October 2011

ENTITLEMENTS, TERMS AND CONDITIONS
HomeSource "Access", HomeSource "Find-A-Tradesman", HomeSource "Home Assist" and HomeSource "Business Assist".

Disclaimer
This publication is intended as a first point of reference and should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional advice. You should obtain professional advice that takes into account your specific circumstances before you make any decisions.

By accessing and or using this website, you agree that HomeSource Ltd is not responsible to you or anyone else for any loss, damage, cost or expense suffered in connection with the use of this website or any of its contents. This includes, but is not limited to, the transmission of any computer virus.

Further, your use of this website or receipt of any information from us or this website is not intended to create, nor does it create, a client relationship (in particular solicitor – client relationship) between you and HomeSource.

Our website may be linked to other websites over which we have no control. We make no representations about the accuracy of the information contained on those websites and are not liable for their contents.

Variations to the terms and conditions

HomeSource reserves the right to amend prices and inclusions of policies and services without prior notice. Please review these terms regularly to ensure you are aware of any changes.

Introduction
HomeSource is a service provider supplying general advice and services in regard to your most important asset, your home. This includes general legal, building and trades advice. The advice supplied by HomeSource is not a substitute for specific advice and should not be relied upon as specific advice.

As the advice given by HomeSource is of a general nature it is possible that HomeSource will advise you to seek expert advice. HomeSource will endeavor to determine the type of Specialist advice you need and refer you to a suitable Specialist. HomeSource Ltd, however, has no affiliation with any Specialist and is purely a referral agency in this regard. Whilst HomeSource will use reasonable endeavors to ensure any Specialist it refers you to is of the highest quality, HomeSource does not warrant the quality of the Specialist and is not responsible for any loss, damage, cost or expense suffered due to your use of that Specialist.

For the purposes of this Disclaimer, Specialist means any person or company that HomeSource refers you to or advises you that they could assist you, including but not limited to lawyers, law firms, builders, tradesmen or trade suppliers and any of these groups listed on the website including those in the Find a Tradesmen section of the website.

HomeSource Home Assist supports you using qualified trades people to assist you in the case of an emergency at your home. Please refer to specific terms and conditions related to this product below.
HomeSource Business Assist offers similar services to Home Assist but is designed for Business use. Please refer to specific terms and conditions related to this product below.

Important Information

The information contained in this document is correct at the time of printing but is subject to change at any time and without notice.

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HomeSource Access

1.            Entitlements

Your annual membership payment entitles you to:

• Access to the HomeSource website and all the information enclosed within it;

• Access to the forums on the website and to lodge your comments, subject to the
  forum rules, as well as read the comments of others;

• Sixty (60) minutes of Consultation time with our lawyers and builders in accordance with the heading below “How the One Hour Advice Works"

• Access to our Find a Tradesman search engine;

• Updates on consumer matters in relation to property owners.
  
  

2.            How the One Hour Advice Works

Your membership entitles you to one (1) hour of free legal and/or building Consultation. This is a cumulative amount of 60 minutes that is calculated in 1 minute blocks and accrue each time you access the facility.

Consultation, for the purposes of time calculation is defined to mean:

• Time on the telephone with a HomeSource builder or lawyer;

• Time spent by the HomeSource builder or lawyer noting the details of the call and file noting the discussion and action required;

• Time spent by the HomeSource builder or lawyer reading your query if it is sent by email or mail;

• Time spent by the HomeSource lawyer or builder sending an email or letter response;

• It does not include time spent by the HomeSource lawyer or builder researching your query or contacting other parties to assist you or find an answer to your query.

• It does not include time spent by the HomeSource lawyer or builder managing your case for internal HomeSource purposes.

The premise is that you only pay for the time spent liaising with the HomeSource lawyer or builder.

3.            Top Up Payments
Whilst your membership allows you one hour of Consultation with HomeSource, HomeSource acknowledges that different people have different requirements and you may require extra time. Accordingly, you can pay for a top-up of either 30 minutes or 60 minutes at any time at the cost advertised from time to time on the website, or as advised by calling 1300 733 420. The time purchased will then be added to your available Consultation time. Whilst you remain a member of HomeSource your unused time will accumulate from year to year. Unused time will be forfeited if you cease to be a member.

