Terms and Conditions
SG Interpreting Ltd
Our Terms and Conditions for our Interpreting Service
1 Definitions
‘Interpreter’ means the person who interprets spoken or signed language into another language or languages.
‘Interpreting’ means the act of taking one or more spoken or signed languages and conveying it into a different spoken or signed languages and vice versa.
‘Speaker’ means the person making the original spoken or signed communication.
‘Client’ means the party or intermediary engaging the services of the Interpreter and having responsibility for the Interpreter(s) remuneration.
‘Assignment’ means the time period booked by the client and the remuneration when the interpretation carries out the interpreting.
‘Circumstances’ means any circumstances beyond the control of the Interpreter(s) including Acts of God and Force Majeuer.
2 Services Provided
2.1 The services provided by the Interpreter(s) shall comprise only all those services agreed and specified in the written contract between the Interpreter(s) and the Client.
2.2 Any additional services subsequently required by the Client to be expressly agreed in writing between the Interpreter(s) and the Client.
3 Contracts
3.1 All contracts made between the Client and the Interpreter(s) are deemed to include these Terms and Conditions and any subsequent variations thereof agreed in writing between them.
3.2 Where the Interpreter(s) is/are commissioned to undertake an assignment and there is no time for a detailed written contract to be made, an oral contract will be made and these Terms and Conditions will be deemed to be included therein.
3.3 The Client shall be wholly responsible for remunerating the Interpreter(s) for their services and for any agreed expenses which the Interpreter(s) has/have incurred in connection with the assignment, unless cancellation fees apply as set out in Clause 9 hereof.
4 Teams
4.1 Where an assignment requires continuous interpreting for an hour or more the Interpreter shall be permitted to take breaks every 30 minutes of at least 15 minutes.
4.2 Exceptionally, the Interpreter alone, can provide interpreting services where they expressly and in writing deem the Terms and Conditions to be acceptable to them.
4.3 If more than 2 Interpreters are engaged for an assignment, the Interpreter shall be offered first choice to be designated as Team Leader.
Where such a team is engaged, the Interpreter is to be consulted as to their choice of team members, and their preference will be paramount.
4.4 The Team Leader shall be responsible for organising the services of the team including all working conditions, hours of work, appropriate breaks and liaison with the client. The Team Leader is to receive added remuneration for this role over and above their normal remuneration for their interpreting services.
5 Working Hours
5.1 Where the assignment lasts for a full day, the Interpreter(s) shall be permitted to take a meal break of at least 1 hour in the middle of the day unless agreed otherwise.
5.2 No interpreting demands or other demands shall be made on the Interpreter(s) during their rest periods.
5.3 If in the course of an assignment it is realised that the Interpreter(s) services will be required for longer than the period originally contracted, the Interpreter(s) must be consulted as to their agreement or otherwise to continuing on that or on another date, and as to renumeration and terms and conditions for the proposed additional period.
Any agreement made in respect of an additional period(s) to be expressly recorded in writing prior to continuance.
5.4 If the Interpreter(s) consents to the above, additional fees shall be paid in accordance with Section 7 below.
6 Quotations for Fees
6.1 Fees quoted by the Interpreter(s) either in respect of the interpreters own services or on behalf of the Team of which the interpreter is the Team Leader shall be based on the information supplied by the Client about the assignment and shall be valid for acceptance for the period specified by the Interpreter.
6.2 Any of the Interpreter(s) oral quotations to the Client to be expressly confirmed by the Interpreter(s) as soon as possible in writing.
7 Fees and Expenses
7.1 All of the Interpreter(s) fees and expenses to be paid in full no later than 28 days of receipt of the Interpreter(s) invoice, unless an alternative arrangement has been made between the Interpreter(s) and the Client.
7.2 Daily interest to be charged on all invoices which remain unpaid after the expiry of the 28 days set down in 7.1 above. Daily interest to be charged at the rate of above the Bank of England current base rate.
7.3 The Interpreter(s) reserves the right to charge travel time at the same rate as interpreting time otherwise travel time to be charged as set out in Clause 7.4 below.
7.4 Where travel time taken together with interpreting time involves a total of more than 3 hours, travel time will accordingly be remunerated at 50% of the agreed hourly rate of interpreting time.
7.5 A higher rate for working unsociable hours to be agreed between the Interpreter(s) and the Client in advance for assignments between the hours of 18:00hrs and 08.00hrs; weekends and public holidays to be charged at time and a half.
8 Travel, Accommodation and Subsistence
8.1 Responsibility for arrangements and payment for accommodation, travel and subsistence relating to an assignment, to be agreed in writing between the Interpreter(s) and the Client prior to the Interpreter(s) commencing any such assignment.
8.2 The said arrangements to ensure that the Interpreter(s) arrives in good time prior to the start of the booking and is not obliged to leave before the end of the said booking.
8.3 Any such arrangement to ensure the Interpreter(s) is sufficiently rested prior to the start of the booking so to be able to interpret to the highest standard.
8.4 Where it is agreed where it is the Interpreter(s) responsibility to make the said arrangements, the Interpreter(s) shall seek to obtain any travel, accommodation and subsistence at a reasonable cost, and of a standard that ensures the satisfactory performance of the assignment. Any such expenditure by the Interpreter(s) to be reimbursed by the Client within in 28 days of receipt of the Interpreter(s) invoice and unless otherwise agreed.
