Terms & Conditions
Sonovate Customer Service Level Agreement
1. Placements
What Sonovate does
Sonovate will aim to complete all placements within 24 hours of submission.
24hr completion is subject to Sonovate:
- being able to make contact with any new candidates or clients you have submitted as part of the placement.
- contracts being issued immediately upon notification that the placement is approved.
Please ensure that the data you submit for the placement is valid and correct for us to be able to process quickly.
Placements submitted with pending timesheets.
- Please ensure placements are submitted to the portal by 10am on a Monday to include in that week’s payroll run.
Please note: If a credit limit decision is escalated to an underwriter, we will contact you with revised timescales.
What our customers do
Placements must be submitted by 10am each Monday to guarantee processing in line with weekly billing deadlines.
Important!
As soon as the placement is approved – contracts need to be issued immediately to ensure 24hr deadline can be met.
2. Credit
What Sonovate does
Same day response for credit applications submitted by 1pm.
What our customers do
No action required.
3. Timesheets
What Sonovate does
Signed online and manual timesheets received before 12pm (midday) on a Tuesday will be processed in that week’s payroll run.
Manual timesheets
- If no approval or valid evidence is received, we will inform the sender and close the case.
- Re-submitted timesheets require valid evidence and signature from timesheet authoriser.
- If the re-submitted timesheet is received after the 12pm deadline, this will be processed in the following payroll week.
What our customers do
- Signed online and manual timesheets to be received by 12pm (midday) each Tuesday.
Manual timesheets
- Manual timesheets must be sent alongside valid evidence and approval.
Please note: to protect all parties from the potential of fraud, we cannot accept a ‘forwarded on’ email approving a timesheet for a contractor.
4. Invoice disputes & PO requests
What Sonovate does
- We will contact your business to assist with resolving a dispute or gaining a PO document.
- If we gain no assistance within five working days, we will mark the account as an ‘account of concern’.
- If there is either no resolution or assistance after 10 working days (in total), our Funding Decision Committee will look into the future of funding the ‘account of concern’.
What our customers do
- Your business will provide Sonovate with assistance in resolving the dispute and/or gaining a PO document.
5. Business paid directly by end client
What Sonovate does
In the event that your business is paid directly by your end client and not Sonovate, we will:
- inform your business to send funds to Sonovate within five working days.
- If no payment is received within five working days, we will mark the account as an ‘account of concern’.
- If no payment after 10 working days (in total), our Funding Decision Committee will look into the future of funding the ‘account of concern’.
What our customers do
- Pay funds to Sonovate within five working days.
6. Adjustments
What Sonovate does
- Pay/charge adjustments received before 10am on a Monday, will be processed in that week’s payroll run.
What our customers do
- Invoice queries must be submitted before 10am each Monday to ensure resolution in that billing week.
7. Help
All general queries to have a first response within 3 hours of case receipt and a resolution within 24 hours.
For queries that involve more than one department, we aim to resolve within five working days.
To receive the fastest response, please login to you Sonovate account.
Website (sonovate.com) Terms & Conditions
If you continue to browse and use this website you are agreeing to comply with and be bound by the following terms and conditions of use, which together with our privacy policy govern Sonovate’s relationship with you in relation to this website.
The term Sonovate or us or we refers to the owner of the website whose registered office is 4th Floor Golate House, 101 St. Mary Street, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 1DX. The term you refers to the user or viewer of our website.
The use of this website is subject to the following terms of use:
- The content of the pages of this website is for your general information and use only. It is subject to change without notice.
- This website uses cookies to monitor browsing preferences.
- Neither we nor any third parties provide any warranty or guarantee as to the accuracy, timeliness, performance, completeness or suitability of the information and materials found or offered on this website for any particular purpose. You acknowledge that such information and materials may contain inaccuracies or errors and we expressly exclude liability for any such inaccuracies or errors to the fullest extent permitted by law.
- Your use of any information or materials on this website is entirely at your own risk, for which we shall not be liable. It shall be your own responsibility to ensure that any products, services or information available through this website meet your specific requirements.
- This website contains material which is owned by or licensed to us. This material includes, but is not limited to, the design, layout, look, appearance and graphics. Reproduction is prohibited other than in accordance with the copyright notice, which forms part of these terms and conditions.
- All trademarks reproduced in this website, which are not the property of, or licensed to the operator, are acknowledged on the website.
- Unauthorised use of this website may give to a claim for damages and/or be a criminal offence.
- From time to time this website may also include links to other websites. These links are provided for your convenience to provide further information. They do not signify that we endorse the website(s). We have no responsibility for the content of the linked website(s).
- Your use of this website and any dispute arising out of such use of the website is subject to the laws of England and Wales.
Analytics
- We use Google Analytics to analyse the use of our website and provide a better experience for our users.