4.            Legal Advice
The legal advice supplied by HomeSource is general advice only and is not case specific. While HomeSource uses reasonable endeavors to ensure all information on the website and general legal advice given is correct HomeSource is not liable for any loss suffered by a member for relying on the information. The HomeSource lawyers are not supplied with all information regarding a case to make a definitive recommendation. Members should seek independent legal advice on their specific legal issues.
 

5.            Building Advice
The building advice supplied by HomeSource is general advice only and is not case specific. The HomeSource builders are not supplied with all the information regarding a specific case and have not viewed the property to which the case relates. Accordingly, the advice given by the HomeSource builders should not be specifically relied upon and HomeSource is not liable for any loss suffered by members relying on the information.

6.            Forums
The public access forums are for the benefit of all members to assist in the flow of information on the quality of property lawyers, tradesmen and other Specialists for the home. The information posted on the forums are not the views, beliefs or ideas of HomeSource or HomeSource staff.

HomeSource will use reasonable endeavors to monitor the content of the forums to ensure that the information posted there is not distasteful, discriminatory, illegal, or defamatory, and HomeSource will remove any posts that it determines to be so at its absolute discretion. HomeSource will notify the member who posted any post that is removed.

HomeSource welcomes members to advise the Webmaster if they feel any comments on the forum pages are inappropriate.

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HomeSource Find a Tradesperson:

1.            General Disclaimer:

1.1.       This publication is intended as a first point of reference and should not be relied upon as a substitute for professional advice.

1.2.       By accessing and or using this website, you agree that HomeSource Ltd is not responsible to you or anyone else for any loss, damage, cost or expense suffered in connection with the use of this website or any of its contents. This includes, but is not limited to, the transmission of any computer virus. Further, your use of this website or receipt of any information from us or this website is not intended to create, nor does it create, a client relationship between you and HomeSource Ltd. Our website may be linked to other websites over which we have no control. We make no representations about the accuracy of the information contained on those websites and are not liable for their contents.

1.3.       HomeSource Ltd is a service provider supplying general advice and services in regard to your most important asset, your home. Whilst HomeSource Ltd will use reasonable endeavours to ensure any Specialist it refers to you is of the highest quality, HomeSource Ltd does not warrant the quality of the Specialist and is not responsible for any loss, damage, cost or expense suffered due to your use of that Specialist. For the purposes of this Disclaimer, Specialist means any person or company that is included in the Find a Tradesman, or that is referred to you as a potential supplier that could assist you, including but not limited to builders, tradesmen or trade suppliers and any of these groups listed on the website including those in the Find a Tradesmen section of the website.

2.            Variations to the terms and conditions

2.1.       HomeSource Ltd reserves the right to amend prices and inclusions of policies and services without prior notice. Please review these terms regularly to ensure you are aware of any changes. Another copy is available by visiting www.homesource.com.au and clicking on the site disclaimer link.

3.            The Service Provided

3.1.       Your membership entitles you to access our Find a Tradesman search engine. This allows you to search for different trades suppliers by post code. The suppliers listed on the database have not paid to be there. Their inclusion is based on their service standards, proof of licence and insurances, and their promise to abide by our code of conduct requiring the highest service levels to customers.

4.            Eligibility

4.1.       Access to the Find a Tradesman search engine will be limited to those HomeSource customers that enter the search engine via the nominated HomeSource website and are logged in.

4.2.       Service will only be provided to persons with a current subscription to HomeSource.

5.            Limitation of Liability

5.1.       Any work that you initiate with any service provider or 3rd party you find on the Find a Tradesman site is wholly the responsibility of the HomeSource customer. All such arrangements will be between the HomeSource customer and the Service Provider / third party and will not involve HomeSource Ltd. HomeSource Ltd accepts no responsibility or liability for any work performed by the Service Provider or by any third party.

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HomeSource Home Assist

HomeSource Home Assist home emergency cover is managed by HomeSource Ltd.

1.            Nature of Service

1.1.       HomeSource Home Assist provides qualified trades people to help you manage specific emergencies around the home, including and limited to: Electrical emergencies, Plumbing and Gas emergencies and Locksmith emergencies. Details of the membership benefits and the exclusions are detailed below and on the relevant website page.

