Terms & Conditions
1. CONDITIONS OF SALE
No person other than directors of the Seller’s (Harper Martin Ltd) company are authorised to do any of the following on behalf of the Seller:
a) Remove or vary any of these terms or introduce any other term (written or oral) into the contract
b) Agree any condition precedent or enter into any collateral contract
c) Accept any offer or counter offer by the Buyer.
2. QUOTATIONS
A quotation is for information only and is binding on the Seller only if and when to the extent that it is incorporated in an order which the Seller has accepted in writing, but subject as hereinafter written.
3. TERMS
(a) All prices are subject to market fluctuations and the actual prices to be paid by the Buyer shall be the Seller’s prices ruling at the date of dispatch. The Seller shall be entitled to charge to the Buyer the amount of the Value Added Tax for which the Seller shall be liable.
(b) Goods must be paid for during the month following (i) date of dispatch or (ii) notification by the Seller that the goods are ready for delivery, whichever the earlier.
(c) The time of payment of the price shall be of the essence of the Contract.
(d) If the Buyer fails to make any payment on the due date then, without prejudice to any other right or remedy available to the Seller, the Seller shall be entitled to:
(i) cancel any current contract or verbal agreement contract or suspend any further deliveries to the Buyer; and
(ii) appropriate any payment made by the Buyer to such of the Goods (or the goods supplied under any other contract between the Buyer and the Seller) as the Seller may think fit (notwithstanding any purported appropriation by the Buyer): and
(iii) charge the Buyer interest (both before and after any judgment) on the amount unpaid, at the rate of 5 per cent per annum above Bank of England base rate from time to time, until payment in full is made (a part of the month being treated as a full month for the purpose of calculating interest)
(iv)reclaim any discounts given and seek the amount of the goods valued at the then suggested selling price governed by Harper Office suggested selling price.
4. DELIVERY
(a) Unless otherwise agreed in writing the Buyer shall be bound to accept goods ordered by him on notification that they are ready for delivery. If the Buyer fails to take delivery the
Seller shall have the exclusive option:-
(i) to re-sell the goods and charge the Buyer for any shortfall below the price under the
Contract OR
(ii) to invoice the goods whereupon payment in full shall become due forthwith OR
(iii) to charge at rates giving an economic return for the handling and storage of such goods from the invoice date to the eventual date of delivery to the Buyer or disposal elsewhere under the power of sale referred to above. The Buyer shall be liable for the insurance of such goods from the date in which he is notified that the goods are ready for delivery onwards.
(b) Any dates quoted for delivery of the Goods are approximate only and the Seller shall not be liable for any delay in delivery of the Goods howsoever caused. Time for delivery shall not be of the essence unless previously agreed by the Seller in writing. The Goods may be delivered by the Seller in advance of the quoted delivery date upon giving reasonable notice to the Buyer.
(c) If the Seller fails to deliver the Goods for any reason other than cause beyond the Seller’s reasonable control (in which case clause 18 applies) or the Buyer’s fault, and the Seller is accordingly liable to the Buyer, the Seller’s liability shall be limited to the excess (if any) of the cost to the Buyer (in the cheapest available market) of similar goods to replace those not delivered over the price of the Goods.
(d) If goods are contracted to be delivered by instalments late delivery of one instalment shall not entitle the Buyer to reject any other instalment under the same contract.
(e) Claims in respect of short deliveries or damage to goods in transit must be notified by the Buyer to the Seller in writing within 3 days of receipt of the goods.
(f) Delivery of goods to levels other than the ground floor may require assistance. When necessary, confirmation that assistance is available, will be required before despatch.
5. CUSTOMER’S DEFAULT
The Seller may without prejudice to any of its other rights against the Buyer rescind the contract
or suspend delivery under it if:-
(a) any sum is owing and overdue by the Buyer to the Seller;
(b) the Buyer is in breach of any term of the contract;
(c) the Buyer makes any voluntary arrangement with its creditors or becomes subject to an
administration order or (being an individual or firm) becomes bankrupt or (being a company)
goes into liquidation (otherwise than for the purpose of amalgamation or reconstruction); or
(d) an encumbrancer takes possession, or a receiver is appointed, of any of the property or
assets of the Buyer; or
(e) the Buyer ceases, or threatens to cease, to carry on business; or
(f) the Seller reasonably apprehends that any of the events mentioned above is about to occur
in relation to the Buyer and notifies the Buyer accordingly.
