Terms & Conditions

1) Services

We provide website development, web applications, automation, AI assistant builds, systems integrations, email setup and related consultancy services (“Services”) as described on our website and in any quotation, proposal, specification, or scope document agreed by you. Any changes beyond that scope require written agreement (for example, by email) and may incur additional charges.

2) Website & Systems Reviews and Consultations

Many engagements begin with a paid Website & Systems Review (typically £49.50 unless otherwise stated). This section explains how reviews and consultations work.

• • Scope. A review is usually a 45–60 minute remote session (video or phone) to assess your current website, tools and workflows, clarify goals and constraints, and outline practical options. It is advisory and does not oblige either party to proceed with a project.
• • Payment. The review fee is payable in advance (for example via Stripe checkout or another method we specify) to secure your slot. We confirm a booking once payment is received.
• • Deliverables. After the session, we normally provide a short plain-English summary and/or action plan, and where appropriate a fixed-price proposal for project work.
• • Credit against projects. If you proceed with a website, automation or systems project, the review fee is usually credited against your first project invoice, as described on our pricing/services pages. If the credit will not apply, we will make this clear before you pay.
• • Rescheduling. You may request to reschedule by contacting us at least 24 hours before the scheduled start time. We will make reasonable efforts to offer a new slot, but cannot guarantee specific dates or times.
• • Cancellations & non-attendance. If you cancel with less than 24 hours’ notice, or do not attend, we may treat the session as used and no further session or refund will normally be offered, except where required by law.
• • Refunds. Once the review has taken place, the fee is non-refundable except where we are legally required to provide a refund. If we cancel and cannot offer a reasonable alternative time, we will refund the fee.
• • Confidentiality. Reviews and consultations are covered by the Confidentiality & NDA section below.

3) Quote, Payment & Fees

• • Quotations. Unless otherwise stated, quotations and fixed-price proposals are valid for 30 days from the date issued.
• • Review fee. Where a Website & Systems Review applies, the fee (typically £49.50) is payable in advance to secure your slot. As set out above, it is non-refundable once the review has taken place, but is usually credited against your first project invoice if you proceed.
• • Project payment schedule. For typical fixed-price projects, a common schedule is: (1) review fee (if applicable); (2) 50% of the agreed project price due before build work starts; and (3) 50% due before go-live or final handover, unless alternative milestones are agreed in writing.
• • Small or advisory work. Very small pieces of work, audits, or advisory-only engagements may be billed as a one-off fee, payable in advance or on completion, as stated in the relevant quotation.
• • Taxes. Prices exclude VAT (if applicable) unless clearly stated otherwise. If VAT or other taxes become chargeable, they will be added in line with current law.
• • Payment terms. Unless otherwise stated, invoices are due on receipt. We may suspend work, withhold deliverables, or pause hosting/support where invoices remain unpaid.
• • Late payment. Late payments may incur interest at 8% per annum above the Bank of England base rate and reasonable recovery costs. We may suspend Services until outstanding sums are settled.

4) Client Responsibilities

You agree to provide timely access, information, content, approvals and feedback reasonably required for us to deliver the Services. Delays may extend timelines and/or incur additional fees where they result in re-work, missed slots, or significant context switching.

5) Intellectual Property & Licence

• • Materials you provide. You confirm that any content, assets, trademarks, branding, copy or code you supply (or ask us to use) do not infringe third-party rights. You are responsible for securing permissions/licences.
• • Ownership of the finished deliverables. On payment in full of all fees due for a project, you receive a non-exclusive, perpetual licence to use the delivered website/app and related assets for your business purposes. You own your domain, content and data.
• • Our tools and know-how. We retain ownership of our underlying frameworks, internal libraries, starter templates and processes. We may reuse generic components and know-how, provided we do not disclose your Confidential Information.
• • Portfolio use. Unless you ask us not to in writing, we may reference your project (e.g. logo, screenshots, short description) in our portfolio/case studies.
• • Footer credit. We may include a discreet footer credit (e.g. “Website by South Coast Apps”). If you want it removed/replaced, we will normally do so and may charge a small fee to cover the work.

6) Warranties & Limitations

• • Reasonable skill and care. We will perform the Services with reasonable skill and care, in line with generally accepted industry practice for small web studios.
• • No absolute guarantees. We cannot guarantee any website, app or system will be error-free, uninterrupted, or completely immune to third-party attacks/outages (e.g. hosting providers or upstream platforms).
• • Your responsibility for decisions. You are responsible for how you use the Services and any decisions made based on our advice. Our work is not legal, financial or regulatory advice; seek specialist advice where needed.
• • Limit of liability. To the extent permitted by law, our total aggregate liability arising in connection with the Services (contract, tort, negligence or otherwise) is limited to the total fees actually paid by you to us for the specific project/engagement giving rise to the claim.
• • Excluded losses. We are not liable for indirect, consequential or special loss, or loss of profit, revenue, data, goodwill, or business opportunity, except where such exclusion is not permitted by law.

7) Hosting, Maintenance & Support

Where we provide hosting and/or ongoing support, the inclusions (such as response times, minor changes, review calls, backups, monitoring and basic security hardening) will be set out in your package/support plan and/or invoice.

• • Rolling plans. Unless otherwise agreed, hosting and care plans run monthly and can usually be cancelled with at least 30 days’ notice. We will provide a reasonable handover if you move away, but migrations may incur fees where significant work is required.
• • Suspension. We may suspend hosting/support for breaches of these Terms (e.g. unlawful content, abusive use, or unpaid invoices) and will normally notify you in advance where reasonable.
• • Third-party services. We may use third-party providers (hosting, DNS, email, analytics, automation platforms). Their terms also apply, and we are not responsible for outages/changes outside our control.

8) Confidentiality & NDA (including consultations)

This section acts as a standard non-disclosure agreement (“NDA”) between you and us and applies automatically to any Website & Systems Review, consultation, proposal stage discussions, and any project or ongoing support.

Practical note: this means anything you share with us in a consultation - including “messy” internal details - stays confidential and won’t be shared externally. We may still reuse general learnings and non-identifying patterns (e.g. “common small business setup mistakes”) provided we do not disclose your Confidential Information.

9) Termination

Either party may terminate a project or ongoing plan for material breach if the breach is not remedied within 14 days of written notice describing the issue. On termination, you must pay all fees for work completed and any non-cancellable third-party costs incurred on your behalf up to the effective date of termination.

10) Governing Law & Dispute Resolution

These Terms and any non-contractual obligations arising out of or in connection with them are governed by the laws of England & Wales. The courts of England & Wales have exclusive jurisdiction, although we may first explore sensible, informal resolution with you.

11) Changes to Terms

We may revise these Terms from time to time (for example, to reflect changes in law, best practice, pricing, or our Services). When we do, we will update the “Last updated” date above and may also highlight the change on our website or by email where appropriate. Continued use of our Services after updated Terms take effect constitutes acceptance of those changes.