- Our analytics service provider generates statistical and other information about website use by means of cookies.
- The analytics cookies used by our website have the following names: APISID, HSID, PREF, _utma, _utmz, _utmc, _ga and SID.
- TheGoogle Analytics privacy policy is available at: http://www.google.com/policies/privacy/.
Sonovate Application Terms & Conditions
1. About our terms and conditions
1.1 These terms and conditions of use relate to https://app.sonovate.com,https://members.sonovate.com, https://timesheets.sonovate.com and https://capital.sonovate.com
1.2 By accessing or using the System you are agreeing to comply with and be bound by these terms and conditions of use (and any documents referred to in them) which govern Sonovate’s relationship with you in relation to the System. If you do not agree with or accept any of these terms, you should stop using the System immediately.
1.3 The terms Sonovate or us or we refer to Sonovate Limited, the owner of the System. We are a company registered in England and Wales under company number 07500445 whose registered office is 4th Floor Golate House, 101 St. Mary Street, Cardiff, Wales, CF10 1DX.
2. End-Clients
2.1 For the purposes of this clause 2, the term you refers to the end-client to whom services are being provided. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the general provisions set out in clauses 5 to 6 and clauses 14 to 19 below shall also apply to you.
2.2 To facilitate the provision of services to you, we provide a simple way for you to approve timesheet information that has been entered into the System. We do this by providing you with an electronic link to the System through which you can review and approve (or decline) timesheet information submitted by contractors who have provided services to you.
2.3 You confirm that any individual acting on your behalf (whether as an employee, director, agent or other authorised representative) to approve contractor timesheet information will be duly authorised to do so by you and that you will be duly bound by any such approvals as if they were made by you. Any such individuals will be required to agree to the following declaration before they are able to authorise contractor timesheets through the System on your behalf: I confirm that I am an authorised representative of Sonovate Limiteds applicable end-client and that I am duly authorised to approve contractor timesheets on behalf of that end-client.
2.4 To validate any approvals made by you and/or on your behalf we will collect certain information about the individual accessing the System and approving the timesheet information on your behalf, including (without limitation) the name, role and contact details of such individual. Where we collect such information we shall hold and process it in accordance with clauses 8 to 13 below.
3. Agents
3.1 For the purposes of this clause 3, the term you refers to agencies and/or agents using the Platform to provide contractors to end-clients. Notwithstanding the foregoing, the general provisions set out in clauses 5 to 6 and clauses 14 to 19 below shall also apply to you.
3.2 You acknowledge that these terms apply to contractors who use the System and, notwithstanding any separate terms that apply to your own use of the Portal, you shall use reasonable efforts to accommodate these terms and the contractors use of the System as part of your own use of the Portal.
3.3 You acknowledge clause 9.2 below and agree that:
3.3.1 you are the data controller in relation to information and Personal Data submitted to or through the System by contractors; and
3.3.2 you shall be responsible for, and control the collection and processing of, contractors Personal Data in accordance with applicable data protection laws.
4. Contractors
4.1 Subject to clauses 2.1 and 3.1, for the purposes of the remainder of these terms and conditions, the term you refers to the contractor wishing to input timesheet information into the System relating to the provision of services to an end-client.
5. Using the System and restrictions on use
5.1 We permit you to use the System only in accordance with the terms of use set out here (and any documents referred to here). Use of the System in any other way, including in contravention of any restriction on use set out in these terms and conditions, is not permitted. If you do not agree with the applicable terms you should stop using the System.
5.2 The System has been prepared, and is intended for use, in accordance with the laws of England and Wales. If you access the System from locations outside of England and Wales you are responsible for compliance with local laws where they are applicable.
5.3 As a condition of your use of the System, you agree:
5.3.1 not to use the System to carry out or promote any activity that is unlawful in any way under any applicable law; and
5.3.2 not to use the System for any purpose that is prohibited by these terms and conditions.
5.4 In addition, your right to use the System does not permit you to attempt to decompile (as defined in section 50B of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988) the underlying software (or any part of it) that is used in or to provide the System, or to observe, study or test the functioning of the underlying software (or any part of it) that is used in or to provide the System, except and only to the extent that such restrictions are prohibited pursuant to section 50B of the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988.
5.5 We may prevent or suspend your access to the System if you do not comply with any part of these terms and conditions, any terms or policies to which they refer, or any applicable law.
6. Availability of the System
6.1 We reserve the right to update, suspend, withdraw, discontinue or change all or any part of the System at any time as we see fit and without notice. While we try to make sure that the System is up-to-date, available and free from bugs, we cannot promise that it will be. Further, we do not promise that the System will be available at all times nor do we promise the uninterrupted use by you of the System. If you have any difficulties using the System, please contact us.
