Work With Me Terms & Conditions
Payments & Charges
All payments should be made via BACS transfer, bank details will be provided
I respectfully ask that all payments, for ad-hoc services, are made within 14 days of receipt of
invoice
All retainer packages should be paid in advance (by the 1st of each calendar month) by direct debit/standing order, prior to any services being carried out, failure to do so will mean my time for that month is not guaranteed
Any unused retainer hours will be carried over to the following month
Should you require additional hours to be carried out, over and above your retainer package, this
will be charged at £35 per hour
Karen Ritchie VA Ltd may not always be able to guarantee that extra hours will be available
however, I will endeavor to do all I can to accommodate
Should there ever be a need for me to chase payment from our Client, an administration fee of
£35 will be applied
If turnaround of work is requested within a 24-hour window, an additional fee may be charged
If work is required to be carried out, outwith normal working hours or atthe weekend, an
hourly rate of £55 per hour will be applied
Travel at 45p per mile, stationery, courier services, printing, postage, telephone calls and any
other reasonable expenses accrued will be charged separately and invoiced at the end of each
calendar month
Please note that all charges will be reviewed on an annual basis and clients will be informed of any
new rates each January
All charges for telephone calls etc. are billed at £35 per hour (for ‘pay as you go’ clients. Please note
that the time be will be rounded to the nearest 15 mins) and charged at the end of each calendar
month. Clients on a retainer package will have the time deducted from their monthly package hours
Ad-hoc services are priced at £35 per hour (minimum charge of 1 hour). Thereafter time will
be rounded to the nearest 15 mins and billed accordingly
For clients choosing a retainer package, I ask that you sign up for a minimum of 3 months
General
All initial communication/consultations are free of charge
All work requests should be sent direct to karen@karenritchieva.com
Final proofreading and the checking of all work supplied is the responsibility of the
client
Please notify me within 2 working days of any errors and this will be rectified.
Should the document require any amendments or alterations, these will be
charged at the agreed rate
Billable time includes all meetings, calls, writing and/or reading of
correspondence sent via email or mail
Either party has the right to terminate a contract for services if there is a serious
breach of its terms
Should an item of work be required within a specific timeframe, please ensure that
this is communicated clearly. As mentioned above, any work carried out of hours or
required over the weekend will be charged at £55 per hour
All work will be carried out remotely
Karen Ritchie VA Ltd is an independent contractor. At no time will we form any
employer – employee relationship
Digital Information
Karen Ritchie VA Ltd use the following software: Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Powerpoint, Microsoft Outlook, Adobe Acrobat PDF, Trello, Acuity, Asana, Google Drive, Mailerlite, LastPass, Signable, DocuSign, Xero
Data Storage & Protection
Under the terms of the Data Protection Act 1998/GDPR, the Client and Karen Ritchie VA Ltd may keep on record such information (e.g. contact details) as is necessary. Records can be viewed by either party at any time to ensure that they are up-to-date, relevant and correct
Please note that whilst I take every step known to us and in accordance with the guidelines provided by the ICO to keep data safe and secure, I cannot guarantee that my data will never be ‘hacked’. Unfortunately, no one can guarantee exemption from this
Any passwords given to me by the Client will be treated confidentially and stored securely in a password vault
Karen Ritchie VA Ltd will only keep information on file for 12 months. After this time, work will be deleted (unless a specific request has been made)
Karen Ritchie VA Ltd will not be liable for any data that is not securely transmitted to us
Karen Ritchie VA Ltd is a registered Data Protection Controller (ICO Registration number: ZA533546)
Quotations
• All quotations will be issued to you in a timely manner and both parties will be required to sign the document using e-signature on DocuSign or Signable
Loss or Damage
Karen Ritchie VA Ltd cannot be held responsible for any loss, damage, theft of data, projects, items relating to assignments or equipment during transit to, from or whilst at Karen Ritchie VA Ltd premises
Due to the nature of work provided by Karen Ritchie VA Ltd, it is not possible for me to insure client’s property
I ask that all clients make copies of any data and/or information and insure any equipment or items for use away from their own premises, prior to submitting to Karen Ritchie VA Ltd
Please note that due to computer viruses, all incoming emails will be virus scanned. However, I may still not open unsolicited attachments to emails, or emails that look suspicious from an unrecognised sender, have no subject heading or contain no message alongside an attachment
Use of Associates
• If at any time Karen Ritchie VA Ltd requires the use of an Associate Virtual Assistant, to provide continuity of cover, this would always be agreed with the Client in the first instance
Insurance
• Karen Ritchie VA Ltd maintains adequate insurance, including Public Liability & Professional Indemnity Insurance. Should you require proof of this documentation, please feel free to ask for this
Cancellation Notice Period
• I ask that a 1 month cancellation notice period is given for all retainer packages
Working Hours
All emails sent to me will be dealt with in a timely manner
Karen Ritchie VA Ltd is open for business between 08:30 – 17:00
Registered office address: 16 Randolph Crescent, Dunbar, EH42 1GL Company no: S618865