1. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy (hereby may be referenced to as “Oakmoor EC”, “us” “we”, ”our, “they”) is part of the Oakmoor Independent Business Consultancy LTD group (hereby to be referenced as “Oakmoor IBC”). All mentions of Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will refer additionally to Oakmoor IBC. “You”, “Your” and “Your Business” refers to anyone using Oakmoor Employment Consultancy services, products or intellectual property (either paid or for free; with or without permission), or anyone requesting more information/ an assessment (see section 12) on behalf of a business, themselves or an individual. For additional information for the Oakmoor EC website, which work in tandem with these terms and agreements, please refer to the Terms of Use and Private Policy.
2. By accessing or using Oakmoor EC services or intellectual property (either with permission or without), You agree to comply with and be bound by these terms and conditions. If You do not agree with any part of these terms, You may not use our services or intellectual property in any form.
GENERAL
3. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is not a legal or law firm. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is a consultancy designed to provide advice in order to prevent lawsuits. We do not and cannot advise on ongoing claims and reserve the right to stop work if a legal action occurs during the assessment stage. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves to right to claim compensation not exceeding any quote plus expenses provided to You, or to cancel any report made and any support membership packages) with immediate effect, if any risks or existing ongoing claims are not declared. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is not liable if You engage our services without informing or by being dishonest or by omitting information that leaves Oakmoor Employment Consultancy of unaware of all potential risks.
4. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy provides advice and documents to reduce a business’s legal employment risks. Oakmoor EC is not liable if any changes are made to (or if) the documentation or policies (are) introduced, nor for anything that may happen after a year from either: i) the initial assessment (from the day the assessment was performed) or ii) when a reassessment was performed. Reports may still be used by Your Business after this time, but Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to not comment due to the passage of time rendering the initial observations potentially inaccurate.
5. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is not a replacement for insurance and is not liable if You or Your Business are sued. All businesses should have the insurance relevant to their sector.
6. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is an independent business. Although engaged and paid for by You, by contracting Oakmoor Employment Consultancy You understand and accept that Oakmoor Employment Consultancy standards cannot be adjusted on request. Any advice given will be aimed at meeting these standards. If requested, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will engage with Your Business to mitigate or remove any vulnerabilities, ensuring these standards are met. This will be done on behalf of Your organisation but requires You to implement them. If You decide to perform adjustments Yourself Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is not liable for any changes made. If You decide not to implement recommendations then Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is not liable for any changes made or not made.
7. For assessments Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will follow the standard checklist policy set our in the document ‘Business Vulnerability Checklist’, or if changed it’s replacement. This will be open to see if requested by a paying service user of Oakmoor Employment Consultancy. The Independent Complaints System is not classified as an assessment.
8. Advice will be given based on the assessor correcting any vulnerabilities according to Oakmoor Employment Consultancy strict standards. If said standards are not met or violate legislation/ caselaw, then an honest reflection of this account will be given by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy if required.
9. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is answerable ultimately to the courts and tribunals. All advice given is based on legislation and caselaw, with expertise being applied when needed.
10. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy and its parent company Oakmoor IBC retains full copyright and (where relevant) trademarks for all relevant names, logos (including all “golden oak and deer” logos), templates, documents (including wording, policies and standard operating procedures), photographs, websites (including coding, blog posts and graphics), newsletters, social media pages and all other associated products. These cannot be reproduced without express permission.
11. The terms “Protective Contingency” and “Employment Consultancy”, particularly but not limited to the context of proactive measures being made, are copyrighted by Oakmoor IBC and protected by the goodwill associated with Oakmoor IBC’s brand. These cannot be reproduced without express permission, with a charge of £250,000 per year if permission is not sought.
12. By Oakmoor Employment Consultancy You agree to be acting on behalf of a business or individual, and that You have the authority to do so. All engagement discussion and meetings on contracting Oakmoor Employment Consultancy must be with a person who has the authority to make decisions on behalf of a business (i.e.: a director or sole trader) or with someone who has been delegated the responsibility to do so. All dealing must be done with someone aged sixteen or over. If this is violated, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right of damages not exceeding three times the quote given from the person who initially engaged them without authorisation. In certain circumstances, if the business is deemed to be vicariously liable for their employees’ actions Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to claim damages not exceeding the quote given from the employer of the person who contacted Oakmoor Employment Consultancy.
13. Any complaints should be directed to Oakmoor Employment Consultancy first, where Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will try to rectify any problems. By agreeing to a refund, either in full or in part, You agree not to use Oakmoor Employment Consultancy’s intellectual property, and acknowledge that Oakmoor Employment Consultancy has no liability in regards any actions taken or not taken by You. Also, by agreeing to any refund or compensation You agree to not publicly discuss any disagreements or risk forfeiting any refunds or compensation, with immediate cancellation of any agreed work with Oakmoor Employment Consultancy with no refund. Any abuse given to Oakmoor Employment Consultancy may result in services being cut with no warning or compensation, with Oakmoor Employment Consultancy keeping any payments made. This does not affect Your statutory rights.
14. In the event of death, bereavement (and related matters) or serious illness/ incident (or related matters) or situation that renders the employees unable to work (or any issues that will cause Oakmoor Employment Consultancy to be unable to complete the contract), there will be no liability for Oakmoor Employment Consultancy and a new appointment will be scheduled for as soon as practical. The same is true for natural events that prevents Oakmoor Employment Consultancy from completing a contract.
15. If Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is sold to another business or to another entity or person, You agree that any services owed will be transferred to the new owners, including the necessary details and documents, by default. You will be informed if this where to happen.
16. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is a contractor and does not provide employees for You or Your Business.
17. Referrals will be discounted at the agreed discount or by the largest available discount (if it is not the aforementioned referral discount). Discounts apply to the quote created on that day only.
18. Any rewards for referring a business must be agreed beforehand, likely indicated by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy advertising the fact it is available. Rewards will be payable only when full payment is received from the business you referred. Only one referral reward per business. Businesses can recommend and receive regards for multiple individual businesses. Rewards will be equivalent to that advertised and no more. Rewards, if monetary, may be payable by cheque and must be redeemed within one calendar year of issuing or the reward will be forfeited.
19. If any work is completed by You/ Your Business/ someone acting on behalf of Your Business other than Oakmoor Employment Consultancy, it must be of the same standard that Oakmoor Employment Consultancy would have provided. If Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is not satisfied that this is the case we reserve right to not issue validation and/ or a final report until we are satisfied. Refunds will not be given simply because this threshold has not been satisfied.
PRICING
20. For the monthly fee the price will be made clear on purchase and agreement. For the hourly services a rate will be provided with each quote along with the predicted total hours work and any additional expenses to be paid by You or Your Business. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will make all costs clear to You, with no increase in the agreed price/quote unless all parties agree or the stipulations stated in section 24 or section 78 are met. If agreed by both parties, this stipulation can be removed and made an unlimited quote, with work paid in hour blocks for completed and expenses, with agreed extras. If so, you will agree to pay these hours on request, with working tables being provided by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy.
21. For the retainer (or the monthly charge) payment is non-refundable even if no contact is made. Contract length will be dictated by said contract, with lack of dates meaning it is opened ended (subject to the terms within this document).
22. A minimum of 3 hours is chargeable for “employment support” and “interviewing support” services unless an adjustment is agreed to by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy. The number of hours to be worked and what either party will do in order to meet the standards of Oakmoor Employment Consultancy can be negotiated by either party before finishing the contract. If You decide to perform the work yourself or contract another business to do the work on Your behalf, then the cost for accessing the initial report will be billed at a minimum of two hours rate. If a final report is requested at the time of booking, a discount may be applied that is not avaible to those who do so later. There may also be a cost of reassessment that will be based on what will need to be assessed by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy. These fees will be clearly disclosed by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy, and we reserve the right to remove or adjust any reassessment fees at any time without adjusting these terms and conditions.
23. Billable hours are broken down in to either an hour, half an hour (30 minutes) or a quarter of an hour (15 minutes) intervals as dictated by these terms and conditions. A billable section is defined as the time slot allocated, so for work that carries over to the next block will be billed for both (and any additional blocks). When a quote is not given, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to round down billable slots/ hours to provide You will a better rate, but not the right to increase them without gaining permission from You beforehand.
24. Discounts can be applied to the final quote to get the price payable. Only valid discounts agreed by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy can be added, and discounts are none transferrable unless agreed by us. Only one discount can be applied at a time, unless agreed by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy. If the terms and conditions listed here are violated, then discounts will not apply to the costs recoverable by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy.
25. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will not charge more or less than the quoted price, even if the total hours exceed the original quote. However, if there is information that was not conveyed that would have made/makes an impact on the quote Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to cancel or adjust the quote or to require the work to be done by You before a report can be issued.