6.2 We will not be liable to you if for any reason the System is unavailable at any time or for any period.
7. Account and password
7.1 In order to use the System you will be required to create and manage an account in the System (an Account). Accounts may be created in the System by you choosing, or being provided with, a user identification code, password or other piece(s) of information as part of our security procedures (Account Information) to set up and manage your Account.
7.2 You agree that you are solely responsible for keeping your Account Information confidential. You must not disclose your Account Information to any third party. If you know or suspect that anyone other than you knows your Account Information you must promptly notify us.
7.3 We have the right to disable any Account at any time if in our reasonable opinion you have failed to comply with any of the provisions of these terms of use.
8. Submission and security of information
8.1 You are solely responsible for the accuracy and reliability of any information submitted to or through the System by you, and you warrant that any information you submit to or through the System:
8.1.1 is clear and accurate in all material respects and is not misleading; and
8.1.2 is lawfully submitted and does not breach our terms and conditions or any applicable laws.
8.2 We will not be responsible, or liable to any third party, for the content or accuracy of any information submitted to or available through the System that is posted by you.
9. Personal Data notification and consent
9.1 By using the System and/or by providing your information to us, you acknowledge that:
9.1.1 we shall collect and process any such information as set out in these terms and conditions; and
9.1.2 such information may include Personal Data as defined in the Data Protection Act 1998 (which, in brief, applies to information from which a living person can be identified),
and you hereby consent to the collection and processing of your information in accordance with these terms and conditions.
9.2 If we collect and process Personal Data we shall be subject to obligations under applicable data protection law (including the Data Protection Act 1998 and the Privacy and Electronic Communications (EC Directive) Regulations 2003). For the purposes of such data protection laws, we (Sonovate Limited) are the data processor in relation to your information and personal data. This means we process such information on behalf of our associated agencies, who control the collection and ultimate use of this information. You should direct privacy-related requests to the relevant associated agency which is providing services and/or recruitment to you through or using the Portal. We are not responsible for any the privacy practices of our associated agencies.
9.3 If you are an individual, you have the legal right (subject to the payment of a small fee) to request access to Personal Data that we may process about you. If you wish to exercise this right, you should put your request in writing to us giving us enough information to identify you and deal with your request.
10. Collection, use and disclosure of your information
10.1 When you use the System and/or when you otherwise deal with us we may collect the following information about you:
10.1.1 personal information including first and last name, date of birth, photograph and/or likeness;
10.1.2 contact information including residential address, primary email address and primary phone number;
10.1.3 financial information including payment details and amounts, bank details and information regarding applicable taxes (including Value Added Tax);
10.1.4 National Insurance number;
10.1.5 technical information including IP address, operating system, browser type and related information regarding the device you used to visit the System, the length of your visit and your interactions with the System; and
10.1.6 details of any placements and related timesheets completed by you, including hours worked, charge rates, expenses incurred and other relevant placement/timesheet information.
10.2 We use information held about you in the following ways:
10.2.1 to carry out our services and any other obligations arising from any contracts entered into between us and our customers, agents and contractors;
10.2.2 to investigate and address any comments, queries or complaints made by you or our contractors regarding the System or the Portal;
10.2.3 to ensure that content from the System and/or the Portal is presented in the most effective manner for you and for your device;
10.2.4 for system administration, maintenance and improvements;
10.2.5 to allow you to participate in interactive features of the System, including inputting information and providing feedback;
10.2.6 to notify you about changes to the System; and
10.2.7 to comply with our legal obligations, including obligations relating to the protection of Personal Data.
10.3 We may also monitor and record communications with you (such as telephone conversations and emails) for the purposes of provision of services, quality assurance, training, fraud prevention and compliance purposes.
10.4 We may disclose your information (including Personal Data) to any member of our group (which means our subsidiaries, our ultimate holding company and its subsidiaries, as defined in section 1159 of the UK Companies Act 2006).
10.5 We may disclose your information (including Personal Data) to third parties:
10.5.1 to enable such third parties, including our business partners, service providers or third-party contractors, to undertake services for us and/or on our behalf (and we will ensure they have appropriate measures in place to protect your Personal Data);
10.5.2 in the event that we sell or buy any business or assets, in which case we may disclose Personal Data to the prospective seller or buyer of such business or assets;
10.5.3 if our business or substantially all of its assets are acquired by a third party, in which case Personal Data held by us about our clients and contractors will be one of the transferred assets;
10.5.4 if we are under a duty to disclose or share Personal Data in order to comply with any legal obligation, including any request or order from law enforcement agencies and/or HMRC in connection with any investigation to help prevent unlawful activity; and
10.5.5 if you have specifically consented to us doing so.
10.6 We may also share aggregate information with selected third parties but, in such circumstances, we do not disclose any information which can identify you personally.
10.7.1 If false or inaccurate information is provided and fraud is identified, details will be passed to fraud prevention agencies to prevent fraud and money laundering.
