Service Terms

SERVICE TERMS & CONDITIONS

“Devices” – Any item. Examples include – Computers, laptops, printers, hard drives, solid state memory, USB sticks, monitors, mice, keyboards, mobile phones, office phones, chargers, radios, gadgets, accessories, any hardware and any tangible goods.
“Data” – Any information stored electronically, on any device in any capacity as both personal or business related. This includes both the device and the data that it is stored on.
“Software” – Any computer or mobile program managed, installed, removed, programmed, modified or related to the term software and including the term firmware which is software embedded into the hardware of a device.
“Services” – A service to a client by “IT Pro Expert” by means of support, repairs, phone lines or any other service provided.
“IT Pro Expert” – An IT service provider who operates in the United Kingdom and covers a wide range of services from computer repairs, phone lines, data recovery, CCTV systems, networking, servers, cloud hosting and more. Services are generally provided in-house but “IT Pro Expert” does work with third party providers who may be working on behalf, for or under contract. Invoices and payment requests can be issued under the original quotation amount but by one of the providers. “IT Pro Expert” also works for many other service providers on their behalf.

SUMMARY

  • Contracts are month to month with 1 month’s cancellation notice. No long-term obligations. Paid in advance not arrears. Unless by special arrangement for select services.
  • Standard appointments must be pre-paid. Payments not completed at least 1 full working day prior to the appointment will be automatically cancelled. Any post payment invoices must be paid on the day and by arrangement within 7 days at the latest.
  • All data is kept strictly confidential & will never be used outside of service operations. See privacy terms and conditions for details.
  • Service warranty is 30 days on all repairs. Component warranty is provided by the equipment supplier. Postage and transport are not included. Component failure service replacements may incur a service charge.
  • “IT Pro Expert” – does not accept any liability for loss or damage to goods or data under any circumstances. Please ensure you have sufficient insurance to cover any risks associated with hardware, software, data or alternatively accept full risk without insurance.
  • Support requests should adhere to the timings outlined in the relevant section below and fixed appointments are classified as morning, afternoon or evening slots.
  • Appointment cancellation or rescheduled times for contract and non-contract customer that fall within 1 working day prior to the appointment will be billed in full at standard hourly rates.
  • “IT Pro Expert” will always ensure any external products like Domain Name Registration or Microsoft 365 are always registered and licensed to your company, so that they cannot be held for ransom by a third party. Do not allow any third parties to have access to critical services like these. Protection with 2FA is required on all accounts and only allow a maximum of two security trained staff access. “IT Pro Expert” will manage these accounts at the clients request but it is the clients responsibility to ensure payment is made for and to these third party services. We do not store or keep customers passwords or financial payment details.
  • Customers must adhere to GDPR required standard business security guidelines for data security which includes using a managed business grade anti-virus, DNS protection, quarterly security audit, complex login passwords with approved password manager, allow windows updates, ensure staff reboot all computers weekly, use Windows Professional with 365 login protection, 365 email protection, enable two factor authentication on all possible services and make use of a business grade Firewall and WiFi (Typically Ubiquiti UniFi).
  • Backup services for email or file data are not included in any standard service provided by ourselves or any cloud provider. Both local and cloud services should be backed up. With monthly contract customers we do include maintaining this function but the client will need to pay for a backup service that includes ransomware protection. We are not responsible if data is lost as backup services can on rare occasions be faulty but ensuring a backup is in place will help to ensure any major disasters can be reversed.

ORDER ACCEPTANCE AND SERVICES
Any goods or service orders placed with “IT Pro Expert” via email, phone or any text messaging services are considered a binding agreement by the customer to provide payment for said service and/or goods in advance. Cancellation of orders, projects, goods or services by the client are refundable at the discretion of “IT Pro Expert”. All services and goods must be pre-paid. Goods ordered that are no longer required, can only be refunded if the supplier allows for returns inside of the returns period. Returns may require a 5 to 25% handling fee for posting, packaging and time required to action the return. Purchasing items, recommendations for equipment or software does not include free support, free on-site installation, free training, free services, free consultations, free email/text support or any liabilities relating to the use, setup or functionality of these items.

