continue and, if so, agree a mutually acceptable settlement on work done to date. For Brick Wall cases the aim may not be to solve the enquiry but to advance the research so that it can be taken up by you subsequently. It will normally be the case that we have to make brief research enquiries first so that we can make a proper assessment of cost and any source records or manuscripts that may be required.

If this is the case, we will let you know after our initial research enquiries.

Deposit

On most products we ask for a 50% deposit whilst other products are available by monthly instalments. Work commences upon clearance of the first instalment subject to the 14 day Cooling Off period.

Fixed Price Services

We provide family tree research products based on the number of lines you want to follow. In the rare event that our initial enquiries indicate that research would not be productive or would take too long, we will revert back to you and make a full refund if you do not require any other option. Such an option might be to concentrate on a particular part of a family tree or to do as much as possible whilst explaining the issues. If we have already started research and we have agreed to purchase certificates etc. we will agree an appropriate refund with you where applicable.

Services paid by the Hour

Alternatively, you may prefer research services charged per hour at current rates. These include a review of any prior research; communication with you; research and enquiries; preparation of lists of records, documents, manuscript; analysis; family tree where included; writing and preparing reports; delivery and phone calls where required. All these services are included in the fixed price products.

Tailored Services

We will confirm what has been agreed after an initial e-mail consultation and produce a research plan and proposals on the best way to achieve your research goals.

Records and Manuscripts

We should usually be able to fulfil an order for documents, records or manuscripts if you can provide the correct date but if we have to locate them we will let you know of the prospects for doing so. Half of the payment made for ordering records or manuscripts relates to the time and expertise for performing such a search in the relevant locations. Locating a record relevant to your case cannot be guaranteed. Some might not be available whilst others appear to be correct but may not be for various reasons. We have a high success rate of locating the correct records but if we are unable to fulfil a request for which you have made payment, we will retain a search fee of half the cost paid for locating the relevant item.

Additional records or manuscripts

Each service shows how many records, documents or manuscripts are included in the price. If further items are required we will give you the option to add those to your research plan at an additional cost.

When Additional Records are required

Our rates for fixed rate packages include a number of records as specified but you can ask us to obtain more for you at the current rate per item.

Our hourly rate does not include additional disbursements such as the cost of ordering, copying, scanning, labelling and transcribing certificates or manuscripts etc. Some cases require visiting document depositories throughout the country and the cost of travel and time at the archives is not included in the fixed rate cases unless specified. In such cases we will give you a list of potential documents that would be needed and explain why. We would not proceed without your express agreement. We can then agree which ones we should obtain and will charge on an hourly basis or per document depending on your preference. The vast majority of cases can be solved without such visits.  

Delivery Times

Research is managed in the order in which we receive initial payments and research requests. We will agree an appropriate timescale at the outset but please note that this can take from a few weeks to several months to complete depending on the product or type of records that might be required. For long term research we will provide brief updates to let you know how things are going.  If your project is delayed we will keep you informed.  We can also arrange staged research depending on the type of case, to be agreed at outset.

Express Delivery

Depending on workload it might be possible to arrange express delivery by prioritising your case but a charge may be involved.

Delivery

When we have received the final instalment we will send you digital copies of our report in PDF and Word format. It will outline our findings and normally include a chronological outline of events with further background information relevant to your ancestors or relations.

We will also provide digital copies of all records and manuscripts we have obtained. Online manuscripts such as old wills or parish records will be passed to you in the same format as we receive them. When we obtain documents from depositories we will provide you with two colour images of each manuscript including one with salient parts transcribed and highlighted. Certificates and other records will be scanned in JPEG format unless obtained online in which case they will be forwarded in the same format as we received.

If you have ordered a family tree package we will send you a chart in PDF format and you will have the cost option of having this printed in large scale wall chart format.

For other services, extracts of family tree charts will be provided to show proven or possible relationships where applicable.

Copyright

The copyright of all reports supplied remains with British Ancestors. The copyright of documents remains with the original producer. Please therefore restrict the use of our research findings to you and your family. Please feel free to reproduce limited passages such as brief conclusions or findings about a particular person but please ensure you credit British Ancestors and the relevant genealogist in doing so. Please obtain our written consent to reproduce full reports or significant passages of the research. If you do so you could be breaching our copyright and also that of record-providers contained in the report. 

Cancellation

You have 14 days to cancel from the earlier date of receipt of your express instruction to proceed. Please send cancellation requests to info@british-ancestors.co.uk. We will not commence research until 14 days have passed but can commence earlier if the 14 day “cooling off” period is waived by you in writing. This cancellation period is in addition to your statutory rights.

Other Products

Other products such as physical souvenirs or gifts, tours or books might be arranged through third parties who will have their own terms of business. Please refer to these as appropriate or ask us to provide you with the relevant information.

Communication

We may contact you by e-mail to inform you of changes, developments or new services involving our British Ancestors website and services. If you do not want to receive such communications, please opt out of them by sending an e-mail to info@british-ancestors.co.uk.

Our Pledges to You

We will:-

• Keep you informed about the progress of research and advise of any difficulties.

• Check first-hand sources where possible if the budget permits.

• Provide clear reporting and appropriate caveats where the facts are not clear.

• Not make unproven claims but may provide theories with appropriate evidence as required.

• Provide alternative research options in case of difficulties.

• Disclose all relevant information without withholding relevant facts.

• Provide family tree research products based on the number of lines you want to follow. In the rare event that our initial enquiries indicate that research would not be productive or would take too long, we will revert back to you and make a full refund if you do not agree to other options. If we have already started research and we have agreed to purchase certificates etc. we will agree an appropriate refund with you where applicable.

• Confirm upon receipt of your order what we can do for you but if you are ordering a straightforward family tree we will usually be able to determine in advance the viability of this option.