Terms and Conditions

1 About Direct Carry

1.1 Direct Carry is the trading name of Michael Thomson, a sole trader. Our business address is 5 St John’s Lane, Farringdon, London EC1M 4BH. In these terms, ‘we’, ‘us’ and ‘our’ mean that proprietor trading as Direct Carry.

1.2 You can contact us at info@directcarry.co.uk or 0208 064 2664. Our website is https://www.directcarry.co.uk. Please send booking changes, cancellations and complaints by email where possible so that there is a written record. This does not prevent you giving notice by another legally valid method.

1.3 ‘You’ means the customer making the booking. A consumer is an individual acting wholly or mainly outside their trade, business, craft or profession. All other customers are business customers. References to a shipment include documents and other items that we expressly agree to carry.

2 Enquiries quotes and booking confirmation

2.1 Website routes, planner results and indicative prices are information to help you enquire. They do not reserve travel, confirm availability or create a booking. Sending an enquiry does not itself create a contract.

2.2 We will provide a written quote describing the shipment, service, collection and delivery arrangements, any expressly agreed deadline, price and payment requirements. Tell us before accepting if a deadline, declared value, handling requirement or possible consequence of delay is particularly important.

2.3 A contract is formed when you accept our quote and these terms, and we send you written confirmation that we accept the booking. Payment alone does not confirm acceptance. If we receive payment but cannot accept the booking, we will return it in full without undue delay.

2.4 We will provide these terms before you become bound and send the accepted quote and booking confirmation in a form you can keep, such as email. Specific arrangements expressly agreed in the confirmation apply alongside these terms. No agreement removes rights that the law does not allow us to exclude.

3 Service and shipment acceptance

3.1 We provide the courier service described in the confirmed booking with reasonable care and skill. Airport handling, hand carriage, road transport, collection, delivery and other steps are included only as specified. A route shown on the website does not establish that every shipment can use it.

3.2 We may use suitable transport providers or other service providers to carry out agreed parts of the service. This does not, by itself, release us from our obligations to you. Any material change to the agreed service will be explained and agreed with you where practicable.

3.3 Delivery of a document does not include legal advice, notarisation, legalisation, customs representation, filing or a guarantee that an authority will accept or act on it. Any additional service must be expressly included in the booking and capable of being lawfully provided.

4 Information packing and restricted items

4.1 Before booking, give us an accurate description of the contents, quantity, dimensions, weight, value, collection and delivery addresses, contact details and handling requirements. You must own the items or have authority to arrange their carriage. Tell us about changes before collection.

4.2 Unless packing is expressly included, provide packaging suitable for the agreed journey and the nature of the contents. We may ask to inspect the packaging or contents where reasonably necessary for acceptance, safety, security or legal requirements. An inspection does not remove our duty to exercise reasonable care or your responsibility for information you provide.

4.3 Do not tender illegal items or conceal hazardous or restricted contents. Direct Carry does not accept medical or laboratory consignments, including medicines, biological samples and infectious materials. Declare batteries, liquids, controlled goods, cash, valuables and any other item subject to transport or border restrictions before we quote. Declaration does not mean acceptance: we must expressly confirm that the shipment and route are suitable.

4.4 We may refuse or suspend carriage on reasonable safety, legal or material misdescription grounds. We will explain the issue where lawful and practicable, and agree lawful next steps. We will not sell or dispose of your property without a lawful basis. Keep copies of important documents where lawful and practical; this does not reduce our responsibility for originals entrusted to us.

5 Prices payment and additional costs

5.1 Your quote will state the currency, total price, what is included, and how any applicable taxes are treated. Any cost that cannot reasonably be calculated in advance must be identified, with its calculation method where possible. We will not describe a price as including a service or charge that is excluded from the booking.

5.2 New customers must pay in full before we commit to travel or incur the agreed travel costs. Credit is available only under a separate written agreement stating the amount and due date. The confirmation will explain any payment deadline that affects our ability to hold the proposed arrangements.

5.3 A requested change to the shipment, route, collection, recipient or timing may require a revised quote. We will explain any additional price and obtain your agreement before committing to the change. Additional waiting, storage, return or redelivery charges must be agreed or calculated on a basis disclosed before booking.

5.4 If unexpected costs arise, we will contact you with the reason and available options. We will not treat silence as approval for a discretionary additional service. Charges imposed by authorities are dealt with under clause 7. If urgent action is legally required or necessary to protect the shipment, we will take reasonable steps, keep a record and explain any cost; who must bear it depends on the booking and applicable law.

6 Collection delivery and timing

6.1 Have the agreed shipment ready at collection and arrange safe, lawful access. Supply a contact who can answer questions and a recipient authorised to accept delivery. Tell us about access restrictions, office opening hours, identification requirements or procedures at courts, embassies and other destinations.

6.2 Planner results and proposed journey times are estimates unless we expressly agree a particular commitment in the booking. We will identify collection and delivery dates, local times and any essential deadline clearly. A general timing qualification does not cancel an expressly agreed deadline or information that is legally binding on us.

