Practice Policies
Practice Terms & Conditions
Clients and staff at Pear Tree Vets work together effectively so that you, your pet and all of our patients receive the best possible care.
To do that, clients of our practice must agree to our practice policies, terms and conditions. If you register as a client with us and use our services, you are agreeing to abide by these conditions. We recommend that you consider printing and retaining a copy for future reference. If you have any queries regarding our terms and condition, then please contact us at hello@peartreevets.co.uk.
Terms
Pear Tree Vets is registered in England and Wales with company number 15555731, whose registered office is at Kings Lodge, London Road, West Kindsdown, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN15 6AR.
We are contactable via telephone, email or post - please find details at www.peartreevets.co.uk/contact-us.
We are able to contact you via telephone, email or post, using the details that you provided to us when you registered as a client with us.
In order to enable us to carry out appropriate treatments for your pet, we will require information from you. If this information is not provided within a reasonable time frame, then we will not be held liable for any delays in carrying out veterinary services, or injury or death of an animal as a result of this information not being provided.
Our Veterinary Services
Pear Tree Vets is registered with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS), and all of our Veterinary Surgeons and our Veterinary Nurses are suitably qualified and subject to the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct in accordance with the Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966.
Our opening times are visible on our website.
Consultations are available by appointment; appointments can be booked using our online booking portal or over the telephone.
We reserve the right to ask for a deposit in the case of repeatedly missed appointments. Please do make us aware as soon as possible if you know that you cannot make your scheduled appointment.
Veterinary services will be provided by a suitably trained or qualified member of staff, and sometimes this may include trainees working under direct supervison or a suitably trained or qualified member of staff.
During our normal business hours, we will provide veterinary services to you. Outside of our regular business hours, emergency services will be provided to you by our dedicated out-of-hours (OOH) provider. By registering with Pear Tree Vets and requesting our veterinary services, you accept that your pets may need to be seen by the vets at our OOH provider outside of business hours.
Our veterinary services will ordinarily be provided to you at our premises in Lillington. We may also provide veterinary services to you at other locations, such as your home. You must comply with any health and safety instructions given to you at any premises that we use, and you are responsible for any belongings left at any of these premises. Where we provide veterinary services to you in your home, you are responsible for making sure that the premises are safe and accessible by our staff. Home visits do incur additional costs, and you will be provided with an estimate of fees at the time of booking a home visit. We cannot guarantee to be able to provide home visits, but will always endeavour to do so where possible and appropriate.
You are responsible for making and attending appointments, via telephone or our online booking system. We cannot guarantee that appointments will be available at your desired time. We reserve the right to refuse treatment if you arrive without an appointment, or if you arrive late for your prebooked appointment.
Estimates may be provided verbally or in writing. All estimates are approximate, and the final fee may be higher or lower, due to the possibility of complications and differing response to treatments. We will always endeavour to keep you updated if the expected costs change during the course of treatment.
You may obtain prescription only medications (POM-Vs) from Pear Tree Vets, or you may ask for a written prescription to be provided, and then use this written prescription to obtain medications from another veterinary surgery or a pharmacy. Animals must be under our care in order for us to prescribe POM-Vs for them. Our governing body, the RCVS, defines "under our care" as having been recently physically examined. In some cases where immediate treatment is necessary, a written prescription might not be appropriate. A fee will be charged for a written prescription. Animals which need repeat prescriptions for ongoing medications will require examinations periodically, and the duration depends on the case in question. Usually, the maximum time between examinations is 6 months. All re-examinations incur a charge.
We are unable to refund or exchange any unused medication once it has left the premises.
In certain circumstances, where a suitable alternative is not available, we may use or prescribe medication which is not licensed for veterinary use. We may ask you to sign an "off license consent form" when this is required.
Consent
During an initial consultation, we will normally agree a treatment plan, and wherever possible we will obtain your consent before carrying out any procedure or treatment. You will be required to sign a "consent form" for this purpose. In exceptional circumstances, where deemed necessary by veterinary staff, we are authorised to take all steps neeed in order to ensure the welfare of your pet, and you are responsible for any costs incurred in taking such steps, whether or not your prior consent has been obtained. We will provide you with full details of treatment provided as soon as it is reasonably possible.
We can accept and rely on insturctions and information given to us by your representatives, for example, a family member, pet sitter or kennels presenting your pet to us. We reserve the right to refuse instruction from them, for example if they are under 18 years of ages, or if we resonably believe that they are not authorised to represent you. We may require proof that they are authorised to represent you. You can email us to let us know who is authorised (or not authorised) to represent you should you wish.
Second Opinions, Records and Insurance
You are free at all times, at your own cost, to seek or request a second opinion concerning any veterinary services that we have provided.
We will not be responsible for any delays outside of our control, but we will always contact you as soon as possible to let oyu know, and take steps to minimise any further delays.
Your animal's medical records, including x-rays, test results, and ultrasound images, are our property. You may request a copy of your animal's medical records to be sent to another veterinary service provider by emailing or phoning us. We will process your request in a reasonable period of time. We may request that you pay any outstanding fees to us before doing so.
We do not provide pet insurance; you are responsible for arranging this, and we recommend that our clients take out appropriate insurance cover for their pets with a reputable insurance provider.
Our Staff, Clients and Animals
We have a zero tolerance policy against offensive, violent or aggressive behaviour.
We reserve the right to decline to provide veterinary services, to ask you to leave the premises, and to terminate our contract with you if you, or any person connected with you, engage in such behaviour (whether in our practice, on the phone, via email or via social media sites).
You can end your contract with us at any time. When your contract ends, you are responsible for collecting your animal from us, and for paying any outstanding bills. We recommend that you register your pet with another veterinary practice from the date your contract with us ends, and we are not responsible for arranging this for you. If you wish to end your contract with us, then please do let us know via email or post.
We may end the contract with you if you break any terms of the contract, if you do not make payment to us within 7 days of us reminding you that payment is due, or if you fail to provide information necessary for us to provide veterinary services in a reasonable timescale of us requesting such information. We may end the contract for other reasons, and will under these circumstances provide 30 days notice.
Payment
Veterinary practices provide private healthcare, and professional fees vary according to the case and the level of treatment required. All charges are subject to VAT at the current rate (20%). A full itemised invoice will be provided for any transaction made with us.
If your pet is hospitalised with us for a period fo time, you will be updated on costs incurred at least every 24 hours.
Payment is excpected at the time of treatment, or at the time of discharge of your pet.
We may, at our discretion, require you to pay part of pay the whole of the estimated service costs in advance.
Where you have a valid insurance policy, we may at our discretion agree to make a claim for payment directly to your insurance policy. We may charge a fee for completing, submitting and/or managing an insurance claim on your behalf. You agree to pay us on request for that fee, and any amounts that the insurance company do not pay within 30 days of the invoice being issues to you.
Payment is accepted via cash, debit or credit card. We are unable to accept cheques.
We may take further action to recover overdue payments. We may refer overdue accounts to our debt collection agency for recovery. Additional charges in connection to collecting outstanding balances will be added to your bill, including but not limited to administraion costs and debt collection agency fees.
We may refuse to supply further veterinary services to you until all outstanding bills are paid.
If you are unable to pay for the veterinary services provided by us, we are only obliged to fulfill our minimum legal responsibilites and professional regulatory obligations in respect of the animals under our care.
Liability
If we fail to comply with these terms, we are responsible for any foreseeable loss or damage you suffer as a result of our breach or failing to use reasonable care and skill. We are not responsible for any loss or damage that is not foreseeable.
We supply products to you for domestic and private use only, and are not liable for business losses. Our website and promotional / social media material is for general information purposes only and does not constitute advice. We endeavour to provide accurate and true information at the time of writing, however we can give no guarantee or assurance regarding the accuracy of any content. If you are unsure, then please contact us.
Client Confidentiality
In normal circumstances, we will not disclose any information about a client, or their pet(s) without prior consent. Full details on the data we collect and how it is used can be found in our privacy policy at www.peartreevets.co.uk/privacy-notice.
We may occassionally share anonymised data with reserach groups and institutions as part of our ongoing commitment to progression in the veterinary profession.
Phone calls may be recorded for training and monitoring purposes.
CCTV recording is used at Pear Tree Vets for the safety of our staff, clients and patients. Recordings will be kept for 30 days.
Complaints
We may make changes to these terms. We recommend that you check them each time you use our website to ensure that you understand the terms that apply at that time.
These terms were most recently updated on 23rd May 2024.
Complaints Policy
At Pear Tree Vets, we always strive to provide you with the best possible service, as we wish to ensure the health and welfare of pets entrusted to our care as per our professional code of conduct.
Feedback is encouraged to ensure that we can make improvements where necessary, and the sooner we are made aware of an issue the sooner we can address it.
Ways to contact us with feedback:
Face to face – please inform the vet or nurse in charge of your pet’s care during your visit if you have any concerns. We will always be happy to help. Please remember that we are all doing our best, and abusive behaviour will never be tolerated.
Phone – 01926 674060
Email – hello@peartreevets.co.uk
Write to us - Pear Tree Vets, 115 Cubbington Road, Lillington, Leamington Spa, CV32 7AT.
