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 email:
customerservices@sonovate.com for general queries and questions.
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://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.
Tel: 0207 112 4959
Email: dpo@sonovate.com
Data Storage
All customer data is stored within Microsoft UK & European data centres (for resilience purposes). Microsoft is committed to being GDPR compliant across all their cloud services when enforcement begins on May 25, 2018.
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:
- Telephone: 020 7112 4949
(Opening hours 9am-5pm, Monday to Friday) - Email: customerservices@sonovate.com
- By post: Sonovate Ltd, 4th Floor, 101 Golate House, St. Mary Street, Cardiff, CF10 1DX
- By contacting your Customer Relationship Manager (if applicable)
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
PAYRNET LIMITED
TERMS AND CONDITIONS FOR CORPORATES
ELECTRONIC MONEY ACCOUNTS
BACKGROUND
This Agreement: This Agreement is with PayrNet Limited, a company incorporated in England and Wales (company number: 09883437) with its head office at “PayrNet, WeWork, 3 Waterhouse Square, 138 Holborn, London, EC1N 2SW, UK” and registered office at “Kemp House, 152 City Road, London, United Kingdom, EC1V 2NX” (hereinafter referred to in this Agreement as “Payrnet”, “we” “us”). We are an Electronic Money Institution (“EMI”) and are authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority under the Electronic Money Regulations 2011 (“EMR 2011”) (register reference 900594) for the issuing of electronic money.
Our relationship with Sonovate: As an EMI, we have appointed Sonovate Limited (“Sonovate”) as an EMD Agent. An EMD Agent means a person who provides payment services on behalf of an electronic money institution (as defined in the EMR 2011). As our EMD Agent, Sonovate is authorised to provide associated payment services alongside our e-money account services.
AGREED TERMS
1.OUR TERMS
1.1. Interpreting this Agreement. In order to easily understand the terms of this Agreement, please first refer to clause 3 which, amongst other things, sets out the meaning of capitalised terms used in this Agreement.
1.2. Why you should read it? Please read this Agreement carefully before you agree to it, as its terms apply to the services provided by us. The Agreement explains many of your responsibilities to us and our responsibilities to you, how and when this Agreement can be terminated and the extent of our liability to you. If there are any terms that you do not understand or do not wish to agree to, please contact us. You should only agree to the Sonovate Finance Agreement, if you agree to be bound by this Agreement.
1.4. Are you a Micro-Enterprise or Charity or Consumer? For the avoidance of doubt, these terms and conditions are not intended for Micro Enterprises or Charities or Consumers (individuals acting for a purpose other than a trade, business or profession).
2. INFORMATION ABOUT US AND HOW TO CONTACT US
2.1. Who we are. We are PayrNet Limited, an EMI as described above.
2.2. Communications between us are to be in English. This Agreement is concluded in England and all communications between you and us shall be in English only.
2.3. How to contact us. All queries should be directed towards the Sonovate. You can contact Sonovate using details set out in our Finance agreement or on the details listed on Sonovate.com.
2.4. How we may contact you. If we have to contact you we will do so as follows: in the first instance via Sonovate except in urgent cases. If we have not been able to contact you through Sonovate or if the matter is urgent we will contact you by writing to you at the email address(es), you provided when agreeing to this Agreement or by using any other contact details you have provided to us or have used in communications with us or with Sonovate.
2.5. ‘Writing’ includes emails. When we use the words “writing” or “written” in this Agreement, this includes emails.
2.6. Some of the services we provide are subject to the Payment Services Regulations 2017. The Regulations regulate how Payments must be transmitted and provide protection for the clients of authorised payment institutions and electronic money institutions.
3. INTERPRETATION
3.1. The definitions set out in this clause apply in this Agreement as follows:
“Agreement” means this agreement and the privacy policy.
“Electronic Money” means electronically stored monetary value as represented by a claim against us.
“Regulations” means the Payment Services Regulations 2017 (SI 2017 No. 752).
“Safeguarded Account” means the bank account(s) belonging to us, which are separate to our own office bank accounts, into which we will receive money from you, or on your behalf, in return for the issuance of Electronic Money.
“Services” means the e-money account services.
3.2. Clause headings shall not affect the interpretation of this Agreement and references to clauses are to the clauses of this Agreement.
3.3. Any words following the terms including, include, in particular, for example or any similar expression shall be construed as illustrative and shall not limit the sense of the words, description, definition, phrase or term preceding those terms.
3.4. Unless the context otherwise requires, words in the singular shall include the plural and in the plural shall include the singular.
