My Services

These terms and conditions will apply to all services which I provide to you.  

Sole Trader

I am registered as a Sole Trader, my registered address is 260 Deeble Road, Kettering, Northamptonshire, NN15 5HP.  

Insurance

I have professional indemnity insurance in place. Please get in touch with me if you’d like further information on my

insurance levels.  

Statutory obligations - Your confidentiality

I am under a professional and legal obligation to keep the affairs of clients confidential.

Communication

You must provide me with accurate and true details about who you are and your estate.

By accepting these terms and conditions you agree not to mislead me or misrepresent who you are.

You must be able to communicate with me in private and you agree that you are the only individual providing instructions to me and those instructions are your own.

No person who is intended to benefit from the estate of the Will being drafted can be present during the appointm

Will & Trust Services

Please read these terms carefully before buying my services, to make sure I am the right choice for you. If you’re unsure or have any questions about my service, please contact me. Your document is for your personal use only and cannot be bought for any third party or for resale. To purchase a Will/Trust from Clare Sutherland you must;

• Be 18 or over

• Be a permanent resident in the UK

• Require a document, capable for use as a Will/Trust in England and Wales only

I do provide full instructions for signing, dating and having your Will/Trust documents witnessed. Clare Sutherland cannot be held responsible if you fail to follow the instructions correctly. If documentation such as proof of ID or signed disclaimers is required, you will be notified of this verbally and in writing. Work cannot proceed if Clare Sutherland does not receive these from you and is not responsible for chasing the submission of these. If errors are made during the signing process and replacement documents are required there will be an additional administration charge of £30.  

Approving the content of your Will

Following your Will/Trust appointment you will be emailed a draft copy of the instructions I have taken from you. It is your responsibility to check the detail including spellings and dates of birth to ensure that the details are 100% accurate. Clare Sutherland is not responsible for reminding you to complete this. After 7-days your Will/Trust will be automatically produced, if you have not sent any required amends within the 7-day timeframe there will be an additional administration charge of £30 for me to produce replacements documents.

Your documents

I provide your final Will/Trust documents for signing. Your Will/Trust documents do not become legally binding document until they are signed, dated and witnessed correctly. It is your responsibility to follow the guidance notes and ensure that your document/s is/are signed in compliance with the law. You should not make any written alterations to your Will after it is signed or staple anything to the document. If your document is not signed properly, it is likely to be invalid, written alterations may not be effective and the Will would be unenforceable. Clare Sutherland won’t have any liability to you if you don’t sign your document/s, sign it/them incorrectly, make written alterations or fail to follow the guidance notes.

Future changes to your circumstances, the law, taxation or regulation may mean that your Will could become out of date or obsolete and I cannot guarantee that the document I produce will remain up to date, complete and accurate. It is not my responsibility to notify you of changes in the law, taxation or regulation, of the impact of these changes on your Will. You are responsible for future reviews of the terms of your Will to ensure it is up to date, complete and accurate and I won’t be liable for this

Couples and Partners

If you have a partner and would like to make a document with them, you can choose to have a joint appointment provided you are eligible to do so. You’ll be eligible if you’re:.

• Married to your partner

• In a civil partnership with your partner

• In a committed relationship with your partner and you’re happy to discuss the details of your finances in front of your partner on a call, and you and your partner’s instructions are broadly the same You will not be eligible if you’re:

• Separated from your partner

• Divorced from your partner

• Your civil partnership with your partner has been or is in the process of being dissolved

• In a familial relationship with your partner (for example a parent and child)

• In a platonic relationship with your partner (for example best friends) This will mean that you and your partner will both be on the same appointment but will each have the opportunity to write your own document, leaving your own individual wishes.

Sometimes, we may need to speak to you individually (without your partner) if we consider this to be in your best interests. If that’s the case, we’ll let you know. If at any time during the call you decide that you would prefer to have an individual appointment,

just let us know.

Clare Sutherland reserves the right to refuse to take Will instructions if I suspect that undue influence is present.  

My Liability

Clare Sutherland is not a law firm. There is no lawyer-client relationship between us and you. I am not registered or regulated by the Solicitors Regulation Authority.

I am liable or responsible for any foreseeable loss or damage I cause you if we fail to comply with these terms – by breaking this contract or not using reasonable care and skill. Foreseeable means it’s obvious it’ll happen or, if at the time we made the contract, we both knew it might happen. I am not liable or responsible for any loss or damage that’s not foreseeable, for any loss or damage (direct or indirect) caused by something beyond our reasonable control, or if something was unavoidable despite us using reasonable care and skill to avoid it. You won’t be able to claim against me if your losses resulted from circumstance that I couldn’t or shouldn’t have been expected to know about. This includes:

• You gave us information which was inaccurate

• The document is not fit for your own purposes (for example outside of England/Wales)

