Armagh Vet Station
Terms & Conditions of Business

Thank you for entrusting the care and attention of your pet to Armagh Vet Station. We aim to provide the highest standards of veterinary care. These are the terms on which we, Armagh Vet Station, supply veterinary services and related products to you.

These Terms and Conditions shall apply to all supplies of Veterinary Services and Products by us to you to the exclusion of all other terms and conditions. Please note that some aspects of these Terms may not be relevant to you and we suggest you ask for further clarification from us if required.

Please be aware that by requesting veterinary services you are agreeing to abide by these terms.
1. Supply of Veterinary Services
1.1 We shall ensure that all Veterinary Services are supplied by suitably qualified staff, considering the nature of the Veterinary Service to be supplied in each instance.
1.2 Wherever practicable and on your request, a treatment plan for the supply of Veterinary Services will normally be agreed with you following an initial consultation and in advance of any further treatment. This treatment plan will provide an estimate regarding the likely costs of the course of treatment in such plan.
In an emergency, we reserve the right to provide such Veterinary Services as are reasonably necessary, in the professional judgement of the Veterinary Surgeon providing the Veterinary Services, without first agreeing a treatment plan. This is to ensure the prevention of unnecessary pain and suffering.
1.3 Please note that any estimate given can only be an approximation of the costs of any treatment required. If our original estimate looks as if it will be exceeded, then the Veterinary Surgeon responsible for providing the Veterinary Services will discuss any increased fees with you before any further procedures are undertaken (except in the event of an emergency and at the professional discretion of the relevant Veterinary Surgeon acting in the best interest of your pet).
1.4 We will endeavour to provide veterinary services in accordance with reasonable standards denoted by the RCVS guidelines for practice standards and the professional conduct of veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses. All Veterinary Services shall be supplied in accordance with normal professional standards.
1.5 Veterinary Services shall be supplied during our normal business hours (these may change from time to time, but the current opening hours of Armagh Vet Station can be found on our website at https://www.armaghvets.co.uk. At our discretion, we may arrange for Veterinary Services to be supplied at various locations and at other times.
In an emergency, a veterinary surgeon will see you outside these opening hours, but this service will carry an extra charge. We reserve the right to utilise the services of a specialist out-of-hours provider. This service may carry an extra charge and any monies due for Services or Products provided by this external provider are payable to the third-party provider (pertaining to their distinct Terms & Conditions).
1.6 We reserve the right to decline to supply Veterinary Services at our discretion. You are able (at your own cost and subject to the payment obligations in these terms and conditions) to seek a second opinion on or concerning any Veterinary Services provided.
1.7. Common Services
a. Small animal consultations – All consultations are by appointment only, during our advertised surgery hours. There will be a charge for all veterinary consultations. If you do not give us reasonable notice that you will be unable to attend an appointment we reserve the right to charge for each missed appointment.
b. Small animal emergencies and Out-of-hours – Outside of our opening hours, emergency care will be provided either by the vet on call, or by a local emergency clinic which we have an agreement with for out of hours cover. In an emergency, call the usual clinic phone number and your call will be diverted to the relevant veterinary surgeon on duty. We will endeavour to see you at the usual surgery where we can, however as we are a small team this may not always be possible and we will have chosen our out of hours partners who will provide the least disruption to you in terms of distance to travel. The charge for an out of hours consultation is considerably higher than during our opening hours, and emergency treatment and out of hours hospitalisation can be considerably more. These prices will change from time to time and we advise that you request this information from our team. We will endeavour to make this information freely available and up to date in our clinic and on our website.
c. Overnight Hospitalisation – There is no vet or nurse ordinarily resident in the practice out of hours (Overnight and weekends). If your pet is hospitalised they will have regular checks by a vet/nurse/animal care assistant, the frequency and nature of which will be dependent on their condition and determined by the veterinary surgeon in charge. For animals requiring constant monitoring or intensive care out of hours, we will advise on referral to a specialist centre.
d. Home Visits – We are happy to examine your pet at home by arrangement, however the range of tests and treatments we can perform at home are limited. There are also time constraints in our ability to leave the clinic and it may not be possible to see your pet at home during busy times. There will be an additional charge for home visits, additional to the usual consultation fee.
1.8. Consent
Written signed consent for investigative tests, surgery, hospitalisation or treatment is required for all animals admitted to the practice. If we need to alter the agreed procedure(s) or treatment, we will make every effort to contact you and obtain verbal consent before proceeding, In an
emergency we reserve the right to proceed without consent, making decisions that we consider to be in the best interests of the animal.
Consent is also required for the use of medications in species for which they are not licensed. This is often the case for rabbits, rodents and exotic species as the majority of veterinary drugs are not licensed for use in small mammals, reptiles, birds, fish, amphibians and invertebrates. In this case a consent form will allow continued use of unlicensed drugs without asking for specific permission in each and every separate case. Less commonly this consent will be required for pets, for example, when a drug licensed for human use has proven activity and efficacy for a particular condition but is not licensed in animals. We will always use the veterinary licensed product when there is one available.

