Dear First Call WindScreen

 
As you are aware, you are from time to time, called upon to provide labour and materials in respect of automotive glazing replacement and repairing services to our policyholders vehicles.

As part of our ongoing effort to improve the level of service for all those who service our policyholders, we are pleased to announce that you will now be able to use the SICP system to invoice us electronically. In order to take advantage of this direct billing process offered through our agent, Glasscare Limited, as Glass Claims Management Company, you need to read and agree to the following terms and conditions. These terms and conditions memorialise the relationship between you, us and our agent.

With this in mind, we ask that you read the following terms and confirm, through your signature, that you agree to them. We can offer you the ability to provide services to our policyholders through SICP subject to you complying these terms:

1. Any works carried out by you must be invoiced at or below the list price of SICP for such work and such glass products prevailing at the time. The relevant maximum price can be obtained by accessing the web site at www.sicp.co.uk or telephoning our helpline on +44 (0) 20 8997 1221 Maximum prices may change from day to day and should therefore be checked before you agree to provide services to any of our policyholders. Alternatively, you may invoice at your normal discounted price if lower than the SICP maximum price.

2. All work carried out by you and materials provided by you shall be of the highest possible standard and work must be carried out promptly, having regard to the conditions in which the work was instructed. Repairs must be warranted for a minimum of three months. Should a repair fail or the customer not satisfied with the repair resulting in a replacement, the repair cost will be deducted from any replacement settlement.

3. It is a condition precedent to your being paid by us that invoices are submitted to SICP within 28days following completion of the relevant work. You should go to SICP’s web address as provided in clause 1 and then follow the on-line instructions. Once your invoice has been submitted via SICP, we will make payment, subject to policy limits (please refer to insurance certificate for details) for all works properly carried out by you. You may also submit any invoice to SICP by post within 28 days of the work being undertaken; however, if you are

(i) VAT registered and/or

(ii) provide replacement as well as repair services and do not submit your invoices electronically, you will be charged a £5.00 administrative fee per invoice submitted. Postal entries should be submitted along with a copy of the job sheet signed by the policyholder to:

Glasscare Limited
PO Box 5529
Brentwood
CM13 3XJ

Please note that we reserve the right, in our absolute discretion, to instruct Glasscare Limited to audit your jobs at any time in order to verify the accuracy of information submitted by you. In the event we discover a discrepancy, we reserve the right to either delay payment or refuse payment until such time as we are fully satisfied the relevant jobs have been completed in an appropriate manner and/or that we have been charged accurately for works carried out.

Signed job sheets for electronically submitted invoices and purchase invoices or other such evidence of purchase as required by us and or Glasscare must be retained by you for audit purposes for not less than 7 years. You agree to provide additional copies to us directly, if required for audit purposes, and acknowledge that you will comply with any such request within 14 days of such request. Failure to do so will result in you being charged a £20.00 administrative fee to cover the costs of requesting and processing any job sheets previously requested but not provided within such 14 day period. Failure to provide a signed job sheet may also result in monies settled being reclaimed.

Invoices submitted via any organisation or network should also have the name or branch of the company which carried out the work clearly identified on the invoice and a signed job sheet attached. Such organisation or network will also be responsible for supplying copies of signed job sheets within the above timescales if submitted electronically. Invoices should include the name and address and contact number of the policyholder.

4. Dealer/Special Parts (prices not shown on the Glasscare system): Please be aware that should you need to fit a dealer/special part you must call the helpline on +44 (0) 20 8997 1221 or email priceenquiry@sicp.co.uk, and you will be given a price based on the retail price of the dealer/special part and a temporary authorisation number. This job will then need to be processed manually by SICP. You must submit not only your invoice, but also the signed job sheet and a copy of the purchase invoice. Failure to do so will result in the invoice not being processed. Any rights arising from this agreement shall vest in you personally and there shall be a prohibition on assignment of your rights under this agreement.

5. You shall be paid for works properly carried out, subject to clause 3, via BACS within 35 days of such invoice amount appearing on your online statement. If you prefer to be paid by cheque you will be charged a £5.00 administrative fee for each cheque issued. For the avoidance of doubt, it is hereby agreed that in the event that your invoice is for an amount in excess of the SICP maximum price, you will be paid in accordance with that SICP maximum price and you must issue a credit note in respect of the difference (if any) between the two figures. Any query or dispute concerning amounts owed by Glasscare to you must be made within 30 days of your receipt of such payment by reference to the applicable online statement. Failure to do so will result in Glasscare having to perform a manual reconciliation,

6. All work undertaken by you for our policyholders that forms the subject of a claim under an insurance policy issued by us will be carried out subject to and in accordance with the terms of this agreement. For the avoidance of doubt it is hereby agreed that in the event that you invoice a policyholder direct in disregard of the direct billing instructions as outlined and receive payment from the policyholder in excess of the SICP maximum price, such payment shall be subject to adjustment to conform to the maximum amount payable under this agreement and you shall issue a credit note and make a refund to the policyholder.

7. Please note that the transference of your rights to receive any payment hereunder to any third party (including but not limited to Companies offering factoring services) without our written consent is prohibited.

8. Online Statements: Your invoice will normally appear on your online statement within seven days of our having received such invoice. If it has not appeared within 14 days please contact info@sicp.co.uk.

9. All rejected and settled invoices will be removed from your online statement after 3 months. Should reconciliation of these invoices be required after three months, Glasscare would have to perform this manually for which you will be charged a £5.00 administrative fee per invoice up to a maximum of £50.00 per reconciliation.

10 If any dispute arises in connection with these terms and conditions, the parties will attempt to settle it by mediation in accordance with the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR) Model Mediation Procedure. Unless otherwise agreed between the parties, the mediator will be nominated by CEDR. To initiate the mediation a party must give notice in writing (“ADR notice”) to the other party to the dispute requesting mediation. A copy of the request should be sent to CEDR.

11. These terms and conditions are governed by English Law.

12. With effect from 14 days after the date of this letter, we shall only accept formal direct billing upon and subject to the terms and conditions set out above. The above terms and conditions now constitute the agreed direct billing terms between our two companies.