At Tarka Vets we strive to build our relationships on mutual trust and respect. Below are our terms and conditions. Some terms and conditions may not apply to your situation but please let us know if you require any clarification.

Tarka Vets Ltd is an independent veterinary practice registered in England with company number 16102792. The registered office is at Kings Lodge, London Road, West Kingsdown, Sevenoaks, Kent. Our trading address is Tarka Vets Ltd, St George’s House, St George’s Road, Barnstaple, EX32 7AS.

Registration

It is essential that we maintain accurate records of our clients and patients. To do this, we will periodically request confirmation of the details we hold. Please inform us if your details have changed so that we can ensure our database is as up to date as possible.

Costs

All fees, food, reception sales and drugs are subject to VAT. Fee levels are determined by the time spent on a case and the drugs, materials, consumables and diets used. A detailed invoice is available for every consultation, surgical procedure and transaction via email or printed. All quoted prices, whether on our price list or in an estimate, are inclusive of the current rate of VAT 20%.

Estimates

Estimates are provided verbally either at the time of booking an appointment or during the consultation itself for all surgical and dental procedures. A written estimate will also be sent for you to sign digitally or a paper version can be provided on the day. All estimates are approximate and the final fee may be higher or lower depending on complications during treatment and the patient’s response. We will contact you as soon as we have reason to believe that the costs could be significantly higher than the estimate provided.

Prices for consultations and the majority of our procedures are available on our website but please ask if you require any further information.

Payment

Accounts are due for settlement at the end of the consultation, upon the discharge of your pet and upon the collection of drugs, diets and reception sales. You may settle the account using cash or credit/debit card (MasterCard, Visa, Delta, Switch or American Express). If you fail to pay your invoice when it falls due we will take appropriate action to recover our fees. This may include engaging third-party debt collection agencies or initiating proceedings in the county court. In such cases, any costs levied by the debt collection agency will be added to the outstanding balance owed by you. We will also seek to recover any legal expenses from you. Please note that the use of debt collection agencies and the county court may affect your future credit rating. We shall be entitled to suspend the provision of any further goods and/or services until you have paid any outstanding sums in full. Where appropriate, we may require payment on account before goods and/or services are provided.

Please note that if a pet is registered with our practice, we will assume that any person over the age of 18 who brings the pet in for treatment is duly authorised by the registered pet owner to seek treatment and incur costs for which the registered pet owner will be liable.

Return of unused drugs

We are happy to accept unused medications for disposal only. However, as drugs which have left the premises are no longer fit for resale, no refund can be given. Drugs purchased from any other supplier will not be accepted for disposal.

Prescriptions

Written prescriptions are available from this practice. You will be advised of the prescription charge when you contact us. Prescription charges are applied only when you request a prescription from us but have it filled elsewhere. Animals requiring repeat prescriptions for ongoing medication will need to be re- assessed periodically by the veterinary surgeon. The re-examination interval will vary between clinical cases to a maximum of six months. Please provide 48 hours’ notice for any requests for a repeat or written prescription. A charge applies for a re-examination. Details will be provided on request.

Out of Hours Service

Our current opening hours are: Monday to Friday 0800hrs - 1800hrs and Saturday 0830hrs - 1230hrs. These are kept updated on our website and as a sign in the practice.

Outside these hours all emergencies are attended to by our on-call veterinarian or nurse who will discuss the situation and determine if a consultation with the on-call veterinarian is necessary and the time frame of your need. Our out-of-hours service is exclusively for the use of our clients. If you require our services outside of normal business hours, you will need to register with us for your day-to-day needs.

We provide our own out-of-hours service to ensure the best continuity of care for our clients. This allows you to always see our own veterinary surgeons who will have your pet’s clinical history. We do not have a team onsite 24/7. Our on-call service means that should your pet require treatment outside of normal opening hours the vet will travel to the practice to see your pet. Animals admitted to hospital outside normal working hours will be assessed and treated according to their clinical needs. If the Veterinary Surgeon is confident your pet is stable, they may be left for periods between checks. A surcharge is applied to this service in addition to the standard consultation fee. The cost is variable depending on the time of day and whether a nurse is required to attend. This reflects the unsociability of the hours and the associated costs of providing 24-hour cover.

Home visits

Home visits are available at an additional charge and may need to be booked in advance. We will endeavour to provide them whenever possible. In an emergency it is usually in the best interests of your pet to be seen at a surgery where facilities and a full range of drugs are available. It is not always possible to conduct home visits outside normal working hours due to other patient needs.

