Terms & Conditions

These terms and conditions apply to all floor sanding, restoration, repair, finishing and related services provided by Flooring Trade Ltd trading as Barnet Floor Sanding ("we", "us", "our") to you, the customer ("you", "your"). By accepting a quotation or booking work with us, you agree to these terms. Please read them carefully and ask us if anything is unclear.

1. Definitions

"Services" means the work described in our quotation, including sanding, repairs, gap filling, staining, finishing, maintenance and any agreed additional work.
"Quotation" means our written estimate of the Services and their price, sent to you after a survey or based on information and photos you provide.
"Premises" means the property where the Services are carried out.
"Completion" means the day we finish the final coat of finish or the last item of agreed work.

2. Quotations and surveys

Surveys are free and carry no obligation. Quotations are valid for 30 days from the date they are issued. They are based on the floor area, condition and access we saw at the survey, or on the information and photos you provided. If we were unable to inspect the floor fully — for example because it was covered by carpet, furniture or another floor covering — the Quotation may need to be revised once the floor is uncovered.

The Quotation states what is included. Anything not listed, such as moving heavy furniture, removing old coverings, nails, staples or adhesive, or carrying out structural repairs, is not included unless agreed in writing.

3. Booking, deposits and payment

A booking is confirmed when you accept the Quotation and we confirm a start date. We may ask for a deposit to secure the date and to purchase materials; the amount will be shown on the Quotation. The balance is payable on Completion unless we have agreed staged payments in writing, for example on larger or commercial projects.

Payment can be made by bank transfer or any other method shown on our invoice. If payment is not made when due, we may charge interest and recovery costs in line with the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 for business customers, or interest at 4% above the Bank of England base rate for consumers. Ownership of any materials supplied stays with us until the invoice is paid in full.

4. Your responsibilities

To allow us to carry out the work safely and on time, you agree to:

give us clear and safe access to the Premises at the agreed times;
clear the rooms of furniture, rugs and personal belongings before we arrive, unless we have agreed to move furniture as part of the Services;
provide access to electricity, running water and a toilet free of charge;
keep the Premises reasonably heated (around 15–25°C) during the work and while finishes dry, as cold or damp conditions affect drying and curing;
arrange suitable parking near the Premises, or reimburse any parking charges or permits we need;
tell us about underfloor heating, pipes or cables under the floor, known damp, previous treatments and anything else that could affect the work;
keep children, pets and other trades out of the work area while we are working and while finishes dry.

If we cannot start or continue the work because these points have not been met, we may charge for lost time and rearrange the booking.

5. Our work and materials

We will carry out the Services with reasonable care and skill, using suitable equipment and good-quality materials. We use dust-extraction sanding machines that capture the vast majority of dust at source; some fine dust may still settle, and we will clean up at the end of each working day. We may choose the most suitable products and methods for your floor unless you have specified a particular product in writing.

6. Changes to the work

If you ask for extra work, or if we find something during the job that could not reasonably have been seen at the survey — such as hidden damage, rot, woodworm, loose or broken joists, extensive nails or adhesive residue — we will explain the issue and agree any change to the work and price with you before we carry it out. If you decide not to go ahead with the additional work, we will complete the original Services as far as reasonably possible, and we will not be responsible for the effect of the issue on the finished result.

7. The natural characteristics of timber

Wood is a natural material and every floor is different. You accept that:

colour, grain and figure vary between boards and blocks, and sanded timber may look different from your expectations, from samples or from photos;
stains and oils react differently with different timbers and with older or previously treated wood, so the final colour may vary from a sample; we will always offer a test area before staining;
existing damage such as deep stains, burns, pet urine marks, nail holes, old repairs, plugs and wear around fixings may remain visible after sanding;
very old, thin, uneven or previously heavily sanded floors cannot always be sanded completely flat or free of all marks without removing too much timