These terms apply to every request for a quote and every job we send you, through the contractor portal, by email or by phone, unless we agree something different in writing.
2.1We act as agent for the landlord of each property. The landlord for each job is shown on the job.
2.2When you quote for or carry out a job, you are working for that landlord, even though we instruct you.
2.3We only ask for work within the authority the landlord has given us. If a price goes over that, we must get the landlord's approval before you start.
3.1Attend within the agreed timescale and complete the quote or works as soon as practicable, subject to materials and access.
3.2Only carry out the work described on the job. Any extra work or change must be reported to us through the portal first, and you must wait for our instruction.
3.3Never take instructions from the occupier.
3.4Tell us straight away if the work is outside your skills, qualifications or insurance.
4.1An emergency is a problem that puts people or the property at risk: for example a gas leak or smell of gas, no heating or hot water in cold weather, a major water leak, an unsafe electrical supply, or a property that cannot be secured.
4.2If you accept an emergency job, attend or make safe within 24 hours, or sooner if we agree it at the time. If you cannot, tell us straight away so that we can send someone else.
4.3Making safe comes first. Where a full repair needs more work than was approved, make safe, then send us a quote before going further.
5.1You are responsible for your own risk assessment. Our description of the problem is not a method statement or a confirmation that the work is safe. Make the risk assessment available if we or an authority ask.
5.2Follow all health and safety law and guidance that applies, including the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974, the Work at Height Regulations, the Control of Asbestos Regulations and COSHH.
5.3Provide all materials, equipment, safe working platforms and protection for the property, its contents and the people around it.
5.4Gas work must be carried out and signed off by a Gas Safe registered engineer. Electrical work must be carried out by a competent electrician registered with a recognised scheme, and notifiable work must be certified under Part P.
6.1If you find something dangerous, such as a gas appliance that is immediately dangerous or at risk, exposed live wiring, structural danger, a fire safety defect or serious damp and mould, make it safe if you are qualified to, and tell us the same day with photos.
6.2Do not disturb anything you suspect contains asbestos. Stop work in that area and tell us.
6.3Follow the Gas Industry Unsafe Situations Procedure where it applies, and give the occupier and us the warning notice.
7.1Staff and sub-contractors must be appropriately dressed, polite and considerate to occupiers and neighbours, and carry identification.
7.2Leave the property clean and tidy, removing all waste, materials and equipment. If you remove waste, you must hold a waste carrier registration.
7.3Any sub-contractor must be qualified, insured and managed by you, and bound by these terms.
7.4Take particular care where an occupier may be vulnerable, for example elderly, unwell or living with a disability. Do not enter a home where only a child is present. If you are worried about anyone's safety or welfare, tell us the same day.
8.1Sign keys out and back in with us, and return them the same working day unless we agree otherwise.
8.2Never copy a key, pass it to anyone who is not working on the job, or label it with the address. Keep key safe codes and alarm codes private.
8.3Leave the property as secure as you found it, with windows and doors locked and any alarm set.
8.4Tell us straight away if a key is lost. Where a key is lost while in your care, you pay the reasonable cost of changing the locks.
Hold public liability insurance of at least £5 million at all times, and keep a current copy uploaded in your portal. You indemnify the landlord and the Agent against claims arising from your work.
Mark the job complete in the portal with photos of the finished work and any test or completion certificates. Include the fault found, its cause and the materials and labour used.
11.1Your work must be carried out with reasonable care and skill, and the materials you supply must be of good quality and fit for their purpose.
11.2You will put right, at your own cost and within a reasonable time, any defect in your work or materials reported to you within 12 months of completion. For parts with a longer manufacturer's warranty, you will pass the benefit of that warranty to the landlord.
12.1Address invoices to the landlord and send them to us through the portal within 14 days of completion. We will try to arrange payment of later invoices, but cannot guarantee it if our management of the property has ended.
12.2Each job is for the landlord, and the landlord is responsible for paying you. We arrange the work and the payment as the landlord's agent. Payment is due within 30 days of a valid invoice and the completion details. We pay it on the landlord's behalf from money we hold for them; we never pay from our own funds. For larger jobs, or where no rent is being received, we collect the money from the landlord before you start, or tell you before you start that the landlord will pay you directly.
12.3We do not charge you any fee or commission at present. We may introduce one in future. If we do, we will give you at least 30 days' notice by email and in your portal, setting out the fee and how it is worked out. It will only apply to jobs you accept after the notice ends. If you do not agree, you can stop working with us under clause 15 before then.
12.4You are an independent contractor, not an employee of the Agent or the landlord. You are responsible for your own tax, National Insurance and VAT, and for the Construction Industry Scheme where it applies.
13.1Do not offer or take work directly from a landlord or tenant you met through us, at a property we manage, without our written agreement. This applies while we manage the property and for 12 months after your last job there.
13.2Do not offer or accept gifts, payments or favours to win or keep work.
Use occupiers' and landlords' details only to carry out the job. Do not keep or share them, and delete them when the job is closed. Contact details shown in the portal disappear once a job is closed.
14.1Links we email you are for you only. Do not forward them - they open your jobs, and they stop working after 7 days.
14.2Only photograph what the job needs. Avoid people, personal belongings and documents in the property.
14.3If a phone, laptop or paperwork holding job details is lost or stolen, or details reach someone who should not have them, tell us the same day on 01582 310018.
15.1Either of us may stop working together at any time by telling the other in writing. Jobs you have already accepted should be finished unless we agree otherwise, and these terms continue to apply to them.
15.2We may update these terms. We will ask you to accept any new version in the portal before your next job.
15.3These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales.
Questions about these terms? Call 01582 310018 or email info@theresidentialgrid.co.uk.