Code of Practice
Code of Practice
INTRODUCTION TO OUR COMPANY AND SERVICES INCLUDING COMPLAINT HANDLING AND DISPUTE RESOLUTION
Univoice Ltd is a reseller of communication services and products. We resell voice, fixed line, data (ADSL and other types of Broadband) and associated telephone services from a number of high quality telecom carriers to businesses throughout the UK.
THE PURPOSE OF OUR CODE OF PRACTICE
This Code of Practice is designed to aid our customers by providing information about their relationship with us, as telecommunications supplier. This code aims to:
• Outline our Sales & Marketing procedures.
• Outline the wide range of services we offer.
• Let our customers know how to contact us.
• Customers’ rights about cancellation and pricing.
• Customers’ responsibilities to pay your invoices.
• Explain what to do in the case of a complaint.
• Explain Alternative Dispute Resoltion Options.
Our goal is to supply exceptional value and high quality service to business customers. We pride ourselves on the breadth and quality of our product range, covering both voice and data services.
HOW TO CONTACT US
• Tel: 01983 333 333
• Fax: 01983 333 444
• Email:
• Open from 9:00am until 5:00pm Monday to Friday (excluding public holidays)
• Web: www.univoice.co.uk
If you would prefer to write to us instead, please address your letter to:
Univoice Ltd
Provincial House
3 High Street
RYDE
PO33 2PN
SALES, MARKETING, ADVERTISING AND PROMOTION
This code shall apply to all instances where Univoice Ltd is involved in the sale or marketing of their Fixed Line Telecommunication Services, to small business customers. NB. Small business customers’ are those who employ 10 or fewer people.
Regardless of the way in which our sales and marketing activities are conducted we act responsibly and compliantly. It is acknowledged that some customers may not wish to be approached in some instances. Univoice Ltd undertakes to respect the wishes of its customers and not to approach potential customers that have registered with any Preference Services including the Mailing Preference Service, the Telephone Preference Service, the Fax Preference Service and the E-mail Preference Service. Indeed we are pro-active in ensuring customers are aware of and registered if they wish with such relevant Preference Services.
We make customers aware of and promote our services by various methods. In all cases, we act responsibly and try to comply with relevant legislation.
In addition, all our advertising and promotional activity keeps to the principles of the British Codes of Advertising and Sales Promotion. We ensure that all advertising, promotional literature including our website is clear, unambiguous, accurate and fair, does not contain false or misleading information about price, value or service and does not denigrate other companies.
OUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES
Univoice Ltd provide a wide range of services which include, but are not limited to
FIXED-LINE SERVICES
VOICE CALLS
MOBILE SERVICES
NON-GEOGRAPHIC NUMBER SERVICES
DATA SERVICES
ISP SERVICES
HOSTING SERVICES
IT SUPPORT SERVICES
TERMS AND CONDITIONS
All services are subject to a minimum contract term of twenty four months, although longer contract terms may exist, dependant on your agreement and order (unless otherwise specified on the contract).
We aim to provide services as soon as reasonably possible after your original request, subject to availability and installation of any equipment, appropriate lines to your premises and the correct information being supplied. If we need to carry out a survey of your premises, request additional information, or install additional cabling, we will advise you of the revised timescales as soon as possible.
CANCELLATION
If you decide to cancel your order or agreement before we have provided the services, you may do so without charge up to 7 working days from the date of contract. (Except for the provision of new telephone lines where a cancellation fee will apply if the line is cancelled with less than 15 days to installation).
After the minimum term you can cancel any service by contacting Univoice Ltd in writing by Letter giving us 45 days notice. Where notice is not supplied or where notice is supplied during the lifetime of a longer term agreement you will be required to pay a compensation figure which will be calculated using the following formula:
On termination of this Agreement for any reason you will:
Pay us all outstanding charges due under this agreement;
Co-operate with us in the removal of any of Our Equipment from Your Premises
If this Agreement ends before the Minimum Period ends (other than as a result of force majeure or any breach of this Agreement by us) you will pay us:
The Monthly Rental Charges which would have been payable if the Agreement had not ended early;
In addition we may charge a disconnection fee for every line whether the agreement has reached the full minimum period or not.
You may terminate the Contract anytime by giving 45 days notice written notice of termination by recorded delivery to our registered office prior to the renewal date. If you terminate this agreement prior to the expiry of the contracted term or of any subsequent contract, you agree to pay a compensation charge equal to the balance of the fixed term line rental due up to the date of the expiry date of this agreement. In addition, you agree to pay a compensation charge in respect of telephone call traffic, equal to four times the value of the average monthly call billing during the term of this agreement up to and including the month of termination.