DELIVERY AND RISK OF LOSS
Any “Devices” received or sent through a postal system should be insured by the client for loss or damage, if the client does not wish to have insurance, then the risk will fall solely on the client. “IT Pro Expert” will only insure an item if requested by the client specifically. Insurance is not provided by “IT Pro Expert” by default.

SERVICE, SUPPLY AND REPAIR
Any “Devices”, “Software” or “Services” being handled, provided, repaired, recovered, serviced or managed by “IT Pro Expert” or any of its third party providers should be insured on an all-risk policy by the client. “IT Pro Expert” or any of its service providers will not be held responsible for any loss of any kind, any lack or dissatisfaction for any product or service for any reason. If a client does not have an insurance policy, then the risk is accepted automatically by the client.
“Devices” posted, delivered in person, collected or sent via a courier service should have a label/document with full contact details (name, mobile, postal address and email address) and fault details for each item.
Items or data received by “IT Pro Expert” for repairs, recovery, assembly, forensics, testing, data storage, transfer or any other reason will be kept for a maximum of 3 months in storage or on our servers. Data handed back to a client will be deleted within 3 days from our servers. If the client does not collect the goods in time, they will be either destroyed or sold and stored data will be erased. Said items will also be erased to ensure data protection. Please ensure you collect your items in time. Storage can be arranged at £50 per month, per item – if required.
On-site installation or repairs to cabling or equipment is completed with the utmost of care but “IT Pro Expert” and/or contractors. However there shall be no liable for any damage to walls, floors, roofs, goods, piping, electrics or any other related item when repairing or installing cabling, wi-fi or any other equipment.

SUPPORT AND TIMINGS
Service requests are prioritised across a range of clients. Emergencies will take precedence and if an emergency is underway then there may be slight delay to standard services. Due to the nature of IT services, work durations can take unexpectedly longer that originally planned. Extended delays usually mean a new IT technician will be assigned to the position to ensure it is completed as close to the allocated time as possible but no liability is accepted for any loss of service due to a missed appointment.
Arranged on-site appointment times or remote consultations are allocated as morning, afternoon or evening. If a time has been given, this is only an estimate and it could typically be up to 30 minutes prior and up to 1/2 hours after the allotted time. However we aim to keep you updated if we are going to be beyond 30 minutes outside of the time slot. On-site visits are billed hourly and travel beyond 8 miles forms part of the hourly rate.

When submitting a support request – please ensure you complete the form, email or WhatsApp request, stating the nature and urgency of the problem.

Contracts are typically priced for remote support however on-site inclusive options are available.

Standard Contract Users – Our operational times are from 9:30am to 5:30pm Mon-Fri

Optional 24 Hour Care for Contract Users – Around the clock service – 365 Day / 24 Hour support is provided.

Although 90% of our customer requests are completed within 20 minutes. The following is our service agreed timing that we will ensure are maintained.

Emergency – 0h to 1h – Call or message using WhatsApp for assistance. Only for contract customers only. Issues affecting a major operation of the company.
Urgent – 0h to 3h – Call or message using WhatsApp. Issues affecting a user that is critical to the company.
High – 3h to 1d – Submit email or ideally WhatsApp message. Standard issues that ideally require same day solutions.
Standard – 1d to 3d – Submit email or ideally WhatsApp request. Standard issues that are not a priority.
Low Priority – 3d to 7d – Submit email or WhatsApp request.