If you wish to make a complaint, please ensure that you provide your name, address and preferred method and time of contact/reply. Please also include your pet’s name, date on which you last attended the practice, a summary of your concerns, and any team members involved if you know their names. All communications will be treated with confidentiality. We will respond as soon as we can, and always within 14 working days. This allows us time to fully investigate and speak to staff members involved in the case.
If you are not satisfied with the outcome of our internal investigations, you can contact relevant external bodies such as the Veterinary Client Mediation Service (https://www.vetmediation.co.uk/clients/) or the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (https://animalowners.rcvs.org.uk/concerns).
Privacy Policy
Pear Tree Vets is an independent business owned by Kathryn Wain and Aisling Moore. Pear Tree Vets is a limited company registered in England and Wales with company number 15555731, whose registered office is at Kings Lodge, London Road, West Kingsdown, Sevenoaks, Kent, TN15 6AR, and is the Data Controller.
When you register with Pear Tree Vets, contact us by email, telephone or in writing we will collect and process personal information (“Personal Information”) about you.
We understand the importance of looking after the Personal Information that you provide, and this notice (“Privacy Notice”) sets out what Personal Information we collect, why we need to collect it, how we will use it and how long we will store it for.
We will keep our privacy policy under regular review and we publish any updates on this website. This privacy policy was last updated on 2nd May 2024.
How We Will Use Your Personal Information
We will process your Personal Information in so far as it is necessary for the performance of our contract with you to provide veterinary services. This will involve using your Personal Information to provide you with our products and services and to send you information related to the services we provide to you including appointment and vaccination reminders (“Service Communications”). You can choose how you would like to receive these communications by post, email or SMS. Please call or email our Customer Service team if you would like to change how you receive Service Communications.
What Personal Information Do We Collect and Why?
Name - So that We can identify You and personalise our communications with You.
Address - So that We can identify You, register your animal with your chosen practice, send reminders and anniversary notifications, correspondence and information about our services directly to you and send information about local animal health issues.
Email address - So that we can contact you about your Animal, send reminders about your appointments, vaccinations, flea or worming treatments or correspondence about our service and animal health issues. To send Pet Health Plan anniversary notifications and payment failure notifications.
Mobile number - So that we can contact you about your Animal, send reminders about your appointments, vaccinations, flea or worming treatments and or correspondence about our service and animal health issues. So we can contact you about your Pet Health Plan membership.
Telephone number - So that we can contact you about your Animal and your Pet Health Plan membership.
Bank, debit or credit card details - So that we can receive your monthly Pet Health Plan payments or pay veterinary fees.
Please remember to let our team know if any of the above information changes as soon as possible so that we have up to date records. Our staff will ask you to confirm your records are up to date on a regular basis.
Marketing
In addition to our contractual services, we would like to process your Personal Information with your consent to send you information about other products and services available from the Practice. You can change your mind at any time and unsubscribe or subscribe by talking to staff in our practice or by following the links on any marketing emails you receive.
We use Google for marketing purposes and you can find their privacy policy here.
Data Retention
We will keep your Personal Information for as long as you are a client of our Practice and thereafter for as long as any legal claim may be made against the Practice or our colleagues and for as long as is required to comply with our legal and regulatory requirements including to the HMRC and RCVS.
Sharing Your Information
We are required to share your Personal Information in certain circumstances to ensure that we are able to provide you with services, obtain payment or correspond with your insurance provider. In each case we will only share the data necessary for the purpose and it will only be in relation to the specified purpose. Each third party is required to have in place comparable data security measures and to be fully compliant with the terms of the General Data Protection Regulations.
Who Do We Share Information With and Why?
Referral practices
When we refer an animal to a referral hospital or specialist, we need to share relevant information to arrange appointments, tests, treatments and services.
We may share:
Your name.
Your address.
Your email address.
Mobile number.
Telephone number.
Laboratories and Animal Crematoria
So that we can arrange tests, treatments and services and obtain results on your behalf.
We may share:
Your name.
Your address.
Your insurer
So that we can obtain permission to perform certain investigations and treatments at their expense. To arrange payment for investigations and treatments provided.
We may share:
Insurance policy number.
Your name.
Your address.
Banks and payment service providers
So that we can deal with payments for the appointments, services, treatments and goods provided. To make refunds.
We may share:
Your name.
Your account details.
Your address.
Credit reference and fraud prevention agencies
We may share your personal information with and obtain information about you from credit reference agencies or fraud prevention agencies.
We may share:
Your name.
Your address.