26. Payment should be made in full within 30 days of the contract being agreed upon. A deposit may be required that will be subtracted from the final invoice bill. Payment plans may be agreed to, with each payment expected on the 01st of each month until it is fully paid off (unless otherwise agreed). If Oakmoor Employment Consultancy provides a grace period on payment this does not affect these terms and conditions: payment would still be expected at either the agreed date (or, if no date was agreed) the following 01st of each month until paid).
27. Payments become late after 60 days of the contract or invoice payment date being agreed to. If multiple payments (i.e.: monthly instalments) are being made, each individual payment will be subject to the charges seen in section 27 and 28. This, as with other fees and charges, can be waived at Oakmoor Employment Consultancy’s discretion without affecting their rights.
28. Late payments will result in an addition charge of £40 for payments under £999.99 and £70 for payments over £1000, as set out in legislation. Additionally, as stated in section 28 each late payment will be subject to these charges unless waived at Oakmoor Employment Consultancy’s discretion. Failure to pay for any membership may result in losing its privileges immediately.
29. Late payments will also result in an additional charge for interest. This is set at 8% plus the Bank of England base rate, calculated by the invoice amount and added on per day. This is the statutory amount.
30. Failure to pay will result in action being taken in the small claims court. All court expenses related to this claim will be added to the total claim for damages.
31. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy hourly charges as standard £110 per hour for advice for those not within the gold membership package (billable per 15 minutes) and is not liable for the implementation of any given advice.
EMPLOYMENT SUPPORT
32. For those within the Shropshire, Staffordshire, and Derbyshire counties Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will not charge for the initial assessment. For those outside these areas, a charge may be required to cover expenses. All other services are charged for at the rate to be agreed upon by both parties.
33. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will provide a free initial assessment with basic details. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy has no obligation to give any details or information or documentation about the assessment or its findings.
34. If Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is contracted, then we will do the work agreed for the price agreed. It is up to You to implement any documents or advice that is made by us. Work is billable hourly.
35. Reports will be produced on a good faith basis: that You will alert Oakmoor Employment Consultancy to any potential issues and be honest in the implementation of our advice. Failure to do so removes all legal liabilities from Oakmoor Employment Consultancy without compensation.
36. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy free initial assessment is provided only if someone with authority within Your organisation (see section 12) signs a document provided by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy. This will include:
I) Declaration that the person agreeing has the authority to do so, as mentioned in section 12.
II) Declaration that You agree for Oakmoor Employment Consultancy and its employees to use anonymised data taken from the analysis in research by those within the organisation.
III) Declaration that all information given will be full, accurate and honest, with no hidden issues.
IV) Declaration that You have read, understand and agree to these Terms and Conditions.
37. Only the initial assessment may be free. All other aspects will be agreed before undertaking.
38. The free assessment is no obligation for both parties. Afterwards, any additional bookings will be charged at the standard hourly rate (minimum 1 hour for an on-site visit or by 15-minute intervals for phone calls or video calls). A deposit may be required, and Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will inform You of any potential charges, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to adjust or remove this charge as they deem fit.
INTERVEIWING SUPPORT
39. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will monitor and report on interviews for either an agreed time (billable in half an hour slots) or until the interviewing is finished. If You chose to do so, a limit can be made to reduce Your/ Oakmoor Employment Consultancy’s costs. If this limit is passed without agreement, the cost of the extra time will be taken by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy. You chose to add extra costs if needed with the agreement of both parties.
40. Costs may differ from in person monitoring to online monitoring and vary due to other circumstances. These will be clearly discussed and agreed beforehand.
41. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is an independent consultancy firm. All information given will be unbiased regardless of which party has contracted us. By using Oakmoor Employment Consultancy You understand that this may lead to unintended consequences.
42. Advice may be provided to avoid any instances of direct or indirect discrimination. However, we take no liability for any actions or inappropriate questions that You or Your employees may say or do.
43. All initial discussions (first meeting) and quotes are free and ae no obligation for both parties. Afterwards, any additional bookings will be charged at the standard hourly rate (minimum 1 hour for an on-site visit or by 15-minute intervals for phone calls or video calls). A deposit may be required, and Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will inform You of any potential charges, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to adjust or remove this charge as they deem fit.
ONGOING SUPPORT
44. Each service may come with a period of free gold ongoing support membership (known as “gold membership”). However, this is only if You do not have gold membership already. Use of a gold membership discount cannot be used to gain another year’s free membership as standard. It is at Oakmoor Employment Consultancy’s discretion that an additional free year can be provided, and Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to add as many (or no) months as they deem fit.