2. Supply of Products
2.1 In the event of any defect or failure (except those caused by human error) in any Product, our liability to you shall be restricted to replacing the Product or refunding the price that you paid for the Product.
2.2 You acknowledge and agree that all Products must only be used in accordance with the instructions supplied with them or given verbally by the Veterinary Surgeon (or another member of our staff) providing the Veterinary Services. If you have any questions or concerns regarding the use of any Product, you should consult a member of our staff for clarification.
2.3 Any Products supplied by us shall be of satisfactory quality, fit for purpose and shall comply with any description given. All other warranties, expressed or implied, are hereby excluded.

3. Repeat Prescriptions
3.1 When you request a repeat prescription for your pet, we can only supply the medication if both of the following conditions are met:
3.1.1 The Veterinary Surgeon caring for your pet has authorised the repeat prescription.
3.1.2 Your pet has been seen by one of our Veterinary Surgeons within the last 3 months.
3.2 There will be a charge for such repeat prescriptions to cover the time, responsibility and professional insurance costs involved.
3.3 Please allow two working days before collecting to allow the medication to be prepared and authorised.

4. Payment and Refunds
4.1 All Veterinary Services and Products provided by us shall be charged to you in accordance with the current price list, a copy of which is available on request and which is subject to change without notice. If you have any questions regarding the costs that will be incurred, you should
consult the Veterinary Surgeon in charge of your pet’s treatment or another member of staff for clarification.
4.2 Our normal practice is for payment to be made in full by you at the time the Veterinary Services or the Products are supplied, either at the end of the consultation, the discharge of your pet or upon collection of the Products. All invoices must be settled in full on receipt of the invoice.
4.3 You may settle your account using any of the following methods: Cash, credit/debit Card (Switch, Solo, MasterCard, Visa, Delta). We may also accept payment via BACS transfer. Please discuss this with a member of staff who will provide you with the account details should this payment method be acceptable.
4.4 We accept direct insurance claims at the discretion of our Practice Owner. A direct insurance claim is one where you do not pay us; rather we claim the money directly from the insurance company. We may charge a direct insurance claim administration fee. In the event that all or any part of the insurance claim is not paid by your insurance company for any reason, you will be liable for the outstanding balance. We may, at our absolute discretion, agree that you may delay payment of an invoice pending recovery of the sum from your insurer for such reasonable period as we agree in writing. You remain liable in full for all invoices and all sums shall become due and payable in full by you at the end of this extended payment period, irrespective of whether your insurer has made payment to you.
4.5 We may refer overdue accounts to our debt collection agency.
4.6 In the event that any invoice or other sum owed by you is not paid when due then, without prejudice to any other remedies available to us, we may at any time:
4.6.1 Add additional charge(s) to your outstanding account in order to recover fees and costs in connection with the collection of the sum owed (including but not limited to administrative costs and debt collection agency fees); and
4.6.2 Issue notice to you that no further Veterinary Services and/or Products will be supplied to you.
4.7. All prices quoted are quoted inclusive of VAT at the current rate.
4.8 If you are unable to pay for the Veterinary Services, we are only obliged to fulfil our minimum legal responsibilities and professional obligations in respect of your pet.