6. LIABILITY
(a) The Seller shall be under no liability:-
(i) in respect of any defect in the Goods arising from any drawing, design or specification supplied by the Buyer;
(ii) in respect of any defect arising from fair wear and tear, wilful damage, negligence, abnormal working condition, failure to follow the Seller’s or manufacturer’s instructions
(whether oral or in writing), misuse or alteration without the Seller’s approval;
(iii) under any warranty, condition or guarantee, or any duty at common law, if the total
price for the Goods has not been paid by the due date for payment;
(iv) by any oral warranty or representation given or made on its behalf unless confirmed in writing.
(v) in respect of any data corruption or other damage to or loss of computer software or hardware arising from the use of any computer media goods supplied hereunder by the Seller in conjunction with any such software or hardware. It is the responsibility of the Buyer to ensure that it or the ultimate end-user of the goods take all necessary precautions (including, but without limitation, testing the goods on up-to-date antivirus software) when used in conjunction with any computer software or hardware.
(b) Where any valid claim in respect of any of the Goods which is based on any defect in the
quality or condition of the Goods or their failure to meet specification is notified to the Seller in accordance with these Conditions, the Seller shall be entitled to replace the Goods (or the part in question) free of charge or, at the Seller’s sole discretion, refund to the Buyer the price of the Goods (or a proportionate part of the price), provided a complaint is made in writing within 3 days after delivery and goods returned within one month. The Seller shall have no further liability to the Buyer.
(c) Subject as expressly provided in these Conditions (and specifically without prejudice to (b) above), and except where the Goods are sold to a person dealing as a consumer (within the meaning of the Unfair Contract terms Act 1977), all warranties, conditions or other terms implied by statute or common law are excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.
(d) Except in respect of death or personal injury caused by the Seller’s negligence, the Seller shall not be liable to the Buyer by reason of any representation, or any implied warranty, condition or other term, or any duty at common law, or under the express terms of the Contract, for any consequential or indirect loss or damage, costs, expenses or other claims for consequential compensation whatsoever (and whether caused by the negligence of the Seller, its employees or agents or otherwise) which arise out of or in connection with the supply of the Goods or their use or resale by the Buyer, except as expressly provided in these Conditions. Non-exhaustive illustrations of consequential or indirect loss include:
(i) loss of profit,
(ii) loss of contracts,
(iii) damage to the Buyer’s property or property of another person or body,
(iv) personal injury or death to the Buyer or any other person other than that caused by the Seller’s negligence.
7. SURROGATE USERS
The following definitions shall apply to the following clauses: “the Dealer” refers to the Seller’s immediate Buyer whilst “the Surrogate User” refers to the Buyer’s purchaser. The Dealer acknowledges that the Surrogate User is deemed to be the Dealer’s agent for all purposes in dealings with the Seller and (without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing) as such shall be liable for the price of all Goods ordered by the Surrogate User as though the Dealer had ordered such goods for himself.
8. DESCRIPTION OF GOODS
All descriptions and illustrations contained in any catalogues, price lists, advertising matter and other literature of the Seller are intended merely to present a general idea of the Goods described therein and none of them shall form part of the Contract.
9. OWN LABEL GOODS
In the case of Goods which have been produced to the specification and or bear the name of the Buyer or the Buyer’s customers as the case may be (“own label goods”), the Buyer undertakes to purchase at the contract price all stocks of own label goods in finished and unfinished form which the Seller holds for the purpose of fulfilling the Buyer’s requirements. Without prejudice to the generality of the foregoing, on the termination of any Contract between the Seller and the Buyer, for the supply of own label goods, the Buyer will accept and pay the contract price for all stocks of own label goods in finished and unfinished form then held by the Seller.
