TERMS AND CONDITIONS

Please read this document carefully as it sets out the terms and conditions relating to the introduction of temporary or permanent staff to you by Forbes Private Staff Ltd, which is an employment AGENCY. The Agency specialises in placing nannies, mannies, maternity nannies, governesses, governors, tutors, housekeepers, butlers, chefs, estate managers, and personal assistants.

These terms and conditions create a legally binding contract between you (the “Client”) and the Agency (the “Agreement”). Please read the Agreement carefully.

1. Definitions

“Agency” means Forbes Private Staff Ltd, t/a Forbes Nannies and BusyHands Contract Services, a company incorporated and existing under the laws of the United Kingdom, with Registered Address at 128 City Road, London EC1V 2NX.

 “Agency Fee” means the fee payable by the client to the Agency for the services set out in these Terms and Conditions.

“Client” shall be any person, parent, family member, or a third party appointed by such person named on the Client Registration Form for whom the Agency has agreed to provide the Services in accordance with these Conditions.

“Candidate” means a person introduced by the Agency to the Client as requested for the purposes of employment as a nanny, manny, maternity nurse, governess, personal assistant, personal trainer, house manager, babysitter, or any other household staff on a temporary or a permanent basis, whether full or part-time.

’’Registration fee’’ means the initial registration fee paid before paying the full Placement fee.

’’Placement fee’’ means the full fee for placing a Candidate with a Client after the initial registration fee is paid

“Contract of Employment” means an employment agreement executed between the Client and the Applicant specifying the terms and conditions of employment under which the Applicant agrees to perform childcare and/or educational related duties for the Client in exchange for an agreed salary

“Introduction” means the process of introducing an Applicant by the Agency to the Client by providing a Curriculum Vitae and other information which identifies an Applicant(s). This includes the Applicant being interviewed by the Client either in person, by telephone, or via video calling services (e.g. Skype, WhatsApp, FaceTime, etc.), for the purpose of further employment of that Applicant by the Client

“Permanent Placement” means a Contract of Employment exceeding 8 weeks (56 days);

“Temporary Placement” means a Contract of Employment not exceeding 8 weeks (56 days) which also includes trial working periods and will be charged according to our terms and conditions.

2. Contract

2.1. These terms and conditions apply to all contracts for the introduction of Candidates by the Agency to the Client. 

2.2. These terms and conditions are deemed to be accepted by or on behalf of the Client upon an Introduction

3. Registration

3.1. Clients and Candidates must complete the online Registration Form to be accepted as Clients. If this is not possible, they need to sign the Terms and Conditions and return them to the Agency, before they are accepted and taken on our books. If registering online, filling out the online registration form constitutes confirmation of acceptance of the Agency’s Terms & Conditions.

 3.2. The verbal or written instructions by the Client, or the Client’s appointed agent, to the Agency to submit a suitable Candidate for placement with the Client constitutes acceptance of the Agency’s Terms and Conditions by the Client.  

4. Client’s Rights & Obligations

4.1. To provide full, accurate, and complete information with regard to their childcare requirements;

4.3. Clients agree to inform the agency in writing of any interviews taking place and to reimburse reasonable traveling expenses for those Candidates who are based outside London or based outside the country where the job will take place. The Client shall settle this directly with the Candidate at the interview stage. The Candidate must provide relevant receipts for the journey in order to be reimbursed by the Client.

4.4. The Client agrees to notify the Agency, either verbally or in writing, as soon as an offer of employment has been made and accepted by the Candidate and to supply the Agency with details of the date of commencement, length of the engagement, and the agreed net weekly wages and to pay the relevant Agency fee to the agency in accordance with our terms and conditions as a result of such engagement.

4.5. The Client will be held responsible for bypassing the agency in cases where the Client failed to inform the agency about the start of employment within 7 days from the day of the offer of employment being made. They will be held responsible for paying the full agency fee, including a 50% penalty surcharge.

