Terms & Conditions

  Thank you for entrusting the care and attention of your animals to Dryfe Vets Ltd. This document details our practice terms and conditions. Please ask one of the members of staff for further explanation/clarification if required. Using our service implies acceptance of these terms.

OPENING HOURS are as advertised

OUT-OF-HOURS SERVICES

Dryfe Vets Ltdprovides its own out-of-hours emergency service. This means you will see one of the vets that work in the practice during the day who will have full access to your pet’s clinical records. If emergency veterinary care is required any time day or night, the on-call veterinary surgeon can be reached 365 days a year by phoning the practice phone number. An addition fee will be charged for this service depending on the time of day/night and will be £50-80 over and above examination fees and medications.

FEES, PAYMENT AND SETTLEMENT TERMS

All fees are subject to VAT at the current rate. Fee levels are determined by the time spent on a case and according to the materials and consumables used. A written fee list is available on request. Customers will receive a detailed invoice.

a) Payment is due immediately after each transaction (a transaction is defined as the transfer or sale of goods, services, treatments and fees from the practice to the client). Monthly invoices for large animal accounts are due within 30 days of the month end.

The practice accepts:

· Cash

· Debit and Credit cards (Visa, MasterCard)

· Direct bank transfer (Sort code 800888, Account No 10074764)

· Cheques with valid guarantee cards

· Payment in advance.

b) The practice welcomes forewarning of genuine inability to pay as specified in clause d). Terms of payment to pay in installments, or in full at an agreed date must be arranged prior to any transaction but may incur a surcharge. Fees for vaccinations and other routine procedures do not attract payment terms in any circumstances whatsoever.

c) If payment terms are not met, the outstanding amount will attract interest from the payment due date and in addition will be subject to an accounting fees each time a statement or invoice is issued for the outstanding amount. If no payment terms have been agreed or if no forewarning of inability to pay is received, interest and accounting fees may be applied from the day the debt is incurred. Goods and services, which have not been paid for, will remain the property of the practice until payment is received in full. In addition, if an outstanding fee is referred to an external debt collection agency a charge will be made for making this referral.

If payment terms are not met, the practice will withhold routine treatments, goods and services until full payment is completed, at its discretion. If patient records are requested to be released to another practice while the client still owes money to Dryfe Vets Ltd, then the request will be met when payment is made in full, but due consideration will be made regarding the well-being of the patient.

d) When a client of Dryfe Vets Ltd has defaulted on any payment, either by means of issuing an unsupported cheque or by payment avoidance, the veterinary surgeons and staff employed by the practice will not attend to any animal owned by that client, or attend to any animal registered at that client’s home address, until full payment is received. If the practice agrees to retain a client after such a default, then all future transactions will be on a cash only, payment at the time, basis.

ESTIMATES OF TREATMENT COSTS

The practice will provide written estimates on request, and at other times, of probable costs for procedures and treatments. It is important to consider that treatments and procedures may not follow a conventional course and therefore an estimate may only be approximate. However, we will do our best to keep clients fully informed of costs during treatment. 

REPEAT PRESCRIPTIONS

If you require a repeat prescription for your pet, please phone well in advance so it can be verified, signed off by one of the vets and made up ready for collection. Reception staff cannot hand out prescription medication (POM-V, POM-VPS) without veterinary authorisation. Prescriptions are available from this practice. You may obtain Prescription Only Medicines Veterinary, (POM-Vs) from your veterinary surgeon OR ask for a prescription and obtain these medicines from another veterinary surgeon or a pharmacy. There is a charge for a prescription. A prescription may not be appropriate if your animal is an in-patient or immediate treatment is necessary. You will be informed, on request, of the price of any medicine that may be dispensed for your animal.

Medicine regulations state we can only prescribe “prescription only medication” to animals “under our care”. This means there must have been a physical examination of the animal/herd/flock and regular reassessments. Medication cannot be prescribed if your pet is not examined as required.