6.3 Travel availability, disruption, security checks, border procedures and recipient availability can affect a journey. We will use reasonable care to plan and perform the agreed service, inform you of material problems as soon as reasonably practicable, and discuss realistic alternatives. A disruption does not automatically remove our responsibility for its consequences.

6.4 Delivery will be to the recipient or authorised receiving point agreed in the booking. We will provide the agreed evidence of handover where obtainable. A signature or delivery record does not, on its own, prove that contents were undamaged or remove a valid claim.

6.5 If collection or delivery cannot be completed, we will seek your instructions and take reasonable care of the shipment while it remains in our custody. Any return, storage or redelivery arrangements and charges must be handled fairly under clause 5.

7 Customs and official requirements

7.1 International shipments are subject to the rules applying to their contents, countries and transport method. Do not assume that hand carriage or the description ‘documents’ removes a declaration, permit, tax or other requirement.

7.2 The booking must identify who is responsible for the required declarations, licences and any customs representation, and who will pay duties, taxes and clearance charges. We do not act as your customs representative unless expressly agreed and lawfully authorised. You must supply accurate information and documents within your responsibility.

7.3 We cannot control decisions by customs, security agencies or other authorities. We remain responsible for our own failures under the contract and applicable law. You are not automatically responsible for every fine or cost associated with a shipment: any amount sought from you must have a lawful basis and reflect the relevant cause and responsibility.

8 Changes and cancellation by you

8.1 Contact us as soon as possible if you need to change or cancel. We will confirm what can be changed and explain the financial effect. Where your statutory consumer cancellation right applies, clause 9 takes priority over this clause.

8.2 Subject to clauses 8.5, 8.7 and 9, if you cancel a confirmed booking we will charge a cancellation administration fee of £100, plus time already used under clause 8.3 and expenses under clause 8.4. The £100 fee and £40 hourly rate include any applicable VAT and must be stated clearly in your quote before you accept. The administration fee covers processing the cancellation and will be reduced where necessary to reflect reasonable administration costs actually caused by it.

8.3 Time reasonably spent carrying out your confirmed booking before we receive cancellation will be charged at £40 per hour, calculated using actual minutes worked. This includes shipment assessment, route planning, travel arrangements, booking preparation, collection, waiting and travel already undertaken for the agreed service. We will keep an itemised record. Ordinary enquiries and quotation work before a booking is confirmed are not chargeable unless a separate paid service was expressly agreed beforehand.

8.4 Flights, other travel reservations and other reasonable expenses already paid or legally committed specifically for your accepted booking must be paid in full to the extent they cannot be recovered. These must be costs authorised by the booking or otherwise agreed with you. We will take reasonable steps to obtain available refunds and reduce avoidable loss. Refunds, usable credits, savings and other recoveries will be credited to you, including any received after cancellation.

8.5 We will not charge twice for the same time, work or expense. Work covered by the administration fee will not also be billed as time used. The combined charge must be reasonable and proportionate, and for a consumer must not exceed the amount lawfully recoverable for the loss caused by cancellation. We will provide an itemised calculation and reasonable supporting details on request.

8.6 Payments already received will be credited against the itemised cancellation charge. If a lawful balance remains payable, we will explain it in an invoice; if you have overpaid, we will refund the excess without undue delay, normally within 14 days after cancellation. Advance payment does not entitle us automatically to retain the whole price. We will also pass on any later recovery attributable to your booking.

8.7 No administration fee, time charge or other cancellation charge is payable under this clause where the law entitles you to cancel without it, including because of our breach. If a statutory consumer cancellation right applies, clause 9 determines what, if anything, may be charged; the administration fee does not apply. Cancellation by us is dealt with under clause 10.

9 Additional rights for private customers

9.1 A contract for the transport of goods for a specific date or period of performance is generally excluded from the statutory 14 day cancellation right under regulation 28(1)(h) of the Consumer Contracts Regulations 2013. Before you book, we will state whether this exception applies to your actual service and specify the relevant date or period. It does not remove your rights if the service is faulty or we breach the contract.

9.2 Where a statutory cancellation right does apply, you may cancel without giving a reason within 14 days after the day the contract is made, or within any longer period required by law. Tell us clearly that you wish to cancel using the contact details in clause 1. You may use the optional form below, but do not have to. Sending your cancellation before the period ends is sufficient.

9.3 If you want us to start during that cancellation period, we will first obtain your express request and provide the required information. If you then cancel, you will owe only the amount the law permits for the service supplied before you cancelled, proportionate to the full agreed service. There is no such charge where the required information or express request is missing. We will not use clause 8 to impose additional statutory cancellation charges.

9.4 Your statutory right ends on full performance during that period only where you expressly requested the early start and acknowledged beforehand that full performance would end the right. Booking an urgent service or making payment does not, by itself, supply that acknowledgement.