SCOPE OF CONTRACTS
Standard service contracts include remote support of the following:

  • Central contact point. Registry and management of IT services.
  • Windows, Linux Server and 365 management, diagnostic and repairs.
  • Administration and changes to Domain Name Registry, DNS, Website Monitoring, Email and WiFi/Network Security. Exclusive of migration.
  • Windows 7, 10 and 11 system. Functionality, operation, repair and diagnostic.
  • PC diagnostic of hardware related issues. Including RAM, drive, cooling, display, power supply and motherboard.
  • Network diagnostic. Local PC connectivity, WiFi, LAN, 4G, 5G, routers and interlinking technology.
  • Ensuring correct functioning of installed software as listed.
  • Standard Windows software – Default Windows installed, Office 365 install incl Word, Excel, Outlook, Power Point, etc.
  • Adobe Packages – All Creative Cloud, Adobe PDF, Photoshop, Premier Pro, Illustrator, etc.
  • Anti-Virus – ThreatDown/Malwarebytes, ESET, etc.
  • Archival – Zip, WinZip, WinRar, etc.
  • Browsers – Edge, Chrome, Brave, etc.
  • VPN – Connectivity.
  • Printer – Connectivity and drivers.
  • System driver and Window update issues.
  • Physical faults are diagnosed and actioned, but costs are covered under equipment warranty or for client replacement.
  • Migration to new services is not inclusive. Example: Moving from one email solution to another.
  • New computer setup and configuration for new staff members is only included if this is added to your contract as an optional extra.
  • Some basic software instructional usage is provided if required but complex usage on software like CAD or accounting is not within this scope.

Additional services can be arranged if requested.

DATA RETENTION
Client data is kept on file for the sole purpose of providing a service to the client. This data may be expunged when the client is no longer an active client, the client requests deletion or after no further client action within 1 to 5 years in accordance with regulations bound by the type of data held. All data is kept in compliance with GDPR regulations.

DATA RECOVERY
“Drive” – The term used in this context refers to any Hard Drive (HDD), Solid State Drive (SSD), SD card (memory card), USB drive, CD/DVD/Bluray, Floppy Drive or any other data based media.

Any form of data recovery by any company is considered a risky procedure. We use expensive professional hardware recovery equipment and all due care is taken but some drives are beyond recovery. We accept no liability for any data loss, financial loss or any other damages.

If you provide a drive inside another device, caddy or other enclosure – the drive will need to be removed carefully but sometimes this can results in damage to the external housing (plastic clips or casing) or other external components which is unavoidable but these external components typically can’t be reused anyway.
Some drives are damaged to a point where only a single recovery attempt is possible and it is not possible to reattempt the process by any other means or by anyone else. Note that a recovered drive can never be reused and is always destroyed after recovery.
Depending on the type of data damage encountered, occasionally some or many of the files may be corrupted, incomplete, without their original file names or not inside their original folders.

All client data is kept in the strictest of confidence and privacy is respected throughout the process. Only the specialist recovery engineer will have access to this data, nobody else. We do not keep your data for more than 3 days after you receive your recovered data, so backup this data immediately at least twice and notify us of any problems before we delete our copy as we are not be able to repeat the recovery process.

If a donor spare parts drive has been supplied by a customer, they must be aware that it will no longer be functional or returnable once it has been used in the recovery process.
Please note that data recovery can take anything from a few days to a few weeks but occasionally it can take many months if spare parts are not available. Data recovery can also be an expensive process which we offer at a low cost vs some other recovery companies. We perform 99% of recoveries internally. Other companies typically outsource or use bad practices which results in client data loss and excessive costs. Although we do provide accurate estimates, very occasionally have unforeseen costs which are beyond our control but we will always notify you of this should it happen. Once a recovery completes, you will need to provide a new clean drive in order to receive your recovered data or ask us to supply one at cost price. If you require frequent updates, then please contact us for a progress report.

QUOTATIONS
Service and contract quotations are only valid for 1 week. Orders for devices, any goods, software, repairs that require parts or any third-party purchase of any kind are only valid for 2 days, due to constant fluctuations of exchange rates and availability. Equipment sourcing is billed on an hourly basis.

WARRANTY
All items purchased through “IT Pro Expert” are covered by the original supplier’s warranty or balance of warranty. Service work is guaranteed for 30 days for the same issue provided the device has not been tampered with. Software related items are covered for 30 days provided that no third-party system has caused a related issue.