10.7.2 Further details explaining how the information held by fraud prevention agencies may be used can be obtained by contacting us at hello@sonovate.com
11. Marketing
You have the right to ask us not to process your Personal Data for marketing purposes. We will inform you (before collecting your data) if we intend to use your data for such purposes or if we intend to disclose your information to any third party for such purposes. You can exercise your right to prevent such processing by checking certain boxes on the forms we use to collect your data. You can also exercise this right at any time by following the unsubscribe instructions in any marketing communication you receive from us, or by contacting us at hello@sonovate.com.
12. Cookies
12.1 We may also obtain information about your general internet usage by using cookies. Cookies are text files placed on your computer, phone or tablet to help identify you as a unique user of the System, to collect standard visitor behaviour information, and to help us to maintain and improve the System. Some of the cookies we use are essential for the System to operate.
12.2 If you register with us or if you use the System you will be asked to consent to our use of cookies. You can set your system not to accept cookies if you wish (for example by changing your browser settings so cookies are not accepted). However, if you use your browser settings to block all cookies (including essential cookies) you may not be able to access all or parts of the System.
12.3 Unless you have adjusted your browser setting to refuse cookies, our software will issue cookies as soon you visit the System.
13. Data security
13.1 We will use technical and organisational measures in accordance with good industry practice to safeguard your information and Personal Data, including data encryption and secure data storage.
13.2 While we will use all reasonable efforts to safeguard your information and Personal Data, you acknowledge that the use of the internet is not entirely secure and for this reason we cannot guarantee the security or integrity of any information that is transferred from you or to you via the internet.
14. Ownership and use of the System
14.1 References in these terms of use to Intellectual Property Rights means copyright, patents, rights in inventions, rights in confidential information, know-how, trade secrets, trade marks, service marks, trade names, design rights, rights in get-up, database rights, rights in data, domain names, rights in computer software and all similar rights of whatever nature and, in each case: (i) whether registered or not, (ii) including any applications to protect or register such rights, (iii) including all renewals and extensions of such rights or applications, (iv) whether vested, contingent or future and (v) wherever in the world they exist.
14.2 The System, the Platform and all Intellectual Property Rights in them are owned by us, our licensors or both (as applicable). Such Intellectual Property Rights are protected by copyright laws and treaties around the world. We and our licensors reserve all of our and their rights in any such Intellectual Property Rights in connection with these terms of use. This means, for example, that we and they remain owners of them and free to use them as we and they see fit.
14.3 Nothing in these terms and conditions grants you any legal rights in the System other than as necessary to enable you to access the System, and any further or additional use is strictly prohibited unless you have our prior written permission.
14.4 If you copy, download or otherwise use any part of the System in breach of these terms of use, your right to use the System will cease immediately and you must, at our option, return or destroy any copies of the materials you have made.
15. Limitation of our liability
15.1 Nothing in these terms and conditions excludes or limits our liability for death or personal injury arising from our negligence, or our fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot be lawfully excluded or limited.
15.2 Subject to clause 15.1, and to the extent permitted by law, we exclude all conditions, warranties and/or representations, whether express or implied, which may apply to the System and/or any information contained or displayed within the System.
15.3 Subject to clause 15.1, we will not be liable to any user of the System for any loss or damage, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, even if foreseeable, arising under or in connection with the use of, or inability to use, the System, or with reliance on any information contained or displayed within the System. In particular, we will not be liable for any business interruption, for any loss of profits, sales, business, revenue, anticipated savings, business opportunity, goodwill or reputation, or for any indirect or consequential loss or damage.
16. Viruses
We do not guarantee that the System will be secure or free from bugs or viruses. You are responsible for configuring your device in order to access the System and you should use your own virus protection software. We will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by a virus or any other technologically harmful material that may infect you due to your use of the System.
17. Third party sites and systems
17.1 The System may contain hyperlinks or references to third party websites or systems other than the Platform or the System. We have no control over third party websites or systems and accept no legal responsibility for any content, material or information contained in them. Your use of third party sites or systems will be governed by the terms and conditions of that third party. It is your responsibility to ensure you are happy with such third party terms and conditions.
17.2 The display of any hyperlink and/or reference to any third party website, system, product or service does not mean that we endorse that third party’s website, products or services and any reliance you place on such hyperlink, reference or advert is done at your own risk.
18. General legal terms
18.1 Events beyond our control We shall have no liability to you for any breach of these terms caused by any event or circumstance beyond our reasonable control including, without limitation: strikes, lock-outs or other industrial disputes; breakdown of systems or network access; or flood, fire, explosion or accident.
18.2 Rights of third parties No one other than a party to these terms and conditions has any right to enforce any of these terms and conditions.