45. Those business without both an assessment and report issued by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will not qualify for assistance if requested by external parties (i.e.: by courts, tribunals and law firms) if required outside of what is legally required, with the exception of the Independent Complaints System procedure. In such instance records or correspondence and actions taken will be provided if needed, along with a statement of what was done.
46. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy has the right to cancel the free gold membership at any time with no refund with one months’ notice unless abuse is cited, then Oakmoor Employment Consultancy may cancel with immediate effect. Remaining months of free gold membership have no monetary value and cannot be transferred Oakmoor Employment Consultancy’s permission.
47. For monthly paying gold membership users, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy has the right to cancel with one months’ notice. If paid annually, then a refund will be given on all remaining months. To cancel the membership please inform Oakmoor Employment Consultancy and stop any direct debits or standing orders. Your service will stop the day before the next payment was due.
48. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy encourages advice or questions but considers excessive use to be when it’s services are used simply for the action of using them without a purpose. This may also come in the repeated (at least twice) use of after hour phone calls. In cases where this is apparent, a warning (or warnings) will be given before removal from the membership scheme.
49. In emergency situations, an additional cost is given. This is £220 for a call out (visiting Your Business without an appointment) from 1000 to 1800 hours (day hours); £380 for un-booked call outs between 1800 to 1000 hours (night hours). Phone calls and emails answered in night hours may be billable in 15-minute intervals at a rate of £30 per 15 minutes. A verbal or written warning will be given before charges are issued. If a warning is given for excessive use (see section 47) the price will double to £60 per 15 minutes. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to remove or adjust these charges without affecting these terms and conditions.
50. The use of the ‘Oakmoor Golden Oak and Deer’ is for active gold membership users only and may incur fees of up to £5000 per use per month for misuse without the gold membership. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy own the copyright and all rights associated to with the golden deer, and its use is limited to showcasing Your connection to Oakmoor Employment Consultancy in a small way, primarily in Your email signature. It cannot be used to advertise, promote, or condone any illegal activities, controversial matters, or anything that, in the eye of the general public, would bring the logo and Oakmoor Employment Consultancy into dispute. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to request You remove the logo if necessary, and You agree to do so as soon as the communication is received.
51. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will aim to answer any questions or queries as soon as possible but are not liable if an answer is not forthcoming or is delayed. Automated emails may be used to help in the meanwhile.
52. The independent complaints system is neutral, unbiased and cannot be influenced in any way. It should be used only where the individuals in Your organisation are directly involved, or if all other avenues of mediation have failed. Your organisation should provide direct access to the complaints system and make it conditional before an employee brings a lawsuit, although this is Your choice.
53. The discount associated with the gold membership is none transferable and must be used while the membership is active. It cannot be used with any other discount without the express agreement of Oakmoor Employment Consultancy. The exchange value of the discount, as with all benefits associated with the gold membership, is zero. Any attempt to exploit the discount renders it void, along with the gold membership status for the offending party.
54. Discounts associated with any membership exclude emergency (out of hour) work and expenses.
55. Information about employment legalisation changes are not published on a set date and may use content that will be used or was previously used on Oakmoor Employment Consultancy’s website and/ or their social media. All contents are copyrighted.
56. Annual assessments require a full calendar years’ worth of membership (whether free or paid for) to qualify for any discount. To qualify for a free or discounted annual assessments it may be required to agree to an annual contract and a direct debit set up to Oakmoor IBC. The annual reassessment is primarily done on a self-reporting basis. By requesting or accepting, or by filling out or submitting, a reassessment, You agree to be honest in Your answering, and not to exclude any information or potential issues (either dishonesty, by omission or by ignorance to the extent that another lay business owner would deem to be negligent). Failure to abide by this will result in the assessment being void and Oakmoor Employment Consultancy obligations to You and Your Business being removed. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to make exceptions for any points made in this section without effecting these terms and conditions.
INDEPENDENT COMPLAINT SYSTEM SUPPORT
57. By using Oakmoor EC’s Independent Complaint System You and all other parties involved agree to take part in and follow any mediation decisions. Any employees, workers, agency workers, apprentices, volunteers or any other personal using the Independent Complaints System will be informed by You of this term, and such terms will be seen as unilateral when using the Independent Complaints System.
58. By using Oakmoor EC services, particularly in regard to the Independent Complaints System, you agree not to punish, dismiss or discipline employees, workers, agency workers, apprentices, volunteers or any other personal who are in the process/ have used the Independent Complaints System within the last 12 months without the direct approval of Oakmoor EC. Oakmoor EC reserves the right to inform any relevant parties if this is broken.