3.5. A reference to a statute or statutory provision is a reference to it as amended, extended or re‑enacted from time to time and reference to a statute or statutory provision shall include all subordinate legislation made from time to time.
4. TERM AND BECOMING A CLIENT
4.1. How can you agree to this Agreement? You can agree to this Agreement by signing the Finance Agreement with Sonovate, or by otherwise confirming your agreement to same or availing of the Services.
4.2. When will you become a client of ours? You will be bound by this Agreement once you have agreed to it as set out above and this Agreement shall remain in force until terminated in accordance with its terms.
5. SERVICES
5.1. As part of the Services, we shall issue you with Electronic Money upon receipt of money from you or a third party on your behalf, store your Electronic Money and redeem Electronic Money both on your express instruction and in accordance with this Agreement and the agreement of Sonovate.
5.2. Our Services do not include the provision of advice. We do not offer advice under this Agreement on any matter including (without limit) the merits or otherwise of any currency transactions, on taxation, or markets.
6. ISSUING ELECTRONIC MONEY TO YOU
6.1. For the avoidance of doubt, this section is only applicable for unregulated entities and Small Payment Institutions (SPI).
6.2. Where we receive money from you or on your behalf, this money will be held by us in the relevant Safeguarded Account in exchange for the issuance by us to you of Electronic Money. Your funds will not be used by us for any other purpose and in the unlikely event that we become insolvent, your e-money is protected in an EEA-authorised credit institution or the Bank of England.
6.3. When we issue you with Electronic Money, us holding the funds corresponding to the Electronic Money is not the same as a Bank holding your money in that (i) we cannot and will not use the funds to invest or lend to other persons or entities; (ii) the Electronic Money will not accrue interest; and (iii) the Electronic Money is not a deposit and is therefore not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme but it is held by us and protected in the relevant Safeguarded Account.
6.4. You may hold Electronic Money and we may hold funds corresponding to your Electronic Money indefinitely. However, if we hold Electronic Money for you for more than two years without any activity on the account, we shall use reasonable endeavours to contact you to redeem the Electronic Money and return the corresponding funds to you. If we are unable to contact you, we may redeem the Electronic Money and send the corresponding funds, less any of our costs incurred, to the last known bank account we have on file for you.
6.5. We accept no responsibility in the event that you send money to the incorrect account.
6.6. We do not accept cash or cheques. We accept monies via a variety of methods of electronic funds transfer to our bank account, the details of which we shall provide to you upon request.
7. GENERAL LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
7.1. Where we and another person (such as a payment services provider) are liable to you in respect of the same matter or item, you agree that our liability to you will not be increased by any limitation of liability you have agreed with that other person or because of your inability to recover from that other person beyond what our liability would have been had no such limitation been agreed and/or if that other person had paid his or its share.
7.2. Where any loss, liability, cost or expense (a “Loss”) is suffered by you for which we would otherwise be jointly and severally or jointly liable with any third party or third parties, the extent to which such Loss shall be recoverable by you from us (as opposed to any third parties) shall be limited so as to be in proportion to the aggregate of our contribution to the overall fault for such Loss, as agreed between all of the relevant parties or, in the absence of agreement, as determined by a court of competent jurisdiction. For the purposes of assessing the contribution to the Loss in question of any third party for the purposes of this clause, no account shall be taken of any limit imposed or agreed on the amount of liability of such third party by any agreement (including any settlement agreement) made before or after such Loss occurred or was otherwise incurred.
7.3. Nothing in this Agreement limits or excludes our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence or for any damage or liability incurred by you as a result of fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation by us or to the extent that the liability may not be excluded or limited by any applicable law.
8. COMPLAINTS
8.1. If you feel that we have not met your expectations in the delivery of our Services, in first instance contact Sonovate by emailing customerservices@sonovate.com. If Sonovate does not deal with your complaint adequately, please contact us via email to complaints@payr.net.
8.2. We have internal procedures for handling complaints fairly and promptly in accordance with the Financial Conduct Authority’s requirements. A copy of our complaints procedure is available upon request.
8.3. If you are an eligible complainant, you may be able to take your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service should you not be satisfied with our final response. Eligibility criteria and information on the procedures involved are available from http://www.financial‑ombudsman.org.uk. In addition, please note that disputes may be submitted for online resolution to the European Commission Online Dispute Resolution platform.