18.3 Variation These terms and conditions are dated 27th March 2017. No changes to these terms are valid or have any effect unless agreed by us in writing. We reserve the right to vary these terms of use from time to time. Our new terms will be displayed on the System and by continuing to use and access the System following such changes, you agree to be bound by any variation made by us. It is your responsibility to check these terms of use from time to time to verify such variations.
18.4 Breach We shall apply these terms of use in our absolute discretion. In the event of your breach of any of these terms we may terminate or suspend your use of the System, disclose information submitted by you to law enforcement authorities or take any action we consider necessary to remedy the breach.
18.5 Applicable law These terms and conditions, their subject matter and formation, are governed by the law of England and Wales. You and we both agree to that the courts of England and Wales will have exclusive jurisdiction. However, if you are a resident of Northern Ireland you/we may also bring proceedings in Northern Ireland, and if you are resident of Scotland, you/we may also bring proceedings in Scotland.
19. Contact
If you have any questions about these terms and conditions please contact us by sending an email to hello@sonovate.com.
Recruitment Privacy Notice
1. What is the purpose of this document?
1.1. Sonovate Limited (“the Company”) is committed to protecting the privacy and security of your personal information.
1.2. This privacy notice describes how we collect, use and share personal information about you during and after your relationship with us for recruitment purposes, in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).
1.3. The Company is a “data controller”. This means that we are responsible for deciding how we gather, hold and use personal information about you. We are required under data protection legislation to notify you of the information contained in this privacy notice.
1.4. This notice applies to all applicants, whether or not they are eventually employed or engaged by the Company. We may update this notice at any time and will provide you with a new privacy notice when we make substantial updates.
1.5. We may notify you in other ways from time to time about the processing of your personal information.
2. The kind of information we hold about you
2.1 We may collect, store, and use the following categories of personal information about you up to and including the shortlisting stage of the recruitment process:
2.1.1 Personal contact details such as name, title, addresses, telephone numbers, and personal email addresses;
2.1.2 Details of your qualifications, experience, employment history (including job titles, salary and working hours) and interests;
2.1.3 Date of birth;
2.1.4 *Your racial or ethnic origin, sex and sexual orientation, religious or similar beliefs collected from you in a completed anonymised equal opportunities monitoring form;
2.1.5 Details of your referees.
2.2 We may collect the following information after the shortlisting stage, and before making a final decision to recruit:
2.2.1 Information about your previous academic and/or employment history, including details of any conduct, grievance or performance issues, appraisals, time and attendance, from references obtained about you from previous employers and/or education providers.
2.2.2 Information regarding your academic and professional qualifications.
2.2.3 *Your nationality and immigration status and information from related documents, such as your passport or other identification and immigration information.
*We collect the information marked with an asterisk (*) to comply with our legal obligations, and enable us to carry out required statutory checks, such as verifying your right to work and suitability for the position.
3. How is your personal information collected?
3.1 We may collect personal information about candidates through the application and recruitment process from:
3.1.1 You, and referees from details provided by you
3.1.2 Employment agencies or background check providers
3.1.3 Your educational provider/relevant professional body
4. How we will use information about you
4.1 We will only use your personal information when the law allows us to. Most commonly, we will use your personal information in the following circumstances:
4.1.1 To take steps to enter into a contract.
4.1.2 Where we need to comply with a legal obligation.
4.1.3 Where it is necessary for our legitimate interests (or those of a third party) and your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests.
Situations in which we will use your personal information
4.2 In some cases we may use your personal information to pursue legitimate interests of our own or those of third parties, provided your interests and fundamental rights do not override those interests. The situations in which we will process your personal information during the recruitment process are listed below:
4.2.1 Making a decision about your recruitment or appointment.
4.2.2 Determining the terms on which you work for us.
4.2.3 Checking you are legally entitled to work in the UK.
4.2.4 Assessing qualifications for a particular job or task.
4.2.5 Making decisions about your employment or engagement.
4.2.6 Education, training or development requirements.
4.2.7 Equal opportunities monitoring.
4.3 Some of these grounds for processing will overlap and there may be several grounds which justify our use of your personal information.
If you fail to provide personal information
4.4 If you fail to provide certain information when requested, we may be prevented from complying with our legal obligations (such as to ensure the health and safety of our workers), engaging you in the recruitment process, and/or offering you a job.
Change of purpose
4.5 We will only use your personal information for the purposes for which we collected it, unless we reasonably consider that we need to use it for another reason and that reason is compatible with the original purpose. If we need to use your personal information for an unrelated purpose, we will notify you and we will explain the legal basis which allows us to do so.
4.6 Please note that we may process your personal information without your knowledge or consent, in compliance with the above rules, where this is required or permitted by law.