HOME VISITS

It is always best if a pet can be attended to at the surgery where all drugs, equipment and personnel are available, so you will be asked to bring your pet in to be treated. House visits will only be performed if deemed necessary for the welfare of your pet and not for convenience. House visits will not be performed should we deem them unnecessary or if deemed unsafe such as people under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Current animal welfare legislation requires those with responsibility for animals to care for them properly and imposes a duty of care on them to take reasonable steps to ensure that their animal’s welfare needs are met. Owners are responsible for transporting their animals to a veterinary practice, including in emergency situations. The RCVS encourages owners to think about how they can do this and make plans before an emergency arises. Examples include their own transport, a family member, friend or neighbour’s transport, an animal ambulance or a taxi service that will transport animals. Should a house visit be necessary, there will be an extra charge to cover the time involved.

PET HEALTH INSURANCE

Clients with insured pets that have had fees charged are required to pay Dryfe Vets Ltd. However, in exceptional circumstances, where the full amount cannot be paid, then an agreement for payment arrangements must be made with the practice. In such circumstances, the client must provide evidence of a valid and appropriate policy. Payment of the policy excess and payment for all goods not covered by the policy are due at the time of the transaction. Levels of insurance cover vary between policies and it is your responsibility to check the level of cover offered by your insurance policy. An insurance policy is a contract between the client and the insurer and any queries should be raised directly with them, we are merely helping to facilitate your claim for you. All fees that remain outstanding are the responsibility of the client should the insurance company fail to pay. We reserve the right to charge for processing claim forms -fees for this service are not covered by such policies.

VACCINATION REMINDERS

The provision of reminders for vaccinations and other services and products by Dryfe Vets Ltd is by means of a courtesy - there is no obligation on the practice regarding the consequences of failure to provide such reminders.

OWNERSHIP OF RADIOGRAPHS AND SIMILAR RECORDS

The care given to pets may require making specific investigations, for example taking radiographs. The practice makes a charge for carrying out these investigations and interpreting their results. Ownership of the resulting record, for example a radiograph, remains with the practice. If a client requests that a second practice has access to this record, then Dryfe Vets Ltd may charge the client a fee for the transfer of records.

COMPLAINTS & STANDARDS

We hope that you never have recourse to complain about the standards of service received from Dryfe Vets Ltd however, if you feel that there is something you wish to complain about, please direct your comments in the first instance to the veterinary surgeon or any member of staff in their absence. Please allow time for relevant information and the facts of the complaint to be accumulated.

We obviously hope to be able to resolve minor issues at the surgery on the day. If you feel that you have a more serious complaint, please put it in writing to

The Directors, Dryfe Vets Ltd, 34 Townhead Street, Lockerbie DG11 2AE or by email to vets@dryfevets.co.uk.

Please state clearly your pet’s name and your name and address. If you have moved or changed surname recently, please also provide previous details so that we can identify the correct clinical records. We will respond in writing to your complaint once we have discussed any issues with all staff members involved and considered our position. We will not discuss clinical aspects of a case without giving our staff an opportunity to give their version of events, and without examining all the relevant clinical records. This usually takes 3-4 working days. If it is going to take longer than this, if for example a staff member concerned is on annual leave or has left our employment we will write to you and inform you of this and provide you with a realistic timescale in which to expect a response. Please refrain from phoning or try to do it face to face, without writing in first, so that we can collate all the information that we need to respond appropriately. The reception team in particular, will not be qualified or informed enough to respond.

If you are not the owner of the pet in question, we will not discuss the case with you at all, without the owner’s express written permission. 

If your pet has been seen by another veterinary practice subsequently, we will need to obtain the clinical notes from that practice before discussing the complaint with you. 

If we cannot resolve your complaint to your satisfaction you can make a formal complaint to our governing body.

Their address is: Professional Conduct, Royal College Of Veterinary Surgeons, Belgravia House, 62-64, Horseferry Road, London, SW1P 2AF

No addition or variation of these conditions will bind the practice unless it is specifically agreed in writing and signed by a director. No agent or person employed by, or under contract with, the practice has the authority to alter or vary these conditions in any way.