4.6. The Client is responsible for the employment of the Candidate in accordance with all applicable employment legislation based on the employment law in the country of employment. The client undertakes to become the sole employer of the Candidate

4.7.  The Client undertakes to provide a contract of employment upon engagement and is responsible for the candidate’s Tax and National Insurance contribution, obtaining work permits, and satisfying any medical requirements or qualifications as required by law. A copy of the signed contract needs to be emailed to the Agency within 7 days from the date of commencement.

4.8.  The Client is solely responsible for the suitability of the Candidate, and it is purely his/her decision to employ or to interview the Candidate. The Agency cannot be held responsible for any mistakes in the candidate’s portfolio, as those are provided directly by the Candidate. The client agrees to satisfy himself as to the suitability of the Candidate by interviewing, taking up any references, copies of documents provided by the Candidate to the Agency.

4.9. The Client agrees to notify the Agency if the nature of employment of the Candidate changes in any way during the first six months from commencement and agrees to pay an additional fee (standard fee for such service minus placement fees already paid) should there be an increase in working hours or days of work originally required when the Candidate started the employment.

4.10. The Client is solely responsible for ensuring that the Candidate is eligible to work in the client’s country and for obtaining and paying for her/his travel expenses before the commencement of employment – such as flights, taxis, shuttles, etc/any relevant work permits/visas/immigration requirements that may be necessary and for arranging and paying for any medical examinations or investigations into the medical history and health or travel insurance where applicable.

4.11. If the position of employment is temporary and the Candidate subsequently rejoins the Client at any time in the future after the agreed period for further employment, the Client undertakes to inform the Agency and pay the relevant placement fee again. Should the original length of temporary employment be extended; the Client must notify the Agency and is required to pay an additional Fee.

4.12. Clients agree not to disclose any introductions of Candidates to third parties. The personal and contact details of Candidates shall be kept strictly confidential by Clients. Any breach of this undertaking resulting in the employment of a Candidate by a third party renders the Client liable for full payment of the Agency’s placement fee.

4.13. The Client is responsible for paying the Candidate’s agreed salary for any trial hours requested in order to assess the suitability of the Candidate. Guidance on current market salaries can be found on our website.

4.14. The Client has to follow all legal obligations, such as registration with HMRC, paying for the Candidate’s taxes and NI contributions (proof must be provided- e.g. Candidate’s last payslip), pay for the Candidate’s deposit in case of hiring a self-employed maternity nurse, etc.

4.15. The Client cannot introduce, directly or indirectly, a Candidate (whether a prospective Candidate or one employed by the Client) to any third party.

5. Agency’s Rights & Obligations

5.1. The Agency conducts its business as a matching service that matches and introduces suitable Candidates to work for the client with the purpose of effecting introductions between persons desiring to enter into contracts for services.

5.2. The Agency endeavours to establish the suitability of any Candidate for introduction to the Client by taking up a minimum of two references from each Candidate. However, all responsibility for ascertaining the suitability of the Candidate for the engagement remains with the Client.

5.3. The Agency holds no responsibility for the Client and Candidate’s employment contract, portfolio, and any matters associated with it are to be arranged between Client and Candidate. The Agency offers a contract of employment only as a sample guide for the Client and Candidate to use.

5.4. The Agency cannot be under any circumstances held responsible and excludes liability for any loss, damage, delay, inconvenience, problems, costs incurred due to damage to property or theft of property, death, injuries, or accidents incurred or suffered by the Client, the Clients family, servants, or the Client’s assets caused directly or indirectly during employment or introduction of the Candidate allegedly arising from the acts or character of the Candidate introduced by the Agency, or, to the extent permitted by law, in respect of services provided by the Agency, even if such act or omission is negligent or fraudulent or reveals any dishonesty.

Any losses shall be limited to the Placement Fees paid to the Agency in respect of a placement.

5.5. The Agency does not offer any warranty for the Candidate’s suitability, personality, character, honesty, and reliability.