9. ESTABLISHING YOUR IDENTITY
9.1. To comply with the requirements of the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017, the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 and EU Wire Transfer Regulations (Regulation (EU) 2015/847) and related regulations, it may be necessary to obtain from you, and retain, evidence of your personal identity (or directors or partners of your business and/or your ultimate beneficial owners) in our records from time to time. If satisfactory evidence is not promptly provided to us we cannot accept your instructions.
9.2. We may keep records of the contents and results of any searches that we carry out on you (or directors or partners or shareholders of your business) in accordance with all current and applicable laws. You acknowledge that us carrying out an electronic verification check or, if required, a credit reference agency check will leave a soft footprint on the individual or entity’s credit history. You warrant that you have obtained the consent to such checks being carried out from each such individual officer and shareholder.
9.3. We are obliged to report any reasonable suspicions about activities on the electronic accounts to the regulatory authorities. This may affect our relationship with you so far as confidentiality is concerned. If we are required under legislation (including the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 and the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002) to refrain from communicating with you and/or proceeding with your instructions, we can accept no liability for the consequences of being prevented from doing so.
10. TERMINATION
10.1. When we may terminate or suspend this Agreement.
10.1.1. We can terminate this Agreement at any time:
10.1.1.1. If you breach this Agreement; and/or
10.1.1.2. if we suspect that you are using the Services for any illegal purposes.
10.1.2. We may suspend or terminate your access to the Services where we have reasonable grounds for concern relating to: (i) the security of your account(s), whether or not you have informed us of a security breach; and/or (ii) the suspected unauthorised or fraudulent use of your account(s).
10.1.3. If Sonovate notifies us that their agreement with you has terminated we can terminate this agreement with immediate effect.
10.1.4. If you terminate your agreement with Sonovate or that agreement is terminated, we can terminate this agreement with immediate effect.
10.2. When you may terminate this Agreement. You can terminate this Agreement at any time and for any reason by cancelling your agreement with Sonovate. We may contact you to confirm your request.
10.3. Effect of Termination. Upon the effective date of termination:
10.3.1. you will no longer be able to avail yourself of the Services;
10.3.2. we shall redeem any Electronic Money we hold for you and send the equivalent funds to a bank account in your name, unless agreed by both parties, less any monies which are due and owing to us, where relevant.
10.4. After termination, you may contact us using the contact details set out in clause 2.3 to redeem any Electronic Money you still hold with us.
11. CONFIDENTIALITY
11.1. We undertake that we shall not at any time, disclose to any person any of your confidential information, except in the following circumstances:
11.1.1. to our employees, officers, representatives or advisers who need to know such information for the purposes of exercising our rights or carrying out our obligations under or in connection with this Agreement. We shall ensure that our employees, officers, representatives or advisers to whom we disclose your confidential information comply with this clause; and
11.1.2. as may be required by law, a court of competent jurisdiction or any governmental or regulatory authority.
12. HOW WE MAY USE YOUR PERSONAL INFORMATION AND DATA PROTECTION
12.1. How we may use your personal information. We will only use your personal information as set out in our privacy policy which can be found https://railsbank.com/payrnet.
13. Anti-bribery and Corruption
13.1. Each party shall:
13.1.1. Comply with all applicable laws, statutes, regulations, codes and guidance relating to anti-bribery and anti-corruption (“Anti-Bribery Laws”), including without limitation the Bribery Act 2010;
13.1.2. maintain throughout the term of this Agreement its own anti-bribery policies and procedures (including adequate procedures under the Bribery Act 2010) to ensure compliance with the Anti-Bribery Laws; and
13.1.3. enforce such policies and procedures where appropriate.
13.2. For the purpose of this clause, the meaning of adequate procedures shall be determined in accordance with section 7(2) and any guidance issued under section 9, Bribery Act 2010.
13.3. Each party warrants that neither it nor any of its officers, employees:
13.3.1. has been convicted of any offence involving bribery, corruption, fraud or dishonesty; nor
13.3.2. to the best of its knowledge, has been or is the subject of any investigation, inquiry or enforcement proceedings by any governmental, administrative or regulatory body regarding any offence or alleged offence under the Anti-Bribery Laws.
13.4. Breach of this clause shall be deemed to be a material breach of this Agreement.
14. GENERAL
14.1 Recording of telephone conversations. We may record telephone conversations with or without use of a warning tone and we may use these recordings as evidence for a particular purpose or in relation to disputes as well as for our ongoing quality control and training programme. We may also maintain a record of all emails sent by or to us. All those recordings and records will be maintained at our absolute discretion and are our property and can be used by us in the case of a dispute. We do not guarantee that we will maintain such recordings or records or be able to make them available to you. You consent to the use and admissibility of any such recording as evidence in any dispute or anticipated dispute between the parties which relates to the dealings between the parties.