• You signed the document incorrectly

• You did not date the document

• You failed to have the document witnessed correctly

• You acted fraudulently

• You or a third party altered your document

• You did not make us aware of any known concerns in connection with your testamentary and/or mental capacity (for example a diagnosis of a medical condition or medication you were taking)

• You used our service in breach of these terms (for example buying a document for a third party or resale)

• Loss of corruption of data or information caused by any computer virus or technical defect transmitted through email transmission

• Any delays or failure in performance under these terms resulting from acts beyond our control, such as a flood, war, emergency, electricity failure and pandemic We’re not liable or responsible for verifying, investigating, advising on/or checking:

• Your identity

• The identity of those named in your document or those that sign you’re your document

• Your age

• Your testamentary and/or mental capacity or the capacity of those that witness your document

• That the answers that that you give our telephone Will specialist are accurate and true

• That you domicile in England and Wales

• Whether you or any other person was subject to undue influence when using our services

• How to mitigate the risk of any actual or potential third-party beneficiary claims or whatever kind against your estate

• Specialised tax advice (including in relation to inheritance tax)

• That the document you make will remain in line with changes to your circumstances, the law, regulation or taxation

• Future changes to the Will (unless otherwise agreed between us)   Provision of Information To assist me in carrying out the work as efficiently as possible, you will need to ensure that all information provided is to the best of your knowledge complete, accurate and up to date. You should also notify me of any changes or variations to that information which may arise after the date it is passed to me and of any new circumstances that might be relevant to the work I am undertaking. It is important to note, work in some instances cannot proceed without certain documentation provided by you. Clare Sutherland is not responsible for chasing the required documents/ criteria due to be provided by you once you have been notified of its requirement. This is done verbally and in writing.

Costs

All services to be provided and any associated costs will be discussed with you and will be confirmed to you in writing. My fees exclude all third party costs including the costs of registering documents with the Office of Public Guardian or Land Registry.

Payments

Paying for your document means that you agree and accept these terms. I accept your order when you pay and at this point a contract is formed between you and me. Unless we both agree otherwise, our contract will terminate automatically once I’ve provided the service to you.

I cannot accept payment for a Will/Trust from a beneficiary of the estate. Payment must be made from the bank account of the person putting the Will in place (Testator).

Putting a Will/Trust in place can be an emotional exercise. If an order is started but cannot be concluded for emotional reasons a refund cannot be offered.

Termination (Cancellations)

You have a legal right under The Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 to cancel this agreement within 14 days of entering into it. Please call me on 07944083638 if you need to speak to me.  

Joint Instructions

Where I am jointly instructed by you and another client to act in a matter (such as your spouse or partner), I will assume that either of you are authorised to give me instructions and that you are jointly and severally liable for any fees, unless either of you advise me otherwise.

Unless informed of any change in writing, I will assume that this remains the case until the work is completed.  

Postage

Clare Sutherland cannot be held responsible for lost/ stolen or damaged documents due to postage. I always send documents by recorded delivery and advise my clients to use recorded or special delivery services when sending Lasting Power of Attorney to The Office of The Public Guardian.    

Data Protection

I am are registered with the Information Commissioner’s Office. I will use the data you provide to me solely for the purpose of providing you with legal services pursuant to an agreement I have with you, or as is permitted in law (i.e. for dealing with complaints or regulatory investigations).

I may have to share some or all of your information with other third parties. This may include experts and other third parties who I need to instruct to assist me with your matter. You have rights under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and Data Protection Act 2018 and these include the right to be informed what information I hold about you. You also have the right to request a copy of any information about you that I hold at any time, and also to have that information corrected if it is inaccurate. If you believe that the information, I hold is wrong or out of date, please let me know and I will update it.  

Cybercrime and email fraud

It is unfortunate that Cybercrime and email fraud targeted at law firms and their clients is on the increase. Fraudsters are using very sophisticated methods to manipulate IT and intercept communications. If you ever receive any other communication purporting to come from Clare Sutherland and which purports to change our bank account details or to request that you send funds to another account, please do not rely on this and immediately contact me by telephone on 07944083638. Even if the request appears to have come from us, you must never send funds to another account unless you have verified this with us. I cannot take any responsibility for any losses where funds are transferred to other accounts that have not been verified by me.

Online Orders

Once your online application has been submitted, you are consenting for services to be started immediately and consequently waive the 14-day period. When submitted the documents are checked by our paralegal team and processed through drafting before being sent to you for signing. After this point, minor amendments can be made at no additional charge. Starting work immediately Where you ask for services to be started immediately, I will ask you to confirm this on the initial telephone call. I call this ‘Authorisation to Start’ (ATS). Without this authorisation, I will not be able to start your order for 14 days. If I am instructed to start work immediately and I take instructions and produce your documents. 100% of the cost will be due.    