Consent

Written signed consent for procedures is required for all hospital admissions. Any alterations will be agreed upon prior to action being taken. Consent is also required for the use of medications in species for which they were not licensed, such as rabbits and rodents. In this case a consent form will be provided to allow this to be done without requesting specific permission in each individual case. These drugs are used under the ‘cascade’ where there is no licensed appropriate drug for the species being treated. We must then administer drugs with proven activity and efficiency despite the absence of a licence. Consent is also required if your pet is hospitalised in our care out of hours. If a situation changes and further or different procedures are required while your pet is in our care, we may obtain verbal consent over the phone which will then be documented on your pet’s clinical record rather than requiring you to return to sign an updated form.

Referrals or second opinions

If you require a second opinion on your pet’s welfare or condition please contact a member of the team. We are happy to arrange a second opinion with another veterinarian within our practice, an alternative practice or by referral to a specialist.

Cancellations

If you need to cancel or reschedule your appointment please give as much notice as possible. We understand sometimes it it unavoidable. If you consistently cancel or fail to attend appointments at short notice (less than 24 hours) we reserve the right to request payment for any future booked appointments at the time of booking. This payment is non-refundable if the appointment is subsequently cancelled. We request that you endeavour to arrive on time for your appointment. Our standard appointment times are15 minutes and late arrival may prevent us from fully addressing an issue without impacting the next consultation.

Monitoring

Telephone calls, emails and messages via WhatsApp or social media to and from the practice may be recorded or monitored. By using these communication methods, you consent to the recording or monitoring of the same. When taking payment over the phone, we will pause the recording to prevent the capture of your payment details. CCTV is in operation both inside and outside the practice which is used for the safety of clients, patients and staff.

Undertaking of procedures and use of medications

Veterinary staff will administer appropriate medications, procedures and safety devices as necessaryduring the treatment of your pet. This includes but is not limited to the use of muzzles and appropriaterestraints as may be required to ensure the safety of our team members during the treatment of your pets.

Student nurses and veterinary surgeons

We may employ student nurses within our team and occasionally have student veterinary surgeons on placements with us. All students receive the appropriate level of supervision. The responsibility for your pet’s veterinary care remains with the veterinary surgeons and registered veterinary nurses. Please inform us if you do not wish for students to be involved in your pets care.

Off-licence medication

In certain circumstances, where no suitable alternative exists, it may be appropriate for our veterinary surgeons to prescribe medication for your pet which has not been licensed for veterinary use. This may include the administration of drugs in one animal species which are licensed in another or some human medications which are not available in veterinary form. The use of our services expressly permits this use following discussion with a veterinary surgeon. When dispensing off-licence medication, we will request that you sign a consent form.

The right to refuse service

Any client found to be threatening or intimidating a member of staff, behaving inappropriately, where mutual trust has broken down or failing to clear their account in response to a final written request will be refused veterinary services other than emergency care until they find an alternative.

Insurance

We strongly support the principle of insuring your pet against unexpected illness or accidents. In some cases, with prior agreement, it is possible for the practice to submit a claim directly to the insurer. Where possible we request that a pre-authorisation form is completed. There may be circumstances where we ask for a deposit to be paid. An administration charge will be applied to cover the substantial administration costs of direct claims in addition to the policy excess. This is payable at the time of consultation, upon collection of drugs or food or upon discharge of your pet from our care. There is a direct insurance claim processing fee of £10. We do not charge an insurance processing fee for claims where the insurance company reimburses you directly.

We will require the following at the time of request: A signed insurance claim form at the time of collection of your pet and indication that payment should be made direct to us. To pay all outstanding fees in full immediately if the insurance company decline to accept the claim in part or in full, or if the insurance company has not made settlement within 30 days of submission of the claim. Failure to do so could result in us seeking full settlement from you after 30 days unless an alternative has been agreed.

Complaints

We are committed to providing the highest standard of patient and client care and hope that our service does not cause you any concern. However, if you do wish to complain, please contact a member of our team in the first instance. The Practice partners Freya or Marina will then review your complaint and contact you. If you wish to put your complaint in writing then you can either send it to us via hello@tarkavets.org or via post to Tarka Vets, St George’s House, St George’s Road Barnstaple, EX32 7AS.