Essential information about your research project
Before making any payment, please do contact us so that we can discuss your project with you and get a thorough understanding of your requirements. Waymark Genealogy will always make an initial free search before we begin working on your commission to ensure that there is a good chance of making progress on your project and we will share our initial thoughts with you together with our estimation of the likelihood of success in achieving your stated aim.
Waymark Genealogy applies the following terms and conditions to all research commissioned:
We use the information provided by you as a basis for our research and will work with you to ensure that this initial information is as accurate as possible. Waymark Genealogy cannot, however, be held responsible for errors arising from inaccuracies in the information originally supplied to us.
There are sometimes occasions when, for a variety of reasons, further research on a project fails to produce the expected results: not every birth was registered, not every age was recorded accurately, records are sometimes lost or destroyed and sometimes our ancestors were not always completely accurate about their personal information. There is no guarantee that Waymark Genealogy will be successful in the stated aims of any commissioned research despite our best efforts.
Waymark Genealogy will always be open and honest with you about our findings. On occasion, we may discover an unexpected fact and, although we will do our utmost to deal with unanticipated finds sensitively and tactfully, we accept no liability for any resulting material or emotional loss, damage or inconvenience.
Our work is charged at a rate to include time carrying out research and its subsequent analysis, writing up of results and the production of any family trees or charts.
Payment should be made in pounds sterling; any banking charges incurred by payments being made via PayPal will be invoiced in addition to the agreed fee. Any costs incurred for items such as ordering of copies of original documents, photography permits or postage will be invoiced in addition to the agreed fee.
Waymark Genealogy will keep you informed of time spent on research and will not go beyond agreed limits or incur additional costs without your prior permission.
Waymark Genealogy does not usually charge for travel; where an exception to this might need to be made, this will be agreed with you first.
Before starting any research, Waymark Genealogy will confirm in writing the cost of the project and its expected completion date; please be aware that larger research projects can often take six to ten weeks to complete. For larger projects, an initial deposit of one third of the fee will be due once a research plan has been agreed.
If research problems do arise, Waymark Genealogy will keep you fully informed about the progress of your project, no additional costs will be incurred without your express and written permission. If it is not possible to complete a project as originally agreed, you will only be charged for the research that has taken place up to that point.
The final phase of any project is the compilation of the report documentation. This can be a lengthy process and the time that this takes will have been built into the original cost of the project. Any outstanding balance will be invoiced as the report documentation is being compiled and payment will be due at this point.
If your research can be sent to you by email, this will be done as soon as the final payment has been received. If your research needs to be posted, it will be sent by recorded or special delivery, whether you live in the UK or in another country.
Please note the following points:
- Copies of any original documents remain the property of Waymark Genealogy until the final invoice has been paid.
- Waymark Genealogy provides reports for a client's personal use and shall retain the copyright on any and all reports provided. Research notes and plans remain the property of Waymark Genealogy.
- Many of the images contained in a Waymark Genealogy report will be curated from online sources in accordance with copyright and licence regulations. Those images are supplied only for your personal use and should not be published or distributed for any other purpose without express permission.