5.6. The Agency does not employ any of the Candidates directly or indirectly. Candidates are introduced to Clients, and they will always be employed by the Client unless the Candidate is self-employed (this only applies to child-minders or maternity nurses; a standard nanny can not be self-employed). Candidates shall be under the supervision, direction, and control of the Client.

5.7. The Agency reserves the right to change or add to the above Terms and Conditions without prior notification, however, all changes will be posted on this website. It’s your responsibility to check these Terms and Conditions in case there are any changes. Continuing to use the site and our services after a change has been made is your acceptance of the changes. 

6. Fees

6.1. The Placement Fee becomes payable when a Candidate introduced by us accepts an offer by the Client or the Client accepts a Counter-offer by a Candidate. All invoices are payable within five working days in order to confirm the booking and always prior to commencement of candidate.

6.2 The Placement Fee will be calculated on the highest amount of the Annual Salary provided in any Offer or Counter-offer, regardless of the final terms formalised between the Client and the Candidate.

6.3. The placement fee payable will be dependent upon whether the placement of a candidate by the Agency is a Permanent or Temporary Placement, and shall be payable in accordance with the fee structure set forth in our Terms and Conditions. 

6.4. All introduction fees for placements in UK and EU may be subject to VAT.

6.5. The Agency fees are non-refundable. 

6.6. If a candidate introduced by the Agency is rejected (or rejects an offer of employment) by the Client, a full introduction fee will be payable if the candidate is subsequently employed by the Client at any time.

6.7. The invoice issued by the Agency must be settled in full within 5 working days before the Candidate commences Engagement with the Client and in respect of overseas placements, any invoice must be settled by the Client before the date that the Candidate departs for such placement. In the case of Candidates for temporary positions, the Client agrees to settle any invoice before the commencement of the temporary placement. 

6.8. The Candidate will not commence employment before the full settlement of the invoice. If the Candidate does , the agency reserves  the right to charge the family a 10% surcharge on the agreed agency fee per week until the payment is received.

6.9. If the payment is more than two weeks overdue, the agency refund and replacement guarantee will no longer apply to the placement.

6.10. All invoices not settled within 14 days from the invoice date will be subject to a 20% surcharge on the top of the original invoice, if the Agency didn’t receive the payment within 30 days from the invoice date will be passed to the Debt and Recovery collector which will result in additional charges. 

7. Additional Fees

7.1. If a client employs a member of staff who has been introduced by The Agency but does not inform the Agency within 7 days, the fee payable will be subject to a 50% surcharge.

7.2. Where a temporary position subsequently becomes a permanent position, the Client shall be required to pay the relevant full Agency Fee for the permanent position.

7.3. If a Candidate employed by the Client temporarily is re-employed by the Client within six calendar months of the termination of the original period of employment (whether such re-employment is on a temporary or permanent basis) then a further Agency Fee shall be payable by the Client to the Agency. Such fee shall be equal to the Agency Fee which would have been payable if the Agency had introduced the Candidate to the Client at the time of re-employment.

7.4. In the event that a Client does not hire a Candidate following the initial Introduction by the Agency but subsequently approaches the Candidate (not through the Agency) directly within 3 years of initial introduction offering Engagement, then the Client shall be liable to pay the agency placement fee which would have been payable if the Agency had introduced the Candidate to the Client.

7.5. For the purposes of attending interviews, the Client is responsible for a Candidate’s reasonable travelling expenses, which are properly incurred and evidenced by appropriate receipts. The Client shall settle this directly with the Candidates.

7.6. If one of our Candidates is solicited to work for the client to bypass the Agency fees – in the event where the Client only hires a candidate for a trial or a temporary period or doesn’t hire a Candidate following the initial introduction by the Agency (meaning: profile of the candidate sent by email and/or interview set up but cancelled, and/or interview done, etc.) but approaches the Candidate directly -not offering the employment through our Agency – then the Client shall be liable to pay the full Agency Placement Permanent Fee based on 52 weeks plus 50% penalty surcharge plus £50 per week for each week of late payment, starting from the date the Agency will issue the invoice.