9.5 Where you exercise that right, we will refund payments due to you without undue delay and no later than 14 days after we are informed of your decision, less any lawful amount under clause 9.3. We will use your original payment method unless you expressly agree otherwise and will not charge a refund fee.

10 Problems or cancellation by Direct Carry

10.1 If we cannot provide the agreed service, we will explain promptly and discuss an alternative or cancellation. We will not substitute a materially different service or increase the agreed price without your agreement. If we cancel for reasons that are not your fault, we will refund the unperformed part of the service, together with any further amount required by law.

10.2 If you materially breach the booking, fail to pay as agreed, or tender a shipment we cannot lawfully or safely carry, we may suspend or cancel the affected service. Where appropriate, we will give you a reasonable opportunity to resolve the issue. Any deduction or additional charge must be justified under these terms and the law, rather than being an automatic forfeiture of your payment.

10.3 We will act reasonably to reduce avoidable loss and arrange the safe, lawful handling or return of a shipment in our custody. Nothing in this clause removes responsibility for our own breach, negligence or failure to take reasonable care.

11 Declared value and insurance

11.1 Goods in transit insurance is still being arranged. We cannot currently confirm shipment insurance cover. Do not assume that the price includes insurance for your items or for financial loss arising from delay, loss or damage.

11.2 Declaring a value does not itself arrange insurance, create an agreed compensation amount or guarantee that we can accept the shipment. If insurance is essential to your booking, do not proceed until suitable arrangements have been verified in writing. Any future cover must be described accurately, including its relevant limits, exclusions and conditions.

11.3 Insurance and our legal responsibility are separate matters. The absence of insurance, an insurer declining a claim or an insurance limit does not, by itself, remove or limit our liability to you.

12 Responsibility loss and damage

12.1 We are responsible for breaches of our obligations in accordance with applicable law. These terms do not set a fixed compensation cap, a limit based on the delivery charge or a limit tied to insurance proceeds.

12.2 Nothing in these terms excludes or limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any liability or remedy that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited.

12.3 For consumers, we remain responsible for providing the service with reasonable care and skill and for information that is legally binding on us. Your statutory remedies, including repeat performance or a price reduction where applicable, are preserved. Liability for foreseeable loss resulting from our breach is assessed under the law. We do not impose a blanket exclusion for delay or the loss of important documents.

12.4 For business customers, the availability and amount of compensation will depend on the contract and applicable law, including causation, foreseeability and reasonable mitigation. No separate industry trading conditions or numerical liability limits are incorporated by reference into these terms.

12.5 Mandatory carriage law may apply to a particular shipment or part of a journey and may affect liability and claim time limits. These terms do not override it or assume that one convention applies to every booking. Any route specific provisions we intend to rely on must be identified before booking, subject to any rules that apply automatically by law.

13 Reporting a problem and complaints

13.1 Please tell us about loss, damage, delay or another problem as soon as reasonably possible using the details in clause 1. Provide the booking reference, a description of the problem, relevant evidence and the remedy you seek. Keep damaged packaging and items where reasonably practical while the matter is investigated.

13.2 Prompt reporting helps us investigate and reduce further loss. This request does not create an arbitrary short deadline that extinguishes your rights. Any claim or court time limit imposed by applicable law still matters.

13.3 We will investigate complaints fairly, keep you informed and explain our response. If we cannot resolve a consumer complaint, we will provide any information about alternative dispute resolution required by law and state whether we are obliged or willing to use it. We do not claim membership of an unverified dispute resolution scheme.

14 Personal information and confidentiality

14.1 We use booking and contact information as described in our Privacy Policy at Privacy Policy. Please provide only information needed for the service and use an agreed suitable method for sending sensitive documents or personal information.

14.2 We will treat shipment information confidentially and disclose it only where reasonably needed to perform the service, with your authority, or as required or permitted by law. Lawful security or customs inspections may require disclosure or inspection of contents.

15 Changes to these terms and applicable law

15.1 Changes to our published terms apply to future bookings. They do not rewrite an existing booking without your agreement. If part of these terms cannot lawfully be enforced, the rest continues to apply so far as it can do so fairly and lawfully.

15.2 These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales. Business disputes are dealt with by the courts of England and Wales. For consumers, this does not remove mandatory protections of the law that applies to you or your right to bring proceedings in any court available to you under applicable law.

Optional consumer cancellation form

Complete and send this form only if you wish to cancel a contract for which the statutory cancellation right applies. You may instead send any other clear statement of your decision to cancel.

To Direct Carry, 5 St John’s Lane, Farringdon, London EC1M 4BH, info@directcarry.co.uk

I/We hereby give notice that I/We cancel my/our contract for the supply of the following service:

Service and booking reference: _______________________________________

Ordered on: _____________________________________________________

Name of consumer or consumers: _____________________________________

Address of consumer or consumers: ___________________________________

________________________________________________________________

Signature of consumer or consumers, only if sent on paper: _________________

Date: ___________________________________________________________

Delete ‘I’ or ‘We’ and ‘my’ or ‘our’ as appropriate.