Permanent Terms of Business

1. About these terms

1. 1.1These terms are between The 15 ("we", "us", "our"), and the organisation receiving our services ("you", "your").
2. 1.2We act as an employment agency under the Employment Agencies Act 1973 and the Conduct of Employment Agencies and Employment Businesses Regulations 2003 (the "Conduct Regulations").
3. 1.3These terms apply to every Introduction we make to you. They replace any terms you send us, including terms on a purchase order, unless one of our directors agrees otherwise in writing.
4. 1.4You accept these terms when the first of these happens: you accept them in our client area or in writing; you ask us to start a search; you interview a Candidate we Introduced; or you Engage a Candidate we Introduced.

2. Definitions

1. 2.1Candidate means a person we Introduce to you. It includes any company or other business through which that person works.
2. 2.2Introduction means us giving you a Candidate's details in any form, including a profile, a CV, or their name and current role, or arranging for you to meet them. Introduce and Introduced have matching meanings.
3. 2.3Engage means you, any Group Company, or any third party you passed a Candidate's details to, employing or using the services of a Candidate in any capacity. That includes as an employee, worker, contractor, consultant or interim, directly, through their own company or through another agency. Engagement has a matching meaning.
4. 2.4Start Date means the Candidate's first day of Engagement.
5. 2.5Remuneration means the gross annual base salary payable to the Candidate for the first 12 months of the Engagement. It does not include bonus, commission, benefits, car allowance or pension. For part-time roles, it means the actual salary payable.
6. 2.6Introduction Period means 12 months from the date of our most recent Introduction of the Candidate to you.
7. 2.7Group Company means any subsidiary or holding company of yours, or any subsidiary of that holding company, as defined in section 1159 of the Companies Act 2006.
8. 2.8Fee means our fee under clause 5.
9. 2.9Working Day means Monday to Friday, excluding public holidays in Scotland.

3. Our service

1. 3.1We agree the brief with you, search for Candidates, assess them, and present a written profile and CV for each Candidate we Introduce.
2. 3.2People decide which Candidates we Introduce. We do not use automated screening, keyword filtering, scoring or ranking to make those decisions.
3. 3.3We aim to Introduce three Candidates per role on average, and no more than five, unless you ask us in writing for more.
4. 3.4We only Introduce a Candidate after they have agreed to be Introduced to you for that role.
5. 3.5Before an Introduction, we take the steps required by regulations 19 to 22 of the Conduct Regulations. We confirm the Candidate's identity, that they have the experience, training and qualifications you told us the role requires, and that they are willing to work in the role.
6. 3.6Independent identity verification and right-to-work checks happen after the Candidate accepts an offer and before their Start Date. See clause 8.
7. 3.7We may decline a role, or stop work on it, at any time. We will tell you why. We will always decline a role if, in our reasonable opinion, the salary is below the market rate.
8. 3.8We may work with other recruitment firms to fill your role. If we do, we remain your single point of contact, the Fee does not change, and you pay only us.
9. 3.9We do not promise to find a suitable Candidate. We do not promise that a Candidate will be suitable for you or will stay with you.

4. Your responsibilities

1. 4.1Before we start, you will give us the information required by regulation 18 of the Conduct Regulations:
   • your identity and the nature of your business;
   • the role, its start date and its likely duration;
   • the experience, training, qualifications and authorisations the role requires;
   • any health and safety risks you know of, and the steps you have taken to control them;
   • the salary, benefits, working hours and notice periods; and
   • anything the law or a professional body requires a Candidate to have.
2. 4.2You will keep Candidate information confidential. You will only use it to decide whether to Engage that Candidate for the role we Introduced them for.
3. 4.3You will not pass any Candidate's details to anyone else, including a Group Company or another agency, without our written consent.
4. 4.4You will tell us within 2 Working Days if you make a Candidate an offer, and if they accept it. You will tell us the agreed Remuneration and Start Date. If we ask, you will show us the salary section of the offer letter or contract.
5. 4.5You are responsible for:
   • deciding whether to Engage a Candidate;
   • taking up references and checking any qualifications or professional registrations you need;
   • your own legal duties as an employer, including your statutory right-to-work check; and
   • the Candidate's contract of employment.
6. 4.6You will comply with equality law when recruiting and Engaging Candidates.
7. 4.7If you already know a Candidate we Introduce, because they applied to you directly or another agency introduced them to you in the previous 6 months, and you are still actively considering them, you must tell us in writing within 2 Working Days of our Introduction, with evidence. If you do not, our Introduction is treated as the one that led to any Engagement.

5. Our Fee

1. 5.1Our Fee is 15% of the Remuneration.
2. 5.2The Fee is the same for every role and every level of seniority. There is no minimum fee and no sliding scale. We do not negotiate it.
3. 5.3For a fixed-term Engagement of less than 12 months, the Fee is 15% of the Remuneration payable for the fixed term. If the Engagement is extended or becomes permanent, the balance up to 15% of 12 months' Remuneration becomes payable on the date it is extended or becomes permanent.
4. 5.4If you do not tell us the Remuneration, or we reasonably believe it has been understated, we will calculate the Fee on the higher of the salary in your brief and the market salary for the role, as we reasonably assess it.
5. 5.5VAT is added to the Fee at the rate in force on the invoice date.