Debt collection agencies
If you fall behind with payments for the services we provide, we may engage a debt collection agency to recover the debt on our behalf.
We may share:
Your name.
Your account details.
Your address.
Email providers, printers and mailing houses
So that we can send you reminders, administrative information relating to the way we provide services to you, information about animal health issues relevant to you and marketing communications if you have consented to receiving them.
We may share:
Your name.
Your address.
Your email address.
Law enforcement agencies
If we receive a request in writing from a law enforcement agency, we may be required to provide your personal information.
We may share:
Your name.
Your address.
Your email address.
Mobile number.
Telephone number.
Location information.
Bank, debit or credit card details.
Insurance policy number.
Moving practice
If you decide to move to a new practice we will provide a copy of your animals’ records to the new practice when requested. This is part of our professional conduct obligations from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
We may share:
Your name.
Your address.
Your email address.
Mobile number.
Telephone number.
As set out above, we will not sell, lease or transfer your personal information to any other person or company without your prior consent.
Keeping Your Data Secure
We recognise the importance of keeping your personal data safe and we have in place security measures and policies to prevent personal data from being lost, used or accessed without our permission. We limit access to your Personal Information to those who have a genuine business need to know it. Those processing your information will do so only in an authorised manner and are subject to a duty of confidentiality.
We also have procedures in place to deal with any suspected data security breach. We will notify you and any applicable regulator of a suspected data security breach where we are legally required to do so.
Your Rights
The General Data Protection Regulation grants all data subjects the following rights without charge.
These include the right to:
fair processing of information and transparency over how we use your use Personal Information
access your Personal Information and to certain other supplementary information that this Privacy Notice is already designed to address
require us to correct any mistakes in your information which we hold
require the erasure of Personal Information concerning you in certain situations
receive the Personal Information concerning you which you have provided to us, in a structured, commonly used and machine-readable format and have the right to transmit those data to a third party in certain situations
object at any time to processing of Personal Information concerning you for direct marketing
object to decisions being taken by automated means which produce legal effects concerning you or similarly significantly affect you
object in certain other situations to our continued processing of your Personal Information
otherwise, restrict our processing of your Personal Information in certain circumstances
For further information on each of those rights, including the circumstances in which they apply, see the Guidance from the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) on individuals’ rights under the General Data Protection Regulation.
If you would like to exercise any of your rights, please contact a member of the Pear Tree Vets team. In order for us to deal with your request efficiently, please provide:
sufficient information to allow us to identify you
evidence of your identity and your address (for example, a copy of your driving licence or
passport)
as much information about your request including, if applicable, dates, specific documents or animal names.
How To Contact Us
Please contact us if you have any questions about our privacy policy or the information we hold about you.
By email hello@peartreevets.co.uk
Or write to us at Pear Tree Vets, 115 Cubbington Road, Lillington, Leamington Spa, CV32 7AT.
Brucella Policy
Background of Brucella in the UK
Brucellosis, caused by the Brucella canis bacteria, is an infection of increasing concern in the United Kingdom. While not naturally occurring in the UK, the disease is becoming more prevalent due to the importation of dogs from Europe. Brucellosis is zoonotic, meaning it can be transmitted from dogs to humans, and is recognized by DEFRA/APHA as a reportable disease and a public health issue.
Pear Tree Vets Protocol for Handling Imported Dogs & Dogs Known to Have Brucella canis
Veterinary staff are at a higher risk of contracting Brucellosis than dog owners. To safeguard our team’s health, we request that all clients with dogs imported from Europe schedule a blood test. The cost is £100.12, including VAT, covering two tests as recommended by APHA to enhance accuracy. If testing is declined, treatment will continue, but the dog will be managed as if it tested positive (refer to protocol below).
If a Positive Dog is Identified:
- A discussion regarding euthanasia will be initiated, following APHA guidance, though we fully respect your decision.
- Veterinary care will NOT be withheld from a Brucella positive dog.
- Neutering is strongly recommended if not already performed.
- Testing of all other household dogs is advised.
- Detailed discussions on personal and household protection to prevent infection spread will be conducted.
Handling Positive or Untested Dogs in the Clinic:
- We respect our team members' decisions on handling positive or untested dogs. This may affect the flexibility of appointment and surgery scheduling.
- Positive or untested dogs will be treated in specific areas of the clinic where bleach disinfection is possible, excluding reception, waiting areas, and consultation rooms.
- Staff handling these dogs will wear personal protective equipment (PPE), including gloves as a minimum.
- When hospitalized for the day, such dogs will be placed in the isolation ward, ensuring they are not in the same room with other dogs.
- Extended hospitalizations will be addressed individually.