Terms and Conditions

The following terms and conditions are provided so that both the Client and the Freelancer have an understanding of what is involved in the process of working together.

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions or concerns.

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1. These terms & conditions apply to any work done on behalf of the Client (you) by the Freelancer (Claire Bentley).

2. The Freelancer will provide developmental editing, line & copyediting, proofreading, or sensitivity feedback services as agreed upon, in writing, by the Client and the Freelancer.

3. The Client is under no obligation to offer the Freelancer work; neither is the Freelancer under any obligation to accept work offered by the Client.

4. The work will be carried out unsupervised at such times and places as determined by the Freelancer, using her own equipment.

5. The Freelancer confirms that she is self-employed, is responsible for her own income tax and National Insurance contributions, and will not claim benefits granted to the Client's employees.

6. The Freelancer is not VAT-registered.

7. A written quotation for the work will be provided by the Freelancer to the Client following the Freelancer’s evaluation of a representative sample of the materials to be copyedited or proofread. The evaluation will also take into account discussions with the Client as to what is required, the length of the work, and the Freelancer’s estimated time taken to complete the project.

8. The Client and Freelancer will agree (in writing) the medium in which work will be carried out (e.g. Microsoft Word) and how the material will be annotated (e.g. Track Changes).

9. Upon confirmation of a booking, the Freelancer will issue an invoice for a non-refundable booking fee of 50% of the quoted fee for completing the project. The booking fee will be deducted from the final invoice when the work is complete. The booking is confirmed once the booking fee has been received by the Freelancer, which will secure the agreed slot in the Freelancer’s schedule.

10. The completed work will be delivered on or before the date agreed, for the agreed fee, which will be based on the description of the work required.

11. If, however, on receipt of the item to be worked on or at an early stage, it becomes apparent that significantly more work is required than had been anticipated in the preliminary discussion or brief, the Freelancer may renegotiate the fee and/or the deadline, or decline to carry out the work.

12. If, during the term of the Freelancer's work, additional tasks are requested by the Client, the Freelancer may renegotiate the fee and/or the deadline, or decline to carry out the work.

13. The Client will reimburse the Freelancer for agreed reasonable expenses over and above usual expenses incurred in the process of editorial work.

14. Unless agreed otherwise at the outset, payment for developmental editing / line & copyediting / proofreading / sensitivity reading will be made within 30 days of receipt of the Freelancer's invoice, according to the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998. Payment of booking fees should be made within 7 days.

15. All content delivered to the Freelancer by the Client for developmental editing / line & copyediting / proofreading / sensitivity reading is the copyright of the Client.

16. The Client agrees to hold the Freelancer harmless from and against all claims, liabilities and expenses arising out of any potential or actual copyright or trademark misappropriation or infringement claimed against them.

17. If generative AI (e.g. ChatGPT, Sudowrite etc) has been used, in whole or in part, to generate the client's content then the client will disclose this to the freelancer. The freelancer reserves the right to seek clarification on how, and to what extent, generative AI was used.

18. Following payment of the final invoice, any content created by the Freelancer as part of the developmental editing / line & copyediting / proofreading / sensitivity reading process will become the copyright of the Client, unless otherwise agreed.

19. The nature and content of the project will be kept confidential and not made known to anyone other than the Client and its contractors without prior written permission.

20. The Freelancer will not upload the Client’s files to external websites or distribute them to third parties unless authorised to do so, by the Client, in writing. The Freelancer does, however, use iCloud as a cloud-based storage system.

21. The information that the Client and the Freelancer may keep on record is covered by the terms of the General Data Protection Regulation. No more such information will be held than is necessary, at any time, to comply with those terms and with any compliance statement or privacy policy published by the Client and/or the Freelancer. Either may view the other’s records to ensure that they are relevant, correct and up to date.

22. The work will be carried out by the Freelancer. The Freelancer will not subcontract any work to third parties.

23. The Freelancer will always aim for the highest editorial standards. However, there will always be a degree of subjectivity with the editorial services provided, and the writing-editing process is ultimately one of collaboration where the Client has the final say in the decisions made about the work.

24. The Freelancer is unable to guarantee perfection; it would be unethical to do so as editorial perfection is impossible to obtain. In addition, the Freelancer cannot guarantee sales of the published work.

25. If the Freelancer's work is unsatisfactory, the Freelancer will rectify it in her own time and at her own expense.

26. Both the Client and the Freelancer have the right to terminate a contract for services at any time if there is a serious breach of its terms.

27. If the Client cancels a service at any time, for any reason, then they will provide the Freelancer with written notice as soon as possible. The cancellation will be considered valid when the Freelancer provides written acknowledgement of the cancellation.

28. If the Freelancer cancels a service at any time, for any reason, then they will provide the Client with written notice as soon as possible. In the unlikely event that the Freelancer cancels a service, she will provide a full refund of fees paid up to that point (including the booking fee).

29. If the Client experiences extraordinary or difficult circumstances (e.g. illness, bereavement) which cause delays or cancellation of the project then they will contact the Freelancer at the earliest opportunity to discuss the situation. The Freelancer will try her best to be fair, understanding and helpful at all times.

30. If the Freelancer experiences extraordinary or difficult circumstances (e.g. illness, bereavement) which cause delays or cancellation of the project then they will contact the Client at the earliest opportunity. The Freelancer will do her best to help (e.g. renegotiate the project’s time frame) and the Client may be entitled to a full or partial refund.

31. If the Client cancels the work during the project then the Freelancer reserves the right to invoice for 100% of the agreed fee (minus the booking fee).

32. If the Client wishes to cancel with less than one month’s notice then the Freelancer reserves the right to invoice for 100% of the agreed fee (minus the booking fee).

33. If the client wishes to cancel with more than one month’s notice, then the booking fee will not be refunded but no other charges will apply.

34. The Freelancer will contact the Client two weeks before the mutually agreed start date with a reminder that the file is due 24 hours before the stated start date. The Client will confirm, in writing, within 7 days of the reminder that they will supply the relevant files for editing by the deadline.

35. There is no requirement for the Client to mention the Freelancer in the published work’s acknowledgements section. However, the Client agrees that the Freelancer will have the opportunity to review any such mention prior to publication, or to decline to be mentioned.

36. The Freelancer may request a written testimonial from the Client regarding the quality of her editing / proofreading work to be used in her promotional material. The Client can decline this.

37. This agreement is subject to the laws of England and Wales, and both Freelancer and Client agree to submit to the jurisdiction of the English and Welsh courts.

38. The contract of service requires that the Client acknowledges, in writing, that they have read, understood and agreed to these terms and conditions.