Terms and Conditions of Purchase
Important Customer Information
Please find below information relating to the terms and conditions which are applicable when you enter into a contract with Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd. These will apply when an order has been placed even if only a deposit has been made within a store. You should check the details of your order carefully including these terms and conditions and if you have any queries please raise these immediately with a sales representative. Please note that any revisions to your order may incur further costs. Your rights: it is our responsibility to supply you with goods and services which meet your consumer rights. If you have any concerns that we have not met our legal obligations, please contact us via the “contact” page on our website.
If you are unclear about your rights or require advice, you can contact Citizens Advice Consumer Service on 0808 223 1133 or www.citizensadvice.org.uk
Where you have placed an order in store and an estimate of the price has been provided but the final price is determined by a home visit there may be a fluctuation in price. If the price, following the home visit, is lower than the estimate, your contract will reflect the lower price. If the price is higher by 15% or more you will be able to cancel the order and receive a refund of any monies you have paid, provided you have not already instructed us to proceed with the order.
You are responsible for all measurements you give us, except where Carpets 4 Less Southern have completed a home visit and surveyed the relevant parts of the property and supplied or confirmed measurements.
Promotional Offers
From time to time we may sell our products subject to a promotional offer. Each promotional offer will have its own terms and conditions. Please ask in store for details.
Cancellation and refunds
In store purchases
This order is a legally binding contract even if you have only paid a deposit. Cancellation of an order is not normally accepted unless we are in breach of contract, in which case you have the right to cancel. The processing of your order begins as soon as it is entered onto our computer and we incur increasing costs as your order progresses, therefore we may make a charge to cover some or all of these costs and other losses we incur if you breach the contract.
In the home & online purchases (Cancellation Rights for Online and Home Purchases Only – this does not apply to in-store orders)
Consumers who buy online or at home where no in-store visit takes place, have a 14-day cooling off/cancellation period. Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd reserves the right to release the customer’s order to the manufacturer upon expiry of the 14-day period, if no cancellation request is received.
If the customer wishes the work to start before the 14-day cancellation period has finished, just let us know and we will start the order. It is important to note that if the customer requests the work to start within the 14 days, they do not waiver their right to cancel but if cancellation is received within this time, Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd reserves the right to request payment for any costs Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd has incurred prior to this point, up until the point cancellation is received.
If the installation is completed within the 14 days, you will no longer have the right to cancel, and full payment would be required.
If a refund becomes necessary, it will be made to the person named on the sales confirmation or invoice, but credit/debit card refunds can only be made to the same account of the original card used at the time of purchase.
Delivery and Installation
Please check that the goods you received are the ones you ordered. Check they are for the correct colour, size, and options selected, and that they are examined for apparent faults or damage at the time of delivery and before installation. If on inspection you have any doubts please contact the store as soon as reasonably possible.
All goods must be fully paid for before installation, delivery or collection can be made. If you are arranging for the installation via your own third party fitter, please ensure sufficient time is allowed for both the inspection of the goods to take place as well as any acclimatisation needs as per the manufacturer’s instructions.
In all cases genuine complaints will be dealt with in good faith, but your rights may be adversely affected if you do not contact us as soon as possible. All delivery and fitting dates are estimates and are given in good faith. Exact arrival and completion times cannot be guaranteed due to the nature of the work.
Introduction to Independent Fitter
Where Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd has been asked to make the arrangements for your flooring to be fitted, we agree to act as your agent for this service and a fitting arrangement service per m2 is chargeable. This includes: introduction to an independent flooring fitting specialist and arranging the installation of your purchase under a separate contractual agreement between you and them. It also includes monitoring fitting standards, arranging a pre-cut service to aid an efficient and speedy ‘at home installation’, and on the rare occasion of a complaint being raised regarding the fitting, Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd will manage the complaint between yourself and the fitter.
We retain full responsibility for the products Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd supplies and will act as intermediary between you and the deliverer/ installer should any liability arise from delivery and installation where Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd made the introduction to the fitter.
Fitting
Fitting is chargeable and payable to the fitter separate from your Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd contract and must be paid directly to the fitter on the day of installation.
Where carpets are to be fitted in the hall and stairs an additional fee is made to reflect the additional fitting work involved in these areas. These charges may be payable to the company or the contractor and are shown on your sales confirmation or invoice. The fees quoted are for the goods shown on the order only.
The independent fitters we use undertake to carry out their work with reasonable skill and care, but on rare occasions home decor may be marked or scuffed during the fitting process. New paintwork and wallpaper are especially vulnerable and should be allowed to dry fully. A minimum of 72 hours is recommended and when high gloss paint has been used, please allow 7 days. Neither we nor any fitter undertakes to carry out any redecoration, except where damage has been caused by that person’s negligence. It is the responsibility of the customer to make the fitter aware of any known hazards or issues which may affect their ability to complete the installation.
Additional paid services
Doors, kitchen kickboards and plinths may need to be trimmed to allow sufficient clearance. This is not considered to be part of the fitting work unless this was specifically agreed in advance. Fitters may need to remove doors to facilitate fitting and where necessary, leave them ready for you or your appointed carpenter to carry out the trimming and rehanging at a later date. Some doors, such as fire doors, may not be suitable for modification or need to be carried out by a door easing specialist.