2.            Eligibility

2.1.       Subject to these Terms and Conditions, Service under HomeSource is only available for residential properties including houses, duplexes, flats, units and apartments.

2.2.       The property covered must be located in mainland Australia, including Tasmania and within a major metropolitan centre or within 20km of a regional centre. Regional centres being a town which serves a significant regional population of 10,000 or more.

2.3.       Service is available for Home Emergencies occurring within the property boundaries of the nominated Primary Residential Property.

2.4.       Service will only be provided to persons with a current subscription that can be validated by the HomeSource call centre.

2.5.       Should, upon attending the property, the contractor find the problem not as described when the claim was registered, and not a covered event, then the Home owner will be responsible for the cost of the callout, the first half-hour’s labour and any other costs incurred.

3.            Proof of Identity and Current HomeSource Subscription

3.1.       HomeSource customers, or their representatives, must be present at the property during the time of service provision.

3.2.       Where a HomeSource customer requires assistance to gain entry to the Primary Residential Property, satisfactory proof of identity will be required by the HomeSource Service Provider prior to service provision.

4.            Service Call Out Limits

4.1.       Customers registered under this programme are entitled to receive up to two (2) Service call outs per subscription year and while they remain valid customers.

4.2.       Each callout will be deducted from the available callouts each time a claim for Service is made and the problem is resolved, even where HomeSource has not dispatched a service provider.

4.3.       If the unused callouts are not used while the customer remains with HomeSource in any 12 month period, they will not be carried over to the next year. If the customer cancels their HomeSource membership then they will immediately lose access to any further callouts.

5.            What is an emergency:

5.1.       An emergency is defined as “A sudden and unexpected event occurring during the period of membership, involving your home which, in our reasonable opinion, exposes the member or a third party to a risk to their health, or necessitates immediate remedial action to render the home safe or secure or avoid damage or further damage”.

5.2.       If HomeSource does not consider the situation to be an emergency, we will ‘triage’ the situation and offer the details of suitable contractors that can assist. 

6.            Home Emergencies Inclusions (i.e. What is covered):

6.1.       Under your cover, the costs associated with the dispatch of the trades person and the cost of the first half hour of their time on site is covered by Home Assist. If the repair can be made during the first half hour then there is no cost to the customer (except for any parts that may have been used). If additional time is required, the cost of repairing the problem (parts and labour) is the responsibility of the member.

6.2.       Service inclusions covered include:

• a blocked toilet, pipe or drain

• a burst tap or showerhead

• a burst pipe

• a broken or burst hot water system

• a partial or complete power blackout in the property

• being locked out of the house

• a gas leak

7.            Home Emergencies Exclusions (i.e. What is not covered):

7.1.       HomeSource Home Assist provides the services and benefits described during the period that your HomeSource account remains open. But there are Conditions and Exclusions, shown below, which limit your cover. Please read them carefully.

7.2.       This cover is not a household building or contents policy or an equipment maintenance contract. It complements your household insurance policies, providing benefits and services which are not normally available under such policies. We therefore recommend that you have a buildings insurance policy covering your property and a contents insurance policy covering your possessions.

7.3.       If you request any additional work from a service provider (that is work outside that covered by your HomeSource) then you are responsible for all work and accept that all arrangements are solely between you and the service provider, and do not involve HomeSource Ltd. HomeSource Ltd accepts no responsibility or liability for any work performed by the Service Provider or by any third party outside the services performed under the terms and conditions of HomeSource’s delivery of the HomeSource Home Assist service.

8.            General Exclusions:

8.1.       HomeSource is not available for: (a) non-residential properties; (b) properties used for commercial, retail, office, industrial or professional purposes; (c) properties used for commercial farming or agricultural purposes; (d) non-Fixed dwellings – such as trailers, caravans, campervans, recreational or other vehicles; or

8.2.       Service is not available for or in response to: events which are not defined as Home Emergencies; Major Structural Damage; Area Wide Disruption to Essential Services; or Major Disasters or Events.