If you decide to move to another provider it is your responsibility to arrange new provision of services.
If Univoice Ltd are in breach of contract and are unable to resolve the breach within a reasonable timescale then the customer can cancel the agreement by providing 28 days notice with no termination charge, but must pay all amounts due up to the date of termination
PRICE TARIFFS
Our tariffs are tailored to our customer’s requirements. The factors that affect this are call volumes; call types and term of agreement. We can provide you with a quotation, proposal, or tariff detailing the charges we will make. We reserve the right to amend the tariff. If we have to increase the tariff due to regulatory requirements (i.e. Ofcom directive) we will provide a minimum of 28 Days notice and as the customer will be obliged to pay the increased charges for the remaining term of the agreement. Should we increase charges due to non regulatory requirements, the customer has the right to terminate their agreement with no penalty, by providing 28 days written notice, providing notice is received within 7 days of the date of notification of increases from Univoice Ltd.
To request a copy of your current tariff please contact us on 01983 333 333.
BILLING AND PAYMENT
Customers are invoiced on a monthly basis. Occasionally your account may contain charges from an earlier period. This is due to the late delivery of call or rental data from a network supplier. We will accept the following methods of payment: Direct Debit. Other methods of payment may be agreed, although we prefer Direct Debit and reserve the right to levy a handling charge for payments by any other method. Direct Debits will be taken on or around the 21st of the invoiced month.
DEBT MANAGEMENT AND DISCONNECTION POLICY
You have a duty to pay our bill when it is due. If you fail to do so we will contact you to prompt your payment and make you aware of any action we are taking or planning to take. This may ultimately result in your service being disconnected if the bill is not settled. We reserve the right to charge 3% interest per calendar month on any outstanding amounts. If you have difficulty paying your bill, please contact us on 01983 333 333 and we will try to arrange a different method of payment. We will do all we can to help our business customers manage their bills and avoid disconnection.
COMPENSATION AND REFUND POLICY
Sometimes errors can happen and if Univoice Ltd have invoiced you incorrectly, we will rectify this by either:
1. Issuing a credit note
2. Raising a credit on the subsequent invoice
If you believe you have been incorrectly invoiced please contact our customer services on
01983 333 333.
Where there are issues with service provision, compensation claims are judged on a case-by-case basis. If you wish to claim compensation please contact us on the details in the contact section.
CUSTOMER COMPLAINTS
We make every effort to ensure our customers receive the highest level of service. In the event of something not being to your satisfaction, please inform us at your earliest convenience so that we can aim to resolve any issues efficiently and effectively.
The complaint procedure explains how you raise a complaint and our procedures for resolving complaints.
Should you have a complaint please contact our Customer Service Team on 01983 333 333.
You may also send your complaint in writing to us at:
Univoice Ltd
Provincial House
3 High Street
RYDE
PO33 2PN
Once you have made contact with the Customer Service Team, we will investigate your complaint and endeavour to resolve the problem as soon as possible. We aim to resolve complaints, or agree a course of action with you, within 5 working days of receipt of the complaint.
TAKING YOUR COMPLAINT FURTHER
If a complaint is not resolved to your satisfaction, you can take it further within our company, initially to the Operations Director and ultimately to the Managing Director. This must be a written communication either by e-mail, letter or fax. If we cannot resolve the problem to your satisfaction within 8 weeks, or if you have received a letter saying your complaint has reached “deadlock” you can pursue your complaint further through the Ombudsman Services an alternative dispute resolution scheme. Ombudsman Services is an independent body that helps customers and telecom providers resolve disputes that cannot be settled between the parties themselves. Any decision by the Ombudsman Services is binding upon Univoice Ltd.
• The Ombudsman Services Ltd, 3300 Daresbury Park, Daresbury, Warrington. WA4 4HS
• Telephone: 0330 440 1614
• Web: www.ombudsman-services.org
You can obtain a copy of this Code of Practice free of charge by:
• Telephone: Customer Service Department on 01983 333 333
• Email:
• Web: www.univoice.co.uk
USEFUL ADDRESSES
• Ofcom, Riverside House, 2a Southwark Bridge Road, London SE1 9HA. Tel: 020 7981 3000
• www.ofcom.org.uk