4.9 Refunds - Unfortunately you cannot return medicines, including prescription medicines, or anything with a broken hygiene seal.

If you require a refund for services or pre-payments for services not used, please contact the practice within 14 days of your transaction at team@armaghvets.co.uk stating the reason you require a refund. Refunds will only be returned to the original card with which the transaction was made. Refunds for services are not guaranteed and are at the discretion of the veterinary surgeon.

Online transactions will only be refunded via the original payment method.

5. Liability
We carry professional indemnity insurance.

6. Complaints (See our Complaints Procedure for full information)
6.1 It is our intention that all our clients should be satisfied with the Veterinary Services and any Products supplied. If you are dissatisfied with any aspect of the Veterinary Services or Products supplied by us, you should raise a verbal complaint (in practice or via telephone) with a member of staff in the first instance. The complaint will be reported to Laura O’Hagan BVSc CertAVP MRCVS.
6.2 If you remain dissatisfied, then please submit your complaint in writing to hello@armaghvets.co.uk citing “complaint” in the subject line. If email is unavailable, you may send your complaint by recorded delivery post. In your complaint please include: Your name, animals name, date(s) of the visit your concerns relate to, a brief overview of your concerns and what we can do to resolve this for you.
We will acknowledge receipt of your complaint within 5 working days and give you a timescale in which to expect a full response. This will depend on the nature of your complaint and what investigations are required.
6.3 In the case of a complaint, we may share your information with our insurers or our indemnity providers or other professional advisors, if we believe that this will enable us to resolve your complaint more effectively.

7. Pet Insurance
7.1 We may advocate pet insurance, but any contract of insurance is between you and your insurer. Please ensure that you refer to the terms and conditions of your insurance policy.

8. Data Protection
8.1 Armagh Vet Station is a “data controller”. This means that we are responsible for deciding how we hold and use personal information about you. We will use the personal information you provide to us to:
8.1.1 Provide the Veterinary Services and Products.
8.1.2 Process your payments for the Veterinary Services and Products.
8.1.3 Inform you about the products and services that we or selected third parties provide, but you may stop receiving these at any time by contacting us.
8.2 In order to provide the services above, we use selected third parties to process your data. We will not share your information with other companies, individuals or organisations unless:
8.2.1 It is part of the diagnosis or treatment of your pet.
8.2.2 It is part of a service that you’ve asked us to provide, such as a health plan, financing or submitting insurance claims.
8.2.3 You have given us permission to do so.
8.2.4 We have an identified legitimate interest to do so.
8.2.5 We are legally required to do so.
8.3 In some very specific situations, we may transfer some of your data abroad. If we do transfer any of your data outside of the European Union we will make sure that it is kept secure. We hold the companies we work with to the EU contract clauses standards.
8.4 We are committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information and we are required under data protection legislation to notify you of the information contained within our Privacy Policy. This privacy notice describes how we collect and use personal information about you during and after your working relationship with us, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). This policy is available at the Practice and on our website.
8.5 You can ask to access, modify or delete your data held by us and you can also ask us any question regarding the data that we store about you.

9. Ownership of Records
9.1 The care given to your pet may involve specific investigations such as taking radiographs or performing ultrasound or MRI scans. Even though we make a charge for carrying out these investigations and interpreting the results, ownership of the resulting record, such as a radiograph or scan image, remains the property of Armagh Vet Station and shall be retained by us. Copies, along with a summary of the history of any patient, can be passed to another Veterinary Surgeon taking over a case, on written request to us and upon settlement in full of all sums due to us in respect of such patient’s treatment by us.

10. Miscellaneous
10.1 No alteration may be made to these terms and conditions without the express written consent of the Practice Owner. We may update or amend these terms and conditions at any time by placing a notice to that effect in our premises.
10.2 We are a sole trader business:
10.2.1 Our business trades as Laura O’Hagan t/a Armagh Vet Station.
10.2.2 Our office is at Armagh Vet Station, Station Road, Armagh, BT61 7NP.
10.2.3 Our registered VAT number is 455582174.
10.3 If you have any questions please contact us. You can contact us by writing to us at the above address or by emailing us at team@armaghvets.co.uk.