if relevant, and areas where work is to be completed. If access is not available, or if the site is unsuitable because of obstructions, locked entry points, aggressive animals, or hidden hazards, we may be unable to complete the service and may charge for lost time or a wasted visit.

Scope of Work and Customer Responsibilities

We will carry out the services with reasonable care and skill in accordance with the instructions provided and the nature of the work agreed. However, gardening work often depends on weather, plant condition, soil condition, seasonal growth, and the existing state of the property. As a result, outcomes cannot always be guaranteed in the same way as a manufactured product or fixed technical service.

You are responsible for telling us about any known risks before work begins. This includes underground services, fragile ornaments, irrigation systems, hidden cables, poor drainage, nesting wildlife, hazardous materials, or any protected plants or features that should not be disturbed. Where the instructions are unclear or incomplete, we may use our professional judgment, but we are not responsible for harm caused by undisclosed hazards or inaccurate information.

Where we move furniture, plant pots, tools, decorative items, or other objects to perform the work, you should remove or secure valuables and sensitive items beforehand. If you ask us to handle items outside the normal gardening scope, this is done at your own risk unless otherwise agreed in writing. We may decline to lift heavy, dangerous, or unsuitable objects if doing so could create a safety issue.

Liability and Limitations

We will take reasonable care when providing services, but we do not exclude liability where it would be unlawful to do so. Nothing in these terms limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud, or any other liability that cannot be excluded under UK law. Subject to that, we will not be responsible for indirect, consequential, or purely economic losses that are not reasonably foreseeable at the time of booking.

Our liability for damage to property will generally be limited to the reasonable cost of repair or replacement, taking account of wear, age, and condition, and only where the damage was caused by our proven negligence. We are not responsible for pre-existing defects, poor structural condition, hidden damage, or deterioration caused by normal use, weather, pests, disease, or the natural characteristics of living materials.

Where the work involves cutting, pruning, or clearance, the results may vary according to the condition of the plants, the time of year, and the growth pattern of the species involved. We are not liable for the natural failure of plants, lawn areas, or shrubs where the loss or deterioration is caused by disease, drought, frost, shade, soil conditions, overgrowth, or factors outside our control. Customers should seek advice before requesting work on valuable or sensitive specimens.

Waste Removal and Regulations

If we remove green waste or garden debris as part of the service, it will be handled in accordance with applicable UK waste management requirements. We aim to dispose of waste responsibly and may use approved transfer, recycling, composting, or disposal routes as appropriate. You agree that waste generated during the work may be removed from the site only where this has been included in the service or agreed separately.

Unless otherwise agreed, waste removal refers only to ordinary garden waste such as grass cuttings, leaves, small branches, soil, and similar organic material. It does not automatically include hazardous, commercial, or bulky waste, such as asbestos, chemicals, paint, oils, building rubble, electrical items, gas cylinders, or contaminated materials. If such items are discovered, we may stop work, seek further instructions, or charge additional fees for specialist handling.

You must not ask us to dispose of waste in a manner that would breach environmental, highway, or local authority rules. Gardeners West Wickham will not knowingly carry or deposit waste unlawfully, and we reserve the right to refuse any instruction that appears to create a regulatory risk. If the customer wishes to retain waste on site, it must be stored safely and in compliance with relevant requirements.

Delays, Force Majeure, and Seasonal Conditions

We are not liable for delays or failure to perform our obligations where the delay or failure arises from events outside our reasonable control. These may include severe weather, flooding, storms, fire, interruption of utilities, labour shortages, transport disruption, accident, illness, or any other event that prevents safe or practical performance. In such circumstances, we will use reasonable efforts to resume the service as soon as possible.

Gardening services may be affected by seasonal cycles and the condition of living materials. Accordingly, some work may need to be postponed, reduced, or altered to protect the health of plants or the quality of the result. If we believe that a requested task would cause avoidable damage because of the season or prevailing conditions, we may recommend an alternative approach or defer the work until a more suitable time.

Where a service visit has to be abandoned partway through due to weather or site conditions, we may charge proportionately for the work already completed, time spent on site, and any additional expenses reasonably incurred. Any decision to return and finish the work later will be subject to availability and may involve a new appointment or revised price.

Complaints, Amendments, and Termination

If you believe that a service has not been provided in accordance with these terms, you should notify us within a reasonable time so that we can review the issue. We may ask for photographs, descriptions, or other supporting information. Where appropriate, we may offer to revisit the property, correct the issue, or provide another reasonable remedy. This does not affect your statutory rights.

Any amendment to the booking, scope of work, pricing, or timing should be agreed before the relevant work is carried out. Verbal requests may be acted upon where convenient, but important changes should be confirmed in writing or in a form that can be recorded. If you ask for additional work during a visit, we may treat it as a new instruction and charge accordingly.

We may end a booking or refuse future work if you fail to pay on time, provide unsafe access, give misleading information, request unlawful disposal of waste, or behave in a threatening or abusive manner. If we terminate for cause, you will remain responsible for payment for work already completed and any reasonable costs incurred up to the date of termination.

Governing Law

These Terms and Conditions, and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with them, shall be governed by and interpreted in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. Any legal proceedings relating to the services, the booking, or the payment of charges shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

If any provision of these terms is inconsistent with a statutory right that applies to you, the statutory right will prevail to the extent required by law. These terms are intended to operate fairly and transparently and to set out the respective responsibilities of the customer and the service provider for gardening work arranged through Gardeners West Wickham.

By confirming a booking, you acknowledge that you have read, understood, and accepted these Terms and Conditions. They are designed to support a professional service relationship and to ensure that each garden maintenance appointment is managed clearly, safely, and in line with applicable legal and environmental standards.