8. Cancellation of Booking

8.1. If a Client withdraws an offer of confirmed employment or cancels the confirmed booking prior to the Candidate’s start date, 30% of the placement fee will be payable by the Client to the Agency as a cancellation fee. Payment will become due within 5 working days from the date of invoice. Should the client cancel the confirmed booking during the candidate’s employment, then the paid agency fee remains non-refundable. In such circumstances, one week’s salary is also payable to the Candidate to compensate for their loss of earnings. 

8.2. Should a Candidate cancel the confirmed and already paid booking, the agency will offer a replacement candidate free of charge. If the Client does not wish to accept the replacement candidate from the agency or does not wish to use the service of the agency for finding a suitable replacement, then 50% of paid agency fee will be refunded to the client.

9. Termination

9.1 All instances of termination of employment where a replacement is requested must be notified in writing to the Agency within three days of the termination of employment.

9.2 The Parties may terminate the Agreement by mutual consent at any time.

9.3 In the event that this Agreement is terminated, the Client shall not be entitled to any refund of the Agency Fee already paid and any Agency Fees due at the date of termination and interest thereon. All other administrative fees due to the Agency will immediately become payable in full.

10. Replacements (Temporary and Permanent)

10.1. Should the Candidate leave the employment within 8 weeks from commencing such employment, including a trial period if one was requested, the Agency will offer one replacement Candidate free of charge. The client is eligible for one free replacement Candidate only. The Agency shall be obliged to provide the Client with up to 3 candidate

profiles for a free replacement. Such profiles will be selected based on the information originally provided in the Client’s registration form and will be provided within 2 months of notification. 

10.2. The Agency accepts no liability and is not obliged to offer a Replacement or any refund to the extent that the Client finds the profiles unacceptable and does not want to engage any of the potential Candidates. Neither the Client nor the Agency will be able to discriminate unlawfully or breach the provisions of the Equality Act 2010 when Candidates are being selected for either an initial placement or for a replacement. The Agency will not accept the refusal of a Candidate or a Replacement Candidate on anything other than legitimate grounds.

 10.3. The agency accepts no liability and is not obliged to offer a Replacement or any refund if the Client finds the portfolios unacceptable and does not want to engage any of the potential Candidates.

10.4. The Client will only be eligible for one replacement Candidate under these Conditions, and will no longer be eligible for a replacement Candidate after the first Candidate has been replaced.

 10.5. The Agency will offer replacements if the following conditions have been satisfied:

• The Client paid the full registration fee prior to the interview commencement
• The Client has paid for the placement fee in full within seven days from the invoice date and prior to the Candidate’s start of employment.
• The Client has notified the Agency of the termination of employment of a candidate in writing within 7 days of termination.
• The Candidate has not cancelled the engagement due to unreasonable requirements by the Client.
• The Client has not changed the employment conditions, such as working hours, location of employment and duties as originally agreed by the Candidate and Client in the contract.
• The Candidate’s working conditions and/or the way the Client treated the Candidate were satisfactory. Forbes Private Staff Ltd agency’s decision will be final in this respect.
• The Client was not physically or verbally aggressive towards the Candidate or Agency’s representative.
• The client followed his/her legal obligations, such as registration with HMRC, paying for the Candidate’s taxes and NI contributions (proof must be provided- e.g. Candidate’s last payslip.
• The Contract was agreed upon without any discount. All Clients that negotiated a discounted fee are not eligible for free replacement Candidates. (10% discount for returning clients does not apply)
• Should the Candidate leave after eight weeks of employment (including the trial period), the Agency will guarantee a 10% discount for finding a new Candidate, should the client wish to continue the search with the Agency.

10.6. If the Candidate employment is terminated by the Client after the initial 4-week period, the Agency is not obligated to the Client to present further Candidates without further charge.