10. RISK AND PROPERTY
(a) Risk of damage to or loss of the Goods shall pass to the Buyer:
(i) in the case of Goods to be delivered at the Seller’s premises, at the time when the Seller notifies the Buyer that the Goods are available for collection; or
(ii) in the case of Goods to be delivered otherwise than at the Seller’s premises, at the time of delivery or, if the Buyer wrongfully fails to take delivery of the Goods, the time when the Seller has tendered delivery of the Goods.
(b) Notwithstanding delivery and the passing of risk in the Goods, or any other provision of these Conditions, the property in the Goods shall not pass to the Buyer until the Seller has received in cash or cleared funds payment in full of the price of Goods and all other goods agreed to be sold by the Seller to the Buyer for which payment is then due.
(c) Until such time as the property in the Goods passes to the Buyer, the Buyer shall hold the Goods as the Seller’s fiduciary agent and bailee, and shall keep the Goods separate from those of the Buyer and third parties and properly stored, protected and insured and identified as the Seller’s property. Until that time the Buyer shall be entitled to resell or use the Goods in the ordinary course of its business, but shall account to the Seller (but any warranties, conditions or representations given or made by the Buyer to any third party shall not be binding on the Seller who shall be indemnified by the Buyer with respect thereto) for the proceeds of sale or otherwise of the Goods, whether tangible or intangible, including insurance proceeds, and shall keep all such proceeds separate from any moneys or property of the Buyer and third parties and, in the case of tangible proceeds, properly stored, protected and insured.
(d) If the Buyer incorporates the Goods into other products (with the addition of his Goods or those of others) or uses such Goods as material for other products (with or without such addition) the property in those other products is upon such incorporation or use transferred to the Seller and the Buyer as bailee of them and the Buyer will store the same for the Seller in a proper manner without charge to the Seller; in the event of such incorporation or use as is envisaged by this sub-clause the provisions of sub-clauses (b), (c), (e) and (f) of this clause shall apply, mutatis mutandis, to those other products in place of the Goods.
(e) Until such time as the property in the Goods passes to the Buyer (and provided the Goods are still in existence and have not been resold), the Seller shall be entitled at any time to require the Buyer to deliver up the Goods to the Seller and, if the Buyer fails to do so forthwith, to enter upon any premises of the Buyer or any third party where the Goods are stored and repossess the Goods.
(f) The Buyer shall not be entitled to pledge or in any way charge by way of security for any indebtedness any of the Goods which remain the property of the Seller, but if the Buyer does so all moneys owing by the Buyer to the Seller shall (without prejudice to any other right or remedy of the Seller) forthwith become due and payable.
11. SKETCHES, DESIGNS, BLOCKS, ARTWORK, PROOFS & INDUSTRIAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
(a) At the Seller’s discretion, all sketches and designs or other work including authors correction on and after first proof produced or special materials purchased at the Buyer’s request may be considered an order and charged for. No responsibility will be accepted for any error in proofs passed by him.
(b) The Seller shall be indemnified by the Buyer against any claim by a third party against the Seller arising out of any Goods supplied to or work done for the Buyer including any infringement of copyright, patent trade mark or registered design.
(c) All sketches, drawings and designs or other work originated by or on behalf of the Seller and the Copyright and all other intellectual property rights therein shall belong to the Seller.
12. LIEN
Without prejudice to any of its other rights against the Buyer, the Seller shall in respect of all unpaid debts due from a Buyer have a general lien on all materials and equipment and other property of the Buyer in its possession, and shall be entitled if any part of such debts shall remain unpaid at the expiration of 14 days after giving written notice to the Buyer requiring payment thereof to dispose of such materials, equipment and other property as it thinks fit and to apply the proceeds of sale (if any) in or towards payment of such debts.
13. TECHNICAL MANUALS & LITERATURE
All technical manuals and other literature, drawings, designs and specifications furnished to a Buyer by the Seller shall remain the property of the Seller and be carefully preserved by the Buyer and returned to the Seller on demand. No such manual literature, drawings, design or specification shall except with the express written consent of the Seller be reproduced by the Buyer in whole or in part. In default of written agreement to the contrary type may be distributed and lithographic photogravure moulds, rubbers or other work effaced immediately after the Contract has been performed.
