Terms & Conditions

In order to avoid any confusion we have set our our terms and conditions below. Only the proprietors of Fairfield House Veterinary Surgery may change these conditions and by registering with us you agree to be bound by our Terms and Conditions.

Our commitment to you

Here at Fairfield House Veterinary Surgery we endeavour to offer all our clients gold standard veterinary care for a fair price. Fairfield House provides a caring, reliable and overall professional service for you and our patients.

We will treat you with courtesy and respect at all times.

We may request permission to take pictures of your pet and share your story on our social media platforms.

Our Fees

All our fees, diet and drug charges are subject to VAT at the current rate. Fee levels are determined by the time spent on a case and drugs, consumables, materials and diets used. Details of our fees are available on request and a detailed invoice is always provided for every consultation, procedure or transaction.

You are liable for any fees that are incurred in the investigation, diagnosis and treatment of your pet / farm animal, this includes your pet/ farm animal being brought to us or a visit requested on your behalf by a third party.

Estimates of Treatment

 We will always be happy to provide you with a full estimate of costs. Please do bear in mind that any estimate given can only be approximate as sometimes an animals treatment plan doesn’t follow a course as expected. We will endeavour to keep you up to date of any changes as necessary.

Payments for our services

Fairfield House Vets provides a caring, reliable and overall professional service for your pets however we can only do this if our clients pay on time. Our fees are set on the understanding that the work done is paid for promptly and the charges reflect this.

Methods of payment

All outstanding balances are payable at the time of consultation, upon discharge of your pet or when any medication or food is collected. On the odd occasion that an account is sent we require payment within 7 days. For our farm clients payment is expected in 30 days.

We accept

Cash

Cheque payable to Fairfield House Veterinary Surgery

Credit/ Debit cards – Switch, Solo, Delta, Mastercard or Visa

BACS (bank automated credit service) – Bank – HSBC

Account Name- Fairfield House Veterinary Surgery

Account number – 51377787

Sort Code- 40/45/32

Settlement Terms

If for any reason your account has not been settled as we request, we will initially make every effort to contact you and remind you. We reserve the right to add additional costs if the account remains unpaid and also refer you to our Debt Collection company and or start Court proceedings.

Out of Hours

If your pet is seen out of hours, you will be expect to pay for any treatment/ services before you leave the practice or on collection of your pet.

Insured Pets

Our practice policy for insured pets is that clients settle their bills in full at the time of treatment, and are then reimbursed from their insurance company. If you need to make a claim please bring in a signed claim for, or notify us of an online claim. We can then add the veterinary information and send all relevant information to your insurance company. There will be a small charge for this. Any direct claims will need to be agreed individually with a Partner.

Ownership of records, x-rays and similar documents

Case records and documents are the property of and will be retained by Fairfield House. Even though a charge may be made for carrying out the investigations and interpreting the results, ownership of the resulting record remains the property of the Practice.

Upon request, copies of records with a summary of the history of your animal will be passed to another Veterinary Surgeon taking over your animal’s well-being.

We may also release these records to Pet Insurance Companies when claiming fees under your insurance.

Medication and Prescriptions

We request that we are given 24 hours’ notice for repeat prescriptions, as each prescription has to be checked by a veterinary surgeon.

Your pet must also be examined by one of our vets at least every 6 months, sometimes more frequently, for us to be able to prescribe drugs on an ongoing basis.

For flea and worm treatment it is our practice policy to re asses your pet annually.

We are unable to offer a refund once drugs have left our premises Under the terms of the Medicines Act.

We are happy to dispose of unused medication on your behalf.

You may obtain a written prescription from us in order to purchase your drugs through an online pharmacy. There is a small charge for this.

Refusal of Treatment

The practice reserves the right to refuse treatment of an animal if:

• To do so would be detrimental to the patient.
• It would be considered unethical or in breach of RCVS recommendations.
• A breakdown of trust has been considered to have taken place between you and the practice.

The practice reserves the right to limit treatment of an animal to first aid and immediate relief of pain only if:

• The patient cannot be safely restrained and therefore presents a danger to our staff.
• The terms of payment have been breached.
• We have reason to believe that the patient is receiving treatment by another veterinary surgeon and we have not received a current clinical history.

Complaints

Whilst we hope you never have the need to complain, if you do have any concerns please contact the Practice Manager who will be able to assist you further. – practicemanager@uckfieldvets.co.uk

Postage

Please be aware any medication that is posted to you will incur further costs and will be sent by signed for mail only.

Variations in Terms and Conditions of Business

No addition or variation of these conditions will bind the Practice unless specifically agreed in writing by the partners. Additionally, no agent or person employed by or under contract with the Practice has the authority to alter or vary these terms and conditions in any way.

The terms and conditions will be updated as necessary and an up-to-date copy is available on request or on our website.