Terms and Conditions of Service

These Terms and Conditions of Service (T&Cs) apply to all products and services provided by STORM (Scotland) Limited (referred to hereafter as “STORM” or “we”). By engaging STORM for any work, the client (referred to hereafter as “Client” or “you”) agrees to these terms and conditions.

Agreement to Terms and Commencement of Work

Acceptance of Quotation
STORM will provide the Client with an electronic estimate or quotation via email. Work on any project will not commence until STORM receives formal, written acceptance.

Written Acceptance: The Client must confirm acceptance by emailing info@stormwebsitedesign.com or via email response to an official quotation.

Verbal Agreement: A verbal agreement to proceed is considered acceptance of the quotation and a commitment to pay for all work undertaken.

Deposit Requirement
Upon acceptance of the quotation and these T&Cs, a non-refundable deposit may be required.

Deposit Amount: Our standard deposit is 35% of the total agreed quotation.

Purpose: The deposit covers initial planning and the setup of the development server.

Work Commencement:
Work will not begin until the deposit has been received, unless otherwise agreed upon in writing.

Payment, Invoicing, and Late Payments

Standard Invoicing Invoices will be issued at deposit stage, 70% of project time and when the site goes live. Invoices are deducted from the total quoted project cost.

Extra work requested outside the original scope will be charged separately. The project’s live date does not determine the timing of invoices.

Late Payment Policy STORM reserves the right to charge interest on all accounts outstanding for 60 days after the date of invoice, in accordance with UK Late Payment Legislation.

Interest Calculation: The statutory interest rate is the Bank of England base rate plus 8%.

Suspension of Service: Should payment be later than 45 days from the invoice date, STORM reserves the right to take any services or websites offline until the full payment is received.

Returned Cheques: Returned cheques will incur an additional fee of £50 per cheque.

Default Status and Collection An account is considered in default if it remains unpaid for 30 days from the invoice date or following a returned cheque. STORM is entitled to remove all STORM-owned and/or Client-supplied materials from all computer systems until the amount due is fully paid. Removal of materials does not relieve the Client of the obligation to pay the due amount. Clients whose accounts become default agree to pay STORM’s reasonable legal expenses and third-party collection agency fees incurred in the enforcement of these

Intellectual Property (IP) and Copyright

STORM’s Retained Copyright STORM retains the full copyright on all design work, including, but not limited to, words, pictures, ideas, visuals, illustrations, web pages, and all code, until all costs have been settled in full.
Design Options: If multiple design choices are presented, only one solution is deemed to fulfil the contract. All other presented designs remain the property of STORM.

Post-Settlement: Upon final, full settlement of all invoices, the copyright for the accepted final design work is typically released to the Client, unless specifically stated otherwise in writing.

Client’s Materials By supplying text, images, or other data to STORM, the Client declares that they hold the appropriate copyright and/or trademark permissions. Ownership of such materials remains with the Client or the rightful copyright/trademark owner. The Client grants STORM permission to use this material freely in the pursuit of the design project. The Client agrees to fully indemnify and hold STORM harmless from any and all claims resulting from the Client’s failure to obtain required copyright or other necessary permissions.

Database Ownership STORM retains full ownership of all hosted databases. These databases contain hard-coded elements and proprietary techniques and may not be transferred to another provider for operation on third-party servers.

Hosting, Website Maintenance, and Domains

Hosting Services and Invoicing Hosting invoices are issued at the beginning of the project to cover server configuration, ongoing testing, and the installation of specific features.

Billing Period: Hosting is invoiced in advance for the following 12 months (1 year).

Cancellation: Should you wish to change hosting requirements, we require 4 weeks’ advanced notice. Otherwise, full payment for the upcoming 12 months of hosting and associated services will be required.

Website Script Updates and Security (CMS/Blog Sites) Modern Content Management Systems (CMS) and blog sites require ongoing script updates to ensure security and stability (similar to PC operating system updates).

Gold Hosting: Clients who opt for GOLD Hosting receive these ongoing script updates as part of the service.

Basic Hosting: Clients who opt for basic hosting do not automatically receive script updates but may request this service at an additional cost.

Migration/Upgrades: Script updates only cover the version the site was originally built within (e.g., Joomla 1.5.x). A full migration service to a completely new major version (e.g., Joomla 1.0 to 1.5) is not included and would require a separate quotation and potential site rebuild, as older versions lose support over time.

Domain Name Management STORM registers and automatically renews all domain names (usually every 1 year) in the name of the Client to prevent service disruption. Cancellation: To cancel a domain name, the Client must inform STORM before the renewal date. Otherwise, full payment will be required for the upcoming renewal period, regardless of use.

Advance Renewal: Domains are often renewed up to 2 months in advance of the actual expiry date to ensure continuous service.

Price Changes: Domain pricing may change annually, which is outside of STORM’s control.

Project Changes and Liability

Additional Services Charges for any services required over and above the estimated design will become fully payable at the time of quotation acceptance.

Post-Acceptance Amendments The Client agrees that changes requested after the acceptance of the draft design will be liable to a separate charge.

Third-Party Amendments
STORM holds no responsibility for any amendments made by any third party (non-STORM personnel) before or after a design is published.

Legislative Changes Should a new law be passed that requires action on the website or services, the Client is responsible for informing STORM of any requirements, at which point STORM will provide a quotation to carry out the necessary work.

Deposit Refund Policy The following applies to the standard 35% deposit payment: First 3 Months: A full refund will be provided if there are unforeseen circumstances within the first month following payment.

Over 1 month: A full refund is only offered if the work did not begin due to a fault by STORM (Scotland) Ltd. After 2 Months: Any request for a deposit return requires a full written reason and may result in a partial refund.
After 3 Months: If the work has not begun after 3 months from the deposit payment date due to the Client’s fault, no deposit can be returned. Repayment Schedule: In timeframes that allow for a deposit refund, the return may be scheduled over a monthly period due to cashflow requirements.

If a site goes live and a client then decides some elements are now not what they require, this does not entitle them to any refund or discount. Sites are an ongoing process, and any issues during the build or design should be raised at the time.

If a deposit is taken and work stops due to the client not providing content or feedback, the work done to date can be removed permanently after 6 months.