14. QUANTITY VARIATIONS
A shortage or surplus charge pro rata not exceeding 10 per cent will be considered due execution of any order and the Buyer shall accept the same subject to a pro rata increase or reduction in the contract price.
15. BUYER’S PROPERTY
Buyer’s property when supplied will be held at Buyer’s risk. The Buyer shall supply adequate quantities to cover normal spoilage. Every care will be taken to secure the best results where materials are supplied by the Buyer but responsibility will not be accepted for imperfect work caused by defects in or unsuitability of materials so supplied.
16. SELLER’S DUTIES UNDER HEALTH & SAFETY AT WORK ACT 1974
Insofar as the Seller is under a duty pursuant to S.6 of the Health & Safety at Work Act 1974 in respect of the design, manufacture and supply of any article for use at work, the Buyer shall be deemed to have been afforded by the Seller reasonable opportunity for the testing and examination of goods or materials prior to delivery to the Buyer in respect of their safety and any risk to health, and the Buyer shall be deemed to have afforded by the Seller adequate information about the goods and materials in respect of the use for which they are designed and have been tested and of any conditions necessary to ensure that when put to use they will be safe and without risk to health whether or not the said information has been requested by the Buyer.
17. FORBEARANCE BY SELLER
No forbearance or indulgence by the Seller shown or granted to the Buyer whether in respect of these general conditions or otherwise shall in any way affect or prejudice the rights of the Seller against the Buyer or be regarded as a waiver of any of these general conditions.
18. FORCE MAJEURE
No liability is accepted by the Seller for any direct or indirect loss arising from non-delivery or delay in delivery of any goods caused by Act of God, Riot or Civil Commotion, War, Strike, Lockout, Fire, Flood, Drought, Act of Government, failure to obtain or shortages of raw materials or any other cause whatsoever beyond its control.
19. RETURNS
(a) The Seller has no obligation to accept return of goods supplied and to credit the Buyer’s account in full save in the following circumstances:
(i) goods have been damaged in transit; or
(ii) goods are subject to a bona fide complaint in respect of the quality of the goods made pursuant to Clause 6 hereof.
(b) Any return pursuant to Clause 19(a) above shall be made within 15 days of receipt and such goods shall be returned in unmarked packaging and in an immediately saleable condition.
The Seller shall only be liable to credit 85% of the invoiced value of goods returned which do not conform with the requirements of this sub-clause.
(c) Any request for the return of goods under this Clause shall be made by the Buyer to the relevant Supplier Regional Distribution Centre sales office within 3 days of delivery. The Regional Distribution Centre will provide the Buyer with a Return Note. Returns shall only be accepted if they are accompanied by the Supplier’s Return Note.
(d) The Supplier may, at its absolute discretion, elect to provide by post or any other means, any missing or faulty components or fixings for goods in lieu of accepting a return.
(e) In no circumstances will the Supplier accept a return of any items Code Black within its catalogue or items that are made to custom specification.
(f) The Supplier will not supply goods to the Buyer on an “on approval” basis. The Supplier may, in its absolute discretion, accept a return of goods ordered by the Buyer but which are not required by the Buyer for reasons other than those set out in sub-clause (a) above, but will only be required to credit 85% of the invoiced value of such goods to the Buyer’s account.
20. LAW
Any agreement incorporating these Conditions shall be governed by English law.
21. LEGAL GROUP
The Seller is a member of a group of companies and accordingly the Seller may perform any of its obligations or exercise any of its rights hereunder by itself or through any other member of its group, provided that any act or omission of any such other member shall be deemed to be the act or omission of the Seller.
22. PUBLICATIONS
(a) Payment for Publications to be received 30 days from date of invoice.
(b) Property of all Publications supplied shall pass to the Buyer only when payment is made in full, but risk shall pass on delivery.
(c) Any quality/non-delivery claims on Publications supplied, must be made in writing to the Publications Manager (Fax No: 01708 379911) within 28 days from date of invoice. The Seller will be under no obligation to entertain a claim which is not made within this time scale.
THESE REPRESENT THE FULL CONDITIONS OF SALE FOR:-
Harper Martin Ltd t/a Harper Office
Unit 6 Ashton Gate
Harold Hill, Romford
Essex RM3 8UF