6. When the Fee is payable

1. 6.1The Fee is payable if you Engage a Candidate during the Introduction Period, in any role, not only the role we Introduced them for.
2. 6.2If you pass a Candidate's details to a third party, including a Group Company, and that third party Engages the Candidate during the Introduction Period, you will pay the Fee as if you had Engaged the Candidate yourself.
3. 6.3We invoice on the Start Date. You must pay within 14 days of the invoice date.
4. 6.4If you would like to Engage a Candidate as a contractor or interim instead, you may agree to do so through us under our Contract Terms of Business instead of paying the Fee.
5. 6.5The Fee is earned on the Start Date. It is not refundable if the Candidate later leaves or is dismissed.
6. 6.6If you withdraw an offer after the Candidate has accepted it, the Fee is payable as if the Candidate had started on the agreed Start Date. This does not apply if you withdraw because the Candidate failed the checks in clause 8 or misrepresented their experience or qualifications.
7. 6.7If the Candidate withdraws before the Start Date, no Fee is payable.

7. Paying us

1. 7.1If you pay late, we may charge interest and compensation under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.
2. 7.2We may pause work on your roles while any invoice is overdue.
3. 7.3If you dispute an invoice, tell us within 7 days of receiving it and give your reasons. You must pay any undisputed part on time.

8. Verification

1. 8.1After a Candidate accepts your offer, and before their Start Date, we will ask them to complete independent identity verification through a certified Identity Service Provider.
2. 8.2We will give you the result, the date and the reference. We do not keep copies of identity documents.
3. 8.3You remain responsible for your own right-to-work check as employer. Where Home Office guidance allows, you may rely on a certified Identity Service Provider check, provided you follow that guidance.
4. 8.4If a Candidate fails verification, no Fee is payable unless you Engage them anyway.

9. Data protection

1. 9.1We and you are each an independent controller of Candidate personal data under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.
2. 9.2You will use Candidate data only for the purpose in clause 4.2 and keep it secure.
3. 9.3You will delete the data of Candidates you do not Engage within 6 months of the end of the recruitment process, unless the Candidate agrees to you keeping it.
4. 9.4Neither of us will make a decision about a Candidate based solely on automated processing.
5. 9.5You will tell us within 48 hours if you have a personal data breach affecting Candidate data we gave you.
6. 9.6Our Privacy Policy explains how we handle personal data.

10. Confidentiality

1. 10.1Each of us will keep the other's confidential information secret, and only use it for the purposes of these terms.
2. 10.2This does not apply to information that is public through no fault of the receiving party, or that the law, a court or a regulator requires to be disclosed.

11. Liability

1. 11.1We will provide our services with reasonable skill and care.
2. 11.2We are not liable for any loss caused by a Candidate's acts or omissions, by your decision to Engage a Candidate, or by a Candidate not starting or leaving.
3. 11.3Neither of us is liable for loss of profit, revenue, business or goodwill, or for any indirect or consequential loss.
4. 11.4Our total liability under or in connection with these terms for any one Candidate is limited to the greater of the Fee paid for that Candidate and £5,000.
5. 11.5Nothing in these terms limits liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, for fraud, or for anything else that cannot be limited by law.
6. 11.6You will indemnify us against any loss we suffer because you breach clause 4.2, 4.3 or 9.

12. Ending these terms

1. 12.1Either of us may end these terms at any time by written notice.
2. 12.2Clauses 5, 6, 7, 9, 10, 11 and 13 continue after these terms end. They continue to apply to every Candidate we Introduced before the end date.

13. General

1. 13.1These terms are the whole agreement between us about our services. Neither of us has relied on anything not written in them.
2. 13.2We may update these terms by giving you 30 days' written notice. An update does not affect Candidates already Introduced. Any other change must be in writing and agreed by both of us.
3. 13.3Neither of us may transfer our rights under these terms without the other's consent, except that we may transfer them to a buyer of our business.
4. 13.4Notices may be sent by email. Our address is hello@the15.co.uk. Yours is the address you used to brief us, unless you tell us otherwise.
5. 13.5No one else has any right to enforce these terms, under the Contract (Third Party Rights) (Scotland) Act 2017 or otherwise.
6. 13.6If any part of these terms is found invalid, the rest continues to apply.
7. 13.7If either of us delays enforcing a right, that does not waive it.
8. 13.8If you are unhappy with our service, please use our Complaints Procedure.
9. 13.9These terms are governed by the law of Scotland. The Scottish courts have exclusive jurisdiction.

Schedule: Engagement confirmation

Contact: hello@the15.co.uk.