PAYMENTS
Payments are to be made by card or bank transfer. All goods and services are to be prepaid, made on the same day or in agreement to a 7 day payment plan. Any late payment will cause the service or supply of goods to be ceased immediately. Goods provided will remain the property of “IT Pro Expert” until cleared payment is received. All physical goods must be prepaid before installation. Contracts that are unpaid, late in payment or in breach of contractual payment terms will be terminated within 5 working days post payment due date. If payment is resumed, a reconnection fee of 25% will be required to re-enable services.

GENERAL LIABILITY
“IT Pro Expert” or any sub-contracted provider shall not be liable to the client for loss or damage to the client’s property, equipment or data. No liability is accepted due to indirect, special or consequential loss to the client arising out of or in connection with the provision of any goods or services.

DATA LIABILITY
Any backup services, data storage or data retention services whether online or offline provided by “IT Pro Expert”, partner companies or service providers are not liable for any data loss due to a failed backup, mismatch, backup error, drive failure, platform invasion or missed action of any data storage. No liability is accepted due to indirect, special or consequential loss. Critical data should always have multiple levels of backup and performed across separate platforms by different providers for full redundancy and security.

PRIVACY AND CONFIDENTIALITY
At no time will “IT Pro Expert” allow private client data to be passed on to third parties, only proportional information may be passed on when a company is acting as a functioning as a subcontractor and requires certain information. Strict privacy regulations are in place to ensure client data is held as securely as possible. At no time will data be provided to anyone requesting access unless by court order.
The client agrees legally to keep any information relating to services, procedures, operations, documents, images, videos, techniques, coding, reports, diagrams, datasheets, opinions and intellectual property provided or inadvertently disclosed by “IT Pro Expert” in strict confidence, not to be shared with any third party and not to be published in any format. Any of this information should be deleted unless otherwise approved in writing by “IT Pro Expert”.

HOSTED SERVICES
All websites, databases and online storage provided by “IT Pro Expert” or any providers are governed by strict security controls and data safety policies. Systems are monitored 24/7 and have an expected uptime of 99.99%. Data is protected beyond any normal hosting service with multiple layers of security, antivirus, intrusion detection and internal backups but with any cloud based service it is still possible for a breach to take place for a situation of total data loss to occur due to an unforeseen circumstance. No liability is accepted for any cloud service due to loss of data for any reason despite best efforts to ensure this never happens.

CONTRACTS
Contract terms are simple. Month to month with one month’s cancellation notice period. Variety of contract options available. Standard, 24 hour, emergency, remote, on-site and dedicated. Adjustment to the contract rates is reviewed when the clients’ requirements or staff levels change. However, a balance of fair use is applied over a multi-month average. Yearly inflation increases apply. Standard contracts can cover remote support of your listed computers, networks, devices, email, domains, dns, websites security checks, servers, general management of the companies IT infrastructure with a point contact for technical solutions. the client may be required to provide certain equipment to ensure remote management. Remote and standard contracts that require on-site visits and/or travel for repairs are billed as per standard rates unless specifically included in the contract. Any unlimited support services are subject to a fair use so that the time used does not exceed the expense of time resulting in less than minimum wage for the service. New PC or equipment/device setups remotely or on-site are not included unless by prior contract arrangement. Printer repairs that require physical parts and transport are only covered in special printer repair contracts only. Contracts are limited to 2 computers/devices and a mobile device as a maximum per person. (Example: Desktop, laptop and mobile phone). Replacement parts are not covered unless specified specifically added to the contract. Limitations of maximum contract usage hours are specified, and additional time will be billed at standard rates.

Contract clients must list all staff and/or devices that you wish to cover in the contract accurately. If staff or additional equipment is added then you must notify “IT Pro Expert” of this change within 7 days to allow for contract adjustments.

These terms are subject to changes without specific notice. Please review the terms at any time on the website.