9 Cancellation
9.1 When an assignment is cancelled wholly or in part for no matter what reason by the Client, the Client shall be liable to pay a cancellation fee to the Interpreter(s) in accordance with Clause 9.4.
9.2 All reasonable expenditure incurred in accordance with the contract by the Interpreter(s) on travel, accommodation and subsistence shall also be reimbursed by the Client.
9.3 Any unavoidable and reasonable expenditure incurred by the Interpreter(s) as a result of the said variation or cancellation shall also be reimbursed by the client.
9.4 All cancellation fees to be agreed between the Interpeter(s) and the Client in writing and to be charged on a sliding scale as follows, where the the cancellation is:
7 days or less before the start date – 100%
8-14 days – 50%
15 or more days – 0%
10 Substitution of Interpreters
10.1 Substitution of the Interpreter(s) to occur in the following circumstances;
Request for Substitution by the Interpreter(s):
Illness
Fatigue
Lack of confidence re particular assignment
Potential or realistic conflict of interest for any of the parties involved
Assignment is likely to overrun the agreed times
The assignment is different to what was originally thought
10.2 The substitute to negotiate their own Terms and Conditions with the Client.
10.3 The Client to notify all parties of the substitution and the name of the substitutes(s) as soon as possible once they are known.
11 Unavoidable Circumstances
11.1 The Interpreter(s) to notify the Client at the earliest opportunity, if the Interpreter(s) is /are unable to attend the assignment or any part thereof for no matter what reason.
12 Information and Materials for Preparation
12.1 The Client to provide the Interpreter(s) with all relevant information and materials so that the Interpreter(s) can prepare for the assignment as thoroughly as possible. All such information and materials to be provided at the earliest opportunity so that the Interpreter(s) can deliver a high quality service.
12.2 The Client to advise the Interpreter(s) why such information and materials cannot be provided.
12.3 In the event that such information and materials cannot be provided the the Interpreter(s) the Client to make all reasonable effort to arrange a briefing appointment for the Interpreter(s) and the Interpreter(s) attendance time at the said appointment, to be paid at the same rate as interpreting time. Any reasonable travel, accommodation and subsistence expenses incurred by the Interpreter(s) to attend that appointment to be similarly be reimbursed by the Client.
12.4 Informant and materials to assist the Interpreter(s) to prepare shall be specified in writing in the contract between the Interpreter(s) and the Client. All and any information and materials to be be provided not less than 24 hours prior to the assignment. Unless exceptionally there is no alternative.
12.5 The Interpreter(s) shall not breach confidentially by disclosing to any third party whatsoever any of the information contained in the clients information and materials provided for preparation purposes.
13 Working Conditions for Platform Events
13.1 For BSL to English interpretation, the Client is to ensure that speakers are well lit and in clear sight of the Interpreter or made visible by means of an image providing a clear and detailed view of the speaker’s face and body movements sufficient for the Interpreter(s) requirements. This may require the provision of audio/visual equipment, which shall include a microphone, receiver pack and monitor speaker, for the sole use of the Interpreter(s).
13.2 For English to BSL interpretation the Client is to ensure that the Interpreter(s) is positioned so that they are sufficiently near to the speak to be able to hear and can be clearly seen by the audience. This may require the provision of additional lighting and audio equipment in the form of a monitor speaker, for the sole use of the Interpreter(s). If this is not possible, the Client shall ensure that the speaker’s voice or film/video sound track is in any case clearly conveyed directly to the Interpreter(s) without any noise interference.
14 Recordings
14.1 No recording of the Interpreter(s) to be made without the Interpreter(s) prior written consent. Except where any such recording occurs within the Criminal Justice System.
14.2 Recordings intended for broadcast and/or other types of publication to attract royalties and other fees related to the use of the interpreter(s) image and or voice in public.
14.3 The Interpreter(s) and the Client to record in writing their agreement as to who owns the copyright in any such recording(s).
15 Complaints and disputes
15.1 Any complaint relating to the provision of the Interpreter(s) services to be notified to the Interpreter(s) by the Client immediately there is an issue and in any event not later than one month from the final day of the assignment or other incident giving rise to the said complaint.
15.2 Where the Interpreter(s) are unable to resolve their dispute amicably the dispute can be referred to the National Register of Communication Professionals working with Deaf and Deafblind People (NRCPD).
15.3 If either mediation arranged by the NRCPD or the NRCPD decision does not resolve the complaint to the satisfaction of the parties, then either or any of the parties have the option to refer the matter to Court.
16 Responsibility and Liability
16.1 The Interpreter(s) shall endeavour to interpret to the highest standards attainable in the circumstances.
17 Restraint of Trade
17.1 The Interpreter(s) shall not take advantage of any contact(s) made due to the interpreting assignment(s) to solicit potential clients for work for a period of 6 months or any such alternative to be agreed with the Client without the Client(s) written consent unless; the Client has failed to pay the Interpreter(s) for no matter what reason.
18 Applicability and Integrity
These terms and conditions can be varied by the Interpreter(s) in conjunction with the Client where required in relation to specific assignments. All such variations to be confirmed in writing between the Interpreter(s) and the Client.
18.2 These Terms and Conditions are expressly deemed to be incorporated into all of the Interpreter(s) contract with the Client.
18.3 In any event these Terms and Conditions shall be construed in accordance with English law.