8.3.       The following are excluded from coverage under the terms of the cover:

(a)    Any loss or damage occurring within the first 14 days of cover;

(b)    Any leaking or dripping tap that requires re-washering or replacing and external overflows, replacement of cylinders, tanks, radiators and sanitary ware;

(c)    Burst or leaking flexible hoses or leaking washing appliances which are fitted with a stop tap;

(d)    External water supply pipes;

(e)    Hot water systems over 10 years old;

(f)     Replacement of light bulbs, fuses and plugs;

(g)    Loss of keys for outbuildings, garages and sheds;

(h)    Breakdown or loss of or damage to domestic appliances including gas and electric heaters or Saniflow toilets and other mechanical equipment;

(i)      Damage to boundary walls, hedges, fences or gates.

(j)     Electricity supply to, or failure of burglar/fire alarm systems, CCTV surveillance or to swimming pools and their plumbing or filtration systems.

(k)    Any form of air-conditioning or solar heating systems.

(l)      Any property that is located outside a 20km distance of a regional centre.

(m)  Any emergency in a property that has been unoccupied for more than 30 consecutive days.

9.            Response Times

9.1.       There may be occasions when Home Assist may not be able to respond within the normal time frame (2 hrs or as agreed with the account holder) due to circumstances beyond the control of HomeSource Home Assist. This may include when there has been a severe storm or civil disturbance that has impacted numerous homes. In such a case HomeSource Home Assist will supply a tradesperson at the earliest possible opportunity and keep the customer informed at regular intervals.

10.        Excesses

10.1.    HomeSource Home Assist claims that occur on a public holiday or during weekends (that is anytime after 5pm on Friday and before 7am on Monday), or at anytime during public holidays and requires one of our trades contractors to attend, an excess of $75 is payable before service can be provided. The excess can be paid by credit card directly at the time of your emergency call.

10.2.    All home assist claims that can be triaged and do not require a HomeSource trades person to attend, do not attract any excesses payments.

11.        General Limitations

11.1.    We will not be liable for any of the following: (a) Loss or damage arising from circumstances known to you prior to the start date of this cover; (b) The cost of replacement parts; (c) Loss or damage arising from disconnection or interruption of mains services by the deliberate act of the Utility Company concerned or any equipment or services which are the responsibility or property of the Utility Company; (d) Any cost relating to the attempted repair by you or your own contractor; (e) Any defect, damage or failure caused by you or your own contractor; (e) Any defect, damage or failure caused by malicious or wilful action, negligence, misuse, interference or faulty workmanship of anyone other than HomeSource or its representatives, including any attempted repair or modification which does not comply with recognized industry standards; These Terms and Conditions are to be interpreted strictly in favour of HomeSource Ltd where there is any ambiguity. HomeSource Ltd is only liable to provide or pay for Services to the extent clearly and expressly provided for in these Terms and Conditions.

11.2.    It is the responsibility of the HomeSource customer to advise the Service Provider not to repair an item where doing so may void a warranty or cause the HomeSource customer to breach a contractual obligation. Where practicable, the trades provider will ask the customer if the item is under warranty before proceeding with any work on that product.

11.3.    To the extent permitted by law, HomeSource Ltd will not be liable to any person for any indirect, special or consequential loss or damage in connection with the Services, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), statute or otherwise.

11.4.     “You may have rights under consumer protection laws, such as a guarantee that the services we provide will be provided with due care and skill.  Nothing in these terms or conditions is intended to exclude or restrict the application of any consumer protection law.”

12.        Complaints

12.1.    If you have a concern, would like to lodge a complaint or provide feedback regarding this service please call the HomeSource phone line. This will then put you through to one of our operators who will help you with your complaint or feedback.

13.        What to do should you suffer an emergency:

13.1.    If you suffer an emergency at your property you should tell us on the emergency telephone number. We will then: (a) Advise you on what can be done to protect yourself and the property immediately; (b) Organise the dispatch of a repairer to help address the problem, only if the problem cannot be solved over the phone. Under this cover, the costs associated with the dispatch of the trades person and the cost of the first half hour of their time on site is covered by HomeSource Home Assist.

14.        Fair use Policy

14.1.    In order to provide quality service at a competitive price, HomeSource Ltd reserves the right to amend or withdraw service if use is excessive resulting from a lack of maintenance or failure to rectify existing issues. In these cases, customers will be given reasonable notice before the service is amended or withdrawn.

15.        Definitions:

         Primary Residential Property: This is the listed address for the property where the service is to be delivered. This is the only address where the service will be delivered for this account.