5. How we use particularly sensitive personal information
5.1 “Special categories” of sensitive personal information, such as those marked above with an asterisk, require higher levels of protection. We need to have further justification for processing this type of personal information, which may include the following circumstances:
5.1.1 In limited circumstances, with your explicit written consent.
5.1.2 Where we need to carry out our legal obligations and in line with our data protection policy.
5.1.3 Where it is needed in the public interest, such as for equal opportunities monitoring, and in line with our data protection policy.
5.1.4 Where it is needed to assess your capacity on health grounds, subject to appropriate confidentiality safeguards.
Do we need your consent?
5.2 We do not need your consent if we use special categories of your personal information in accordance with our written policy to carry out our legal obligations or exercise specific rights in the field of employment law. You should be aware that you are not required to agree to any request for consent from us.
6. Data sharing
6.1 We may have to share your personal information with other parties, including third-party service providers and other entities in the group where this is required by law, where it is necessary to administer the relationship with you or where we have another legitimate interest in doing so.
6.2 “Third parties” includes third-party service providers (including contractors and designated agents) and other entities within our group. The following activities are carried out by third-party service providers: security services, CCTV operators, IT services. This list is not exhaustive and may vary from time to time.
6.3 All our third-party service providers and other entities in the group are required to take appropriate security measures to protect your personal information in line with the GDPR. We do not allow our third-party service providers to use your personal data for their own purposes. We only permit them to process your personal data for specified purposes and in accordance with our instructions. We may also need to share your personal information with a regulator or to otherwise comply with the law.
6.4 We may transfer your personal information outside the EU. If we do, you can expect a similar degree of protection in respect of your personal information.
7. Data security
7.1 We have put in place measures to protect the security of your information. Details of these measures are available upon request.
7.2 We have put in place procedures to deal with any suspected data security breach and will notify you and any applicable regulator of a suspected breach where we are legally required to do so.
8. Data retention – how long will you use my information for?
8.1 We will only retain the personal information that we obtain about you during the recruitment process for as long as necessary to fulfil the purposes we collected it for, including for the purposes of satisfying any legal, accounting, or reporting requirements. How long we keep this information will depend on whether your application is successful and you become employed by us, the nature of the information concerned and the purposes for which it is processed.
8.2 We will keep recruitment information (including interview notes) for no longer than is reasonable, taking into account the limitation periods for potential claims (as extended to take account of early conciliation), after which it will be securely destroyed in accordance with the applicable laws and regulations.
8.3 In some circumstances we may anonymise your personal information so that it can no longer be associated with you, in which case we may use such information without further notice to you.
8.4 If your application is not successful, your recruitment data will not be kept for longer than 12 months, after which it will be securely destroyed. We retain your recruitment data for 12 months, because the roles we recruit are very specialist and we may re-use this information to recruit for the same, or similar roles arising during this period. If you do not wish for us to retain your recruitment data for this length of time then please do let us know.
8.5 If your application is successful, we will keep only the recruitment information that is necessary in relation to your employment and it will be processed in accordance with our employment data protection policies – copies of which will be provided at the start of your employment.
9. Rights of access, correction, erasure, and restriction
Your duty to inform us of changes
9.1 Please keep us informed if your personal information changes during the recruitment process.
Your rights in connection with personal information
9.2 Under certain circumstances, by law you have the right to:
9.2.1 Request access to your personal information (commonly known as a “data subject access request”).
9.2.2 Request correction of the personal information that we hold about you.
9.2.3 Request erasure of your personal information.
9.2.4 Object to processing of your personal information where we are relying on a legitimate interest (or those of a third party) and there is something about your particular situation which makes you want to object to processing on this ground.
9.2.5 Request the restriction of processing of your personal information.
9.2.6 Request the transfer of your personal information to another party.
9.3 If you want to exercise any of your data subject rights, please contact the Data Protection Officer in writing.
10. Right to withdraw consent
In the limited circumstances where you may have provided your consent to the collection, processing and transfer of your personal information for a specific purpose, you have the right to withdraw your consent for that specific processing at any time. To withdraw your consent, please contact the Data Protection Officer.
11. Data protection officer
We have appointed a Data Protection Officer (DPO) to oversee compliance with this privacy notice. If you have any questions about this privacy notice or how we handle your personal information, please contact the DPO. You have the right to make a complaint at any time to the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), the UK supervisory authority for data protection issues.
If you have any questions about this privacy notice, please contact the Data Protection Officer:
Address: 4th Floor Golate House,
101, St. Mary Street,
Cardiff,
CF10 1DX.
Email: dpo@sonovate.com
Data Storage
All customer data is stored within Microsoft UK & European data centres (for resilience purposes).
Our commitment to using Microsoft cloud platforms stems from them being the first enterprise cloud services provider to implement rigorous controls governing the transfer of data outside of European Union, as the first cloud provider to achieve compliance with ISO’s important 27018 cloud privacy standards. Microsoft Azure has 53 major certifications and attestations – more than any other major public cloud provider.