10.7. If the Candidate employment is terminated after the initial 12-week period, the Agency is not obligated to the Client to present further Candidates without further charge

10.8. Please note that once the Client advises the agency to look for a replacement Candidate and then finds a new Candidate via another source, the Agency will not offer any further replacements.

10.9. For the avoidance of doubt, the Agency shall have no further obligation to the Client to source additional replacement applicants or refund any amount of the Service Fee in the event the Client agrees to engage a Potential Replacement Applicant, but that Potential Replacement Applicant fails to commence the engagement or, having so commenced, leaves at any time.

11. Confidentiality and Privacy Policy

11.1. It is a condition of this Agreement that now and at all times in the future, including the completion of this Agreement, save as may be lawfully required, the Agency and the Client shall keep all affairs, concerns, business and privacy of each other confidential.

11.2. All communication between the Parties in any form shall be confidential. Should the Client pass on any information of the Applicants, or recommend an Applicant to a third party that results in the employment of the Applicant then the Client will be liable for the relevant full fee as if the booking had been made by the Client itself and these Terms and Conditions shall apply accordingly.

 11.3. The Agency is responsible for keeping the personal information of the Client and the Client’s family members private and confidential at all times. The Agency uses an encrypted database to store personal information provided by the Client, which can be amended or deleted at any time by sending a request to gdpr@forbesprivatestaff.com. The Agency shall not share the Client’s data with any third parties and shall store it solely for the purpose of direct communication with the Client and for finding a suitable Applicant.

12. Liability of the Agency

The Agency endeavours to provide the Client with only the most suitable Applicants according to the Client’s requirements set out in the initial Client Enquiry. However, the Client must decide on the suitability of the Applicant prior to offering the Applicant employment. The Agency does not accept any liability for any kind of inconvenience, loss, or damage howsoever arising and whether caused directly or indirectly from any act or omission of an Applicant introduced by the Agency. Additionally, no warranty is offered in respect of the suitability, honesty, capability or character of any Applicant introduced by the Agency and employed by the Client. Applicants are not employees of the Agency. The Client is responsible for ensuring that their home contents insurance includes cover for Employers and Public Liability insurance for domestic workers, including child carers. The Agency does not exclude or restrict liability for death or personal injury resulting from its negligence. The entire liability of the Agency under or in connection with these Terms and Conditions and the Agreement is limited to the amount of the Agency Fee received for the provision of the Services, except as expressly provided in these Terms and Conditions and the Agreement.

13. Legal

These terms of business are covered by English law, and all disputes arising out of or in connection therewith shall be subject to the jurisdiction of the English courts.

14. INTRODUCTION FEES – SCHEDULE 

14.1. UK Placements:

• Permanent Full-Time Placement in Childcare (52 weeks + ) – 15% of the Annual Salary
• Permanent Full-Time Placement in Private Household (52 weeks +) – 15% of the Annual Salary
• Full-time Governess or Tutor Placements – 17% of the Annual Salary
• Full-Time Dual Residency Placements – required to work in the UK and Overseas – 18% of the Annual Salary
• Part-Time Governess or Tutor Placements – 19% of the Annual Salary
• After School Childcare Placements – 18% of the Annual Salary
• Part-Time Placements in Childcare and Private Households – 18% of the Annual Salary
• Maternity Nurses – £170 per week, min 2 weeks.
• Temporary Placements – £100 per day or £450 per week.
• Trials – £450 per week, up to 4 consecutive weeks; or fixed daily fee of £90.

14.2. International Placements

• All Permanent Placements – 20% of the Annual Salary
• Maternity Nurses – £230 per week, min 2 weeks
• Temporary Placements – £100 per day or £500 per week.
• Trials – £500 per week, up to 4 consecutive weeks.

14.3 All invoices are calculated for 52 weeks salary bases. 

14.4 Invoice payment terms – 5 working days

15. Copyrights

Any material found within the pages of our website including text or images may not be copied, reproduced, republished, downloaded, posted, broadcast or transmitted in any way. Permission for any other use must be obtained by contacting Forbes Private Staff.