Sub Floor Preparation
For a perfect finish, our products require a smooth, dry, clean and sound foundation. Our home consultant or estimator will not be able to ascertain if your subfloor requires extra preparatory work if your existing flooring is in situ at the time of the inspection. If we are arranging the installation of your flooring, our home consultant, estimator or the fitter may advise that some remedial work is needed such as smoothing compound or ply boarding before your new floor can be fitted. These additional costs are to be met by the customer. This may delay the original installation of your flooring whilst this work is undertaken. Uneven floorboards and surfaces, if left uncorrected by the customer, can affect the appearance of your new flooring.
In the majority of cases, the fitters will be able to assist to resolve the issue, but a fee may apply. It may, on the rare occasion, be necessary to involve the services of a specialist contractor. A quote which estimates the cost of subfloor preparation is provided within the installation service, however the subfloor may not be visible at the quotation stage. If, upon inspection by the fitter, more work is required and this is needed to ensure the flooring can be laid to the manufacturer’s specification and this is declined by the customer, the fitter will leave the flooring in the customer’s home. If the fitting service cannot be completed due to the works needed to correct subfloor issues, the customer is free to obtain quotations from other fitting contractors to install the flooring at their own risk. The contract with Carpets 4 Less Southern Ltd is deemed to have been concluded upon acceptance of the flooring and will be considered ‘supply only’.
Carpets
The samples we display in our stores are intended to give a general impression of the colour and pattern of the carpet. When fitted in a larger area some patterns and seemingly random blends of yarn can have an inherent striped effect, or additional patterns and colours which may not be obvious from the sample. Colours vary from batch to batch and exact matching between separate pieces (especially from multi-width rolls) cannot be guaranteed.
All carpets are cut at 10cm intervals with a minimum order length of 1 metre. All sizes are approximate and within a tolerance of plus or minus 1.25% in accordance with British Standard BS3655. If your room is close to the nominal width of the carpet, please allow for extra in case a join is required.
During transportation and storage, the pile may become flattened slightly and this will show as shaded bands across the pile or as a ‘pole mark’. These will disappear as the carpet settles into its new environment and the pile is flexed through regular use and vacuum cleaning. If the lines do not disappear within a three-week period, please contact the store.
Carpet is a soft, luxurious product and flattening of the pile will occur. Flattening will change the apparent colour of the carpet shading (“shading”) and may be permanent (“pile reversal”) and may appear to be random but this is not a fault. Areas where foot traffic twist and turns are especially prone to changes in appearance. High traffic areas such as in front of chairs, beside the bed and in doorways are relevant examples of where the deterioration of appearance may occur.
All carpets benefit from the use of good quality underlay. Re-using existing underlay may result in abnormal flattening of the pile.
We recommend the use of vacuum cleaners with rotating brushes on cut pile carpets and suction only for loop pile carpets. Deeper pile saxony carpets will require additional vacuuming. For, further information please consult our floor care guide.
Vinyls
All vinyl flooring is cut at 10cm intervals with a minimum order length of 1 metre. All sizes are approximate and within a tolerance of plus or minus 1.25% in accordance with British Standard BS3655. If your room is close to the nominal width of the vinyl please allow extra material. If you require the installation of your vinyl flooring below non-integrated appliances, please ensure these are removed from the room prior to the fitters arrival. For further information please consult our floor care guide.
Laminate Flooring, Luxury Vinyl Tile, Engineered Wood and Direct to Home products
Our in-store samples show only a small part of the overall design as this will have been taken from a larger piece. There may be a significant variation in the colour and design of your floor due to the random nature which occurs with wood and other natural materials, from which the design has been taken. We believe this enhances the natural look and overall appearance of our floors.
The supplier’s fitting and maintenance instructions should be carefully followed to prevent swelling of the joints or other expansion problems. Laminate and engineered wood flooring will be affected by moisture; wet mopping will likely damage the flooring beyond repair. For further information, please consult our floor care guide.
Whilst many of the products we sell are available to purchase in square metres, our luxury vinyl, laminate flooring and engineered wood products are purchased by the box. When estimating appropriate floor coverage for your installation, we will apply a percentage between 5-15% (rounded to the nearest box) to your order to allow for colour matching between boxes and wastage during fitting. In the case of a herringbone installation, this tolerance may be increased further based on the manufacturer’s recommendation. If a subsequent order is placed, we cannot promise this will be supplied from the same batch as that previously supplied.
Product Guarantees
We are responsible for ensuring that the goods we supply are of satisfactory quality, conform to the sample and are fit for the purpose for which they are sold. Certain products have additional guarantees provided by us or the manufacturer. Where they are provided by the manufacturer, we accept no responsibility for these additional warranties or guarantees. The length of our wear guarantee varies from floor to floor as each one is different.
All manufacturers’ wear guarantees do not relate to the appearance of the product but are specifically in relation to being ‘threadbare’. With reference to vinyl, laminate, LVT and engineered wood, over time the appearance of your flooring may deteriorate depending on your usage, demands and after care, but this will vary from home to home. Surface stains, scratches, abrasions, and marks are not covered by the wear guarantee. Whilst regular cleaning will help to keep your floor looking good, normal wear and tear is to be expected. Any damage which has occurred due to negligence, malice, removal, fire, water damage and similar events will void the warranty. Similarly, damage or marks which have appeared following the use of an unsuitable chemical product or improper cleaning method, are not covered by the warranty.