When it comes to security, Microsoft’s visibility into the evolving threat landscape also helps us protect the data that moves through our systems. With a cloud footprint that includes over 100 datacentres and more than 200 cloud services, this insures that we have robust solutions and procedures in place to support our business and secure our customer data.
Complaints
Our Principles for Handling Complaints
- We will treat all complaints fairly.
- We will deal with your complaint promptly, using an evidence-based approach.
- We will acknowledge receipt of a complaint within 5 working days.
- We will aim to fully investigate your complaint and send you a response within 20 working days of receipt.
If for any reason, we cannot send a full response within 20 working days of receipt, we will tell you the reason why and let you know when we will be able to respond in full.
How to Complain
You can raise a complaint via the following channels:
- In App: Complaints can be submitted in your Sonovate account
- By post: Sonovate Ltd, 4th Floor, 101 Golate House, St. Mary Street, Cardiff, CF10 1DX
We have a 3-stage complaints process. At each stage it will help us to resolve your complaint quickly if you can give us as much clear detail as possible, including any documents and correspondence and stating that you are making a complaint in line with our procedure.
The Complaints Process
Stage 1 – Registration
We will register your complaint and send our acknowledgement correspondence to you within 5 working days from receipt.
Our acknowledgement letter will include the following details:
- Full details of complaint
- Full name of complaint handler
- Copy of our complaints process
Please check the details of this correspondence and confirm in writing that we have the correct details for our investigation. If you feel we have missed any other points, please include the additional points in your response.
Complaints should be made no later than twelve months after the date on which the subject of the complaint occurred; or twelve months after the date on which the subject of the complaint came to the attention of the complainant. If there are good reasons for not having made the complaint within the above timeframe, and if it remains feasible for Sonovate to conduct an evidence-based investigation into the complaint effectively and fairly, we may decide to still consider the complaint.
Stage 2 – Review
We will investigate all complaints promptly. We will compete our investigation into the complaint and will contact you directly to discuss our resolution within 20 working days. If we are unable to resolve your complaint within 20 working days, we will send you holding correspondence which will include the following:
Detailed reason as to why we have not been able to resolve your complaint at this stage
Expected date that we will send you next correspondence by
Stage 3 – Escalation
In the event of unsatisfactory resolution at Stage 2, your complaint will be escalated to the Customer Services Manager. Every effort will be made to resolve the issue at this stage. In the initial response, where appropriate, the result of any investigation will be stated, guidance on the proposed resolution will be offered and where possible an
estimated time of completion will be provided.
Timescales for handling a complaint
Stage 1
- Brought to our attention no later than 12 months
- Acknowledgement within 5 working days
Stage 2
- Full or holding response within 20 working days
- If Holding response sent, full response will be within 56 working days from date of receipt
Stage 3
- Dependent on case
Extending time limits
We aim to complete all complaints within the timescales above; however, if a complaint is very complex it may occasionally be necessary to extend the time limit. If this is the case, we will keep you informed of progress with the
investigation, the reasons for the delay, and the new deadline.
Following any stage of the procedure, a complainant has a maximum of 28 days from the date of the response to request that their complaint be escalated to stage 3.
The outcome at stage 3 is Sonovate’s final response.
Resolution
When we get things wrong, we will act to:
- Provide an evidence-based approach to investigations and responses
- Put things right by making any changes required and take action to prevent recurrences
- Use findings as a positive driver for change and improvement
The general principle we follow is that a complainant should, so far as possible, be put in the position he or she would have been in, had things not gone wrong.
Feedback
Our quality of service is an essential measure of the effectiveness for our departments, services and products provided.
Therefore, learning from complaints is a good way of helping to improve and develop the way that Sonovate works.
As well as learning from your complaints we are also interested in other ideas you may have on how we might do things better.
You can submit your feedback by emailing, writing, or speaking to us directly. We will use your comments to help improve our service and the way we do things.
However, the 3-stage procedure outlined above does not apply to general feedback.
Payrnet Terms
Sonovate & GDPR
Transition to GDPR compliance
Sonovate conducted a comprehensive cross-business review to identify any areas where changes are required to our current policies and procedures to achieve GDPR compliance.
We engaged with legal data protection experts to insure we interpret the new legislation correctly and apply it throughout the business.
This approach has ensured that Sonovate establish and embedded GDPR accountability principals to fully support our commitment to protecting all personal information held within our systems.