59. The Independent Complaints System membership (also known as “ICS”) is different to the gold membership. Gold membership includes all the features of Independent Complaints System membership at a greater cost; the Independent Complaints System membership does not have all the features of the gold membership.
60. The Independent Complaints System membership is billed monthly. Failure to pay may result in the service being unavailable or cancel.
61. To cancel please inform Oakmoor EC and stop any direct debits or standing orders. Your service will stop the day before the next payment was due.
62. Information about Your Business is primarily done on a self-reporting basis. By requesting additional informal, paying, or by filling out or submitting any form to join the Independent Complaints System, You agree to be honest in Your answering, and not to exclude any information or potential issues (either dishonesty, by omission or by ignorance to the extent that another lay business owner would deem to be negligent). Failure to abide by this may result in the system being void and Oakmoor EC obligations to You and Your Business being removed. Oakmoor EC reserves the right to make exceptions for any points made in this section without effecting these terms and conditions.
63. The same terms and conditions apply to the Independent Complaints System as in section 49 (see for details on the “Golden Oak and Deer Logo”).
64. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will provide the documentation to allow your employees to make complaints directly to us. You must implement the policies and procedures given by Oakmoor Employment Consultancy to allow employees, workers, agency workers, apprentices, volunteers or any other personal to know and use the system. The onus is You to do this, not Oakmoor Employment Consultancy. Failure to do so is not Oakmoor Employment Consultancy fault and provides no liability on their behalf.
65. Any information sent or shared with Oakmoor Employment Consultancy via any employees will be treated as confidential with the express provision that direct inference will be near impossible without identity being known to all parties. However, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will not reveal any identity without permission unless court ordered or it is deemed necessary to prevent crime or to save life or limb. Employers are to understand and accept this and will not ask Oakmoor Employment Consultancy or try to discover identities of anyone involved.
66. Businesses or to understand that statics (with or without personal data) cannot be revealed, as it may inadvertently identify personal.
67. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy is neutral, although as You contract us to run the Independent Complaints System we will provide advice based on what is primarily legal (in terms of legislation and case law) it will also be taken into account what is best for your business. In some instance this may be on the side of the employee to mitigate damages and avoid lawsuits. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy will not advice on actual settlements or financial matters, only to get both parties’ in agreement if possible. If you accept, ignore or partly accept our advice, we hold no liability and are not responsible for negotiations.
68. The Independent Complaints System is not designed to replace your complaints system, but for smaller businesses it is acknowledged that it will be used that way. If too many complaints come in, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to advise, warn and remove You without liability. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy may also block individuals if unsubstantiated complaints are repeatedly made without affecting You directly.
69. Businesses with 15 or more employees, workers, agency workers, apprentices, volunteers or any other personal are required to have their own internal complaints system.
70. Businesses with two or more locations are required to have their own internal complaints system.
71. The requirements in section 68 and 69 may be removed with Oakmoor EC’s approval.
USE OF DOCUMENTS, POLICIES AND STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDUERS
72. All documents, policies and standard operating procedures (SOP’s) are copyrighted and may not be refused, transferred, reproduced, traded or sold without express written consent.
73. All documents, policies and standard operating procedures (SOP’s) may be adjusted to suit Your companies needs, so long as it is not for profit and is purely done internally for Your Business.
74. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy provides no liability or responsibility for the use of any documents, policies or standard operating procedures by You or Your organisation. Any potential errors or omissions are taken at Your own risk.
75. Additional documents, policies and standard operating procedures may be created upon request, although Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to reject any requests.
DEPOSITS
76. Deposits may be required and (for those within the agreed areas) will be either subtracted the final price payable or returned to the payee. Exceptions will occur if the appointment is not attended or completed (due to lack of availability of documents, time or other factors that cause the analysis to be unable to be completed) due to the actions or behaviour of You, Your employees or anyone involved in Your Business, or if the booking in cancelled with less than 12 hours’ notice. In these instances, Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to keep the full deposit(s) made.
77. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to adjust any bookings without liability or affecting the deposit.
78. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to require higher deposits from businesses not within Shropshire, Staffordshire or Derbyshire to an amount of there choosing. These deposits will not be returnable but may be subtracted from any final bills at the choosing of Oakmoor Employment Consultancy.
INFLATION AND PRICE INCREASES
79. Oakmoor Employment Consultancy reserves the right to increase prices in line with inflation (as set by the Bank of England) for existing customers on direct debits or standing orders, or at any point at any price for non-customers.
Valid from 18/12/2020
Last updated on 23/09/2024