Document Approval

After your documentation has been confirmed I reserve our right to charge you 100% of the order value. You may lose the right to cancel if the services have been fully performed during the cancellation period. Due to the nature of our services and the short timescales I work to, work (the drafting of your legal documents) is routinely carried out during the first 14-days following the initial call when your purchase is confirmed. After the 14-day period, you may withdraw your instructions at any time by written notice to me, but you will be liable to pay our reasonable fees in respect of work that has already been completed. To issue a refund I will require your name, sort code, account number, house number and postcode. Once issued a refund can take up-to 5 working days to appear in your account. Please refer to our cancellation table for further details of our Cancellation/Refund Policy

Cancellation / Refund Policy

Death during application Unfortunately, due to the nature of our work we do experience situations where the Donor unfortunately passes away during the application process. We hope that our customers understand that if we have taken full instructions and produced the documents then a refund cannot be given.

Within your 14-day cooling off period (calculated from the date of receiving your order+14 calendar days) When placing your order and providing your instructions you authorise me to start work on your documents, documents are drafted the same day, you will be asked to confirm you are happy for this on your appointment or given the choice to book a date outside of the 14 day cancellation period. If I have completed the appointment then no refund will be available.

Storage and retrieval of files

At the conclusion of your matter, we will store your file of papers for a reasonable period of time. Due to the nature of the services that we are providing to you and pursuant to Article 17(3) of the GDPR, when you complete a will or trust using our services, we will securely store your data and keep this indefinitely. This is because we need to protect against legal claims, as well as to provide supporting information should your will ever be contested. We would usually store other papers including casefiles for six years from the date of the final bill but reserve the right to determine the period of storage. Such papers or files may be stored in an electronic form (with the original paper version being destroyed as soon as it is scanned and saved as an electronic file). There may be documents such as deeds or wills which we have agreed to deposit for you in safe custody or documents that you have otherwise asked to be returned to you. We will not destroy any such documents. If we retrieve papers or documents or electronic data from storage in relation to continuing or renewing instructions to act for you or your representatives, we will not normally charge for the direct cost for retrieval from storage. However, in all other cases, we reserve the right to make a charge for the retrieval or delivery of any stored files (including electronic data), papers, wills or deeds (including the cost of delivering them to you or your representatives by registered post or other secure means). We may also charge for the time we spend reading stored files, papers of deeds, writing letters or other work necessary to comply with your instructions. Our charges would be based on the applicable rate at the given time and we would always discuss this with you or your representatives beforehand.  

Lasting Powers of Attorney Instructions   Professionally Drafted Documents – Lasting Power of Attorney service

Where I take instructions on behalf of a Donor I take the word of the caller/ applicant to provide accurate and honest information. Clare Sutherland cannot be held responsible for any false or dishonest information supplied. My Professionally Drafted Document Service includes the preparation of the Lasting Powers of Attorney documents only, it does not include a checking service for the signed documents. I provide clear instructions for the signing and dating of the paperwork. If errors are made by the customer with either signing/dating or failing to provide evidence of benefits or income which result in the Office of Public Guardian rejecting the application Clare Sutherland cannot be held responsible for this or any charges that are a result of the errors made.

Office of Public Guardian Registration Timeframes

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) are a Government body. The registration process of the Lasting Powers of Attorney must be completed by the OPG. Clare Sutherland cannot control the time frames of this process. I cannot offer a refund for complaints relating to the registration time frame. Once the Lasting Power of Attorney documents have been sent to The Office of Public Guardian Clare Sutherland is unable to chase the progression of the registration. The Donor/ Attorney can call The OPG on 0300 456 0300.

Approving the content of your Lasting Power of Attorney documents

Any details featuring on these documents must be approved by you within 14 days of the date on which you placed your order with Clare Sutherland. Once this date has passed, if there is no outstanding balance, I will send your documentation to you without approval and cannot accept not responsibility for any errors there are as a consequence of this. I will of course complete minor amends to the documents after this point at no additional cost if required.  

Use of Lasting Powers of Attorney Documents Abroad

Lasting Powers of Attorney documents are legally binding in England and Wales only. If these documents are required to be used outside of England and Wales it is the customer’s responsibility to contact the relevant overseas authorities and seek proper legal advice in that jurisdiction. I do not guarantee that Lasting Powers of Attorney documents will be accepted by any foreign jurisdiction.  

Cancellation / Refund Policy Lasting Power of Attorney Applications

Medical Professional – Certificate Provider If Clare Sutherland identifies the need for a medical professional to be the Certificate Provider for the Donor and a medical professional refuses to fulfil the role this is out of the control of Clare Sutherland and no refund will be available. If a medical professional charges for the service to be the Certificate Provider, Clare Sutherland will not be liable for this cost.  

Changes to our Terms and Conditions

These terms and conditions may be revised from time to time and the revised terms and conditions will apply from the date you receive them. You are of course free to terminate the arrangement between us in writing within 14 days if you do not accept the revised terms and conditions.

Complaints

To make a complaint, get in touch with us To complain, email me direct at [email protected] I’ll let you know as soon as I receive your complaint and outline the next steps.