Our Commitment
Privacy policy
- Our new privacy policy outlines all the purposes by which we will use your data and all the bases on which we rely on to use your data
Data Storage
- All customer data is stored within Microsoft UK & European data centres (for resilience purposes). Our commitment to using Microsoft cloud platforms stems from them being the first enterprise cloud services provider to implement rigorous controls governing the transfer of data outside of European Union, as the first cloud provider to achieve compliance with ISO’s important 27018 cloud privacy standards. Microsoft Azure has 53 major certifications and attestations – more than any other major public cloud provider. When it comes to security, Microsoft’s visibility into the evolving threat landscape also helps us protect the data that moves through our systems. With a cloud footprint that includes over 100 datacentres and more than 200 cloud services, this insures that we have robust solutions and procedures in place to support our business and secure our customer data.
Data Promise
- Always keep your data safe and private
- Never sell your data
- Allow you to remove yourself from marketing choices at any time
IR35
IR35 update
Over the last twelve months Sonovate has been working with a number of experts to ensure we create solutions that support how you work.
Fee payer status
Since IR35 was postponed last year, HMRC have released more guidance to confirm everyone’s position in the IR35 chain.
The new off payroll rules affect everyone in the labour supply chain, starting with the contractor’s PSC and ending with the client end user.
From HMRC
“Contractual chain – The chain of persons contracting with one another which the chain payment flows through. It starts with the person in receipt of the worker’s services (the client) and ends with the worker’s intermediary. Also known as the labour supply chain.”
As the contract between you and your client is a contract to supply a contractor, you are in the labour supply chain. The same with your contract with the contractor’s PSC, it’s the PSC’s obligation to supply the contractor to you. Sonovate are not in this chain – we’re a supplier of invoice financing and we carry out some tasks on your behalf.
What this means for you
As your business is the person who pays the PSC in the labour supply chain, you are the person that HMRC considers to be the deemed employer if the contract is inside IR35.
This means that you are responsible for deducting and paying income tax, employee and employers NI to HMRC. Additionally, as the fee payer, you will be liable for any unpaid tax as a result of an incorrect status determination.
This obligation is triggered when you receive the Status Determination Statement (SDS) from your end client. If you don’t receive an SDS, then, according to HMRC rules, you cannot be the deemed employer.
What we recommend you do
Speak to your clients and understand how they’ll be releasing SDS’ to you, so that you’re ready to instruct Sonovate to make any changes to your payment instructions.
Remember, it is the client’s legal obligation to carry out an SDS carefully. Unless you can see an obvious reason (like the facts on the SDS are clearly wrong and don’t match what you’ve agreed for the placement), your role in HMRCs eyes is to follow the status and mechanically make sure the deductions and payments are compliant.
Clients have a high level of care that they need to take when assessing a placement under the new rules.
If you genuinely believe the SDS is wrong, you can challenge this with your client.
How Sonovate is supporting you
Sonovate’s IR35 solution covers the full range of inside and outside placements, including PAYE, Umbrella, PSC/Ltd and Statement of Work.
By using Sonovate you can rest assured that the mechanics of the new off payroll rules, and your instructions to us, are fully covered.
Key things to note and explore:
Pay and charge
- For outside IR35 placements, nothing changes.
- For inside IR35, you might want to review pay and charge rates to offset incurred cost as you’re the employer for tax purposes.
- If you are considering PAYE placements for your inside IR35 contractors, please check out our PAYE calculator which will provide a guide (for illustrative purposes) to help you understand and set rates for your clients.
- Sonovate is developing a PSC/Ltd deduction calculator to release before April.
Adding a placement
- Your client tells you the status of a placement – you add into the portal as per instruction.
- Sonovate is updating the portal and will release product guides throughout March.
Making inside IR35 payments (PAYE, PSC/Ltd deductions, Umbrella)
If you are the deemed employer you are responsible for paying statutory deductions to HMRC. Sonovate has three options available to you:
- Sonovate can send you gross payments for you to manage the deductions and payments to candidates and HMRC.
- Sonovate can calculate the deductions, pay the candidates net and send to you the deductions for you to pay to HMRC.
- Sonovate can pay gross to Umbrella who make deductions and pay candidates. For more guidance please contact your Umbrella.
If you would to speak to Sonovate about PAYE or PSC/Ltd deductions, please email paye@sonovate.com
Summary
- If your business receives a SDS, you take on the responsibility of being the fee payer.
- Speak to your clients and get a sense of what determination they will put in place. Remember, whether a contractor is inside or outside IR35 is down to the ground working practices, there’s no contract terms that definitively determine this.
- Sonovate’s IR35 solution covers the full range of inside and outside placements, including PAYE, Umbrella, PSC/Ltd and Statement of Work.
- Consider evaluating your pay and charge rates for inside placements.
- If you are the deemed employer you are responsible for paying statutory deductions to HMRC. Contact Sonovate to discuss your options.
Sonovate Product Terms & Conditions
- To view our funding and back office terms – click here
- To view our funding only terms – click here
- To view our EWA Data Processing Agreement – click here
- To view our Timesheet and Invoice Services and Invoice Purchase Conditions – click here
- To view our Receivables Purchase Conditions – click here