Major Structural Damage:  any damage to a property that requires the services of a trade other than or in addition to the services of a plumber/electrician or locksmith, to rectify the problem.  

         Area Wide disruption: any event that impacts properties in an area in addition to the Primary Residential property.                                                                                                                                                                                                                     

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HomeSource Business Assist

HomeSource Business Assist provides qualified trades people to help you manage specific emergencies around the business property. Details of the membership benefits and the exclusions are details below and on the relevant website page. Please refer to all of these for full membership details.

1.            What is covered:
Under your membership (Basic and Prestige), the costs associated with the dispatch of the trades person and the cost of the first half hour of their time on site is covered by Business Assist.  The cost of repairing the problem (parts and labour) is the responsibility of the member.

For specific areas of coverage, please refer to the corresponding website page or the HomeSource Business Assist brochure.

2.            What is not covered:

2.1.       Business Assist provides the services and benefits described during the period of the membership for which you have paid the membership fee. But there are Conditions and Exclusions, shown below, which limit your cover. Please read them carefully.

2.2.       This membership is not a building or contents policy or an equipment maintenance contract. It complements your insurance policies, providing benefits and services which are not normally available under such policies. We therefore recommend that you have a buildings insurance policy covering your property and a contents insurance policy covering your possessions.

3.            Exclusions:
The following are excluded from coverage under the terms of the membership:

(a)    any loss or damage occurring within the first 14 days of cover;

(b)    any leaking or dripping tap that requires re-washering or replacing and external overflows, replacement of cylinders, tanks, radiators and sanitary ware;

(c)    burst or leaking flexible hoses or leaking washing appliances which are fitted with a stop tap;

(d)    external water supply pipes;

(e)    Hot water systems over 10 years old;

(f)     replacement of light bulbs, fuses and plugs;

(g)    loss of keys for outbuildings, garages and sheds;

(h)    breakdown or loss of or damage to domestic appliances or saniflow toilets and other mechanical equipment;

(i)      damage to boundary walls, hedges, fences or gates.

(j)     Electricity supply to, or failure of burglar/fire alarm systems, CCTV surveillance or to swimming pools and their plumbing or filtration systems.

(k)    Any form of warm air or solar heating systems

Please note: There may be occasions when Business Assist may not be able to respond within the normal time frame due to circumstances beyond the control of HomeSource Business Assist.  This may include when there has been a severe storm or civil disturbance that has impacted numerous sites.  In such a case Business Assist will supply a tradesperson at the earliest possible opportunity and keep the customer informed at regular intervals.

4.            We will not be liable for any of the following:

(a)    loss or damage arising from circumstances known to you prior to the start date of this insurance;

(b)    the cost of replacement parts;

(c)    loss or damage arising from disconnection or interruption of mains services by the deliberate act of the Utility Company concerned or any equipment or services which are the responsibility or property of the Utility Company;

(d)    any cost relating to the attempted repair by you or your own contractor;

(e)    any defect, damage or failure caused by malicious or willful action, negligence, misuse, third party interference or faulty workmanship, including any attempted repair or modification which does not comply with recognized industry standards;

(f)     any emergency in a property that has been unoccupied for more than 30 consecutive days.

5.            Fair use Policy
In order to provide quality service at a competitive price, HomeSource Pty Ltd reserves the right to amend or withdraw service if use is excessive resulting from a lack of maintenance or failure to rectify existing issues.

6.            Important note for account holders not occupying the nominated address
In the event of an emergency where there are additional costs not covered by membership, including events that require more than half an hour of labour to address or require materials at extra cost, HomeSource will endeavour to contact the account holder (member) for authorisation before work commences. Unless specified otherwise (option only available to certain property managers), if the account holder (member) is not contactable on the phone details provided on his/her account, the tenant will have the authority to authorise the work on the account holder’s (member’s) behalf. Any additional costs will be charged to the account holder (member).

7.            What to do should you suffer an emergency
If you suffer an emergency at your property you should tell us on the emergency telephone number.

We will then:
(a) advise you how to protect yourself and the property immediately;

(b) organise the dispatch of a repairer to help address the problem. Under this membership, the costs associated with the dispatch of the trades person and the cost of the first half hour of their time on site is covered by Business Assist. The costs of repairing the problem (parts and labour is the resp