14.2. Ensuring this Agreement is legally enforceable. For a contract to be legally enforceable, there needs to be an offer, acceptance and consideration. This Agreement constitutes our offer to make the Services available to you and you agreeing to this Agreement constitutes your acceptance of this offer. In order to ensure that this Agreement is legally binding, upon you becoming a client, you promise to pay us the sum of one‑Pound sterling, upon demand from us, as consideration.
14.3. Even if we delay in enforcing under this Agreement, we can still enforce it later. If we do not insist immediately that you do anything you are required to do under this Agreement, or if we delay in taking steps against you in respect of your breach of this Agreement that will not mean that you do not have to do those things and it will not prevent us taking steps against you at a later date.
14.4. What if something unexpected happens? We shall have no liability to you under this Agreement if we are prevented from or delayed in performing our obligations under this Agreement, or from carrying on our business, by acts, events, omissions or accidents beyond our reasonable control, including, without limitation, strikes, lock‑outs or other industrial disputes (whether involving us or any other party), failure of a utility service or transport or telecommunications network, act of God, war, riot, civil commotion, malicious damage, compliance with any law or governmental order, rule, regulation or direction, accident, breakdown of plant or machinery, fire, flood, storm or our default of sub‑contractors, provided that you are notified of such an event and its expected duration.
14.5. If a court finds part of this Agreement illegal, the rest will continue in force. Each of the sub‑clauses and clauses of this Agreement operates separately. If any court or relevant authority decides that any of them are unlawful, the remaining sub‑clauses and clauses will remain in full force and effect.
14.6. We are not partners and neither of us may act as the other’s agent. Nothing in this Agreement is intended to or shall operate to create a partnership or joint venture between you and us, or authorise either party to act as agent for the other, and neither party shall have the authority to act in the name or on behalf of or otherwise to bind the other in any way (including, but not limited to, the making of any representation or warranty, the assumption of any obligation or liability and the exercise of any right or power).
14.7. We can make amendments to this Agreement. We shall have the right to make such amendments to this Agreement, via Sonovate, as are necessary to comply with any laws and regulations that are applicable to the performance of our obligations under this Agreement where such laws and regulations are implemented and/or amended after the date of this Agreement. Such amendments may be made at any time upon as much notice as possible to you and shall take effect following such notice, if any. If you object to the proposed amendments, you have the right to terminate this Agreement without charge before the date proposed by us for the entry into force of the changes. You will be deemed to have accepted the proposed amendments unless you notify us and terminate this Agreement before the date proposed by us for the entry into force of the changes. If no objection is received from you, such amendments shall take effect from the date specified by us but may not affect any rights or obligations that have already arisen and will not be retrospective.
14.8. What happens if you are jointly a client of ours with another person? Where you comprise two or more people, each person will be jointly and severally liable to us in respect of all obligations contained in this Agreement.
14.9. Can you obtain a copy of this Agreement or additional information? You may request and we shall provide a copy of this Agreement and any information set out in Schedule 4 of the Regulations (if relevant) at any time prior to termination of this Agreement.
14.10. We may transfer this Agreement to someone else. We may transfer our rights and obligations under this Agreement to another organisation without your consent. We will always tell you in writing if this happens and we will ensure that the transfer will not affect your rights under this Agreement.
14.11. You need our consent to transfer your rights to someone else (except that you can always transfer our guarantee). You may only transfer your rights or your obligations under this Agreement to another person if we agree to this in writing.
14.12. Nobody else has any rights under this Agreement. This agreement is between you and us. No other person shall have any rights to enforce any of its terms.
14.13. Which laws apply to this Agreement and where you may bring legal proceedings. This Agreement and any disputes or claims arising out of or in connection with this Agreement or its subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims) are governed by, and construed in accordance with, the laws of England. You irrevocably agree that the courts of England have exclusive jurisdiction to settle any dispute or claim or other matter that arises out of or in connection with this Agreement or its subject matter or formation (including non-contractual disputes or claims).
Sonovate & GDPR
We made updates to reflect the high standards established by the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), a set of laws passed in the European Union, which come into force on 25th May 2018. Please read on to see what measures Sonovate has taken to safeguard your data.
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). Microsoft is committed to being GDPR compliant across all their cloud services when enforcement begins on May 25. 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.
If you would like more information on any of our products, please get in touch on 0207 112 4959 or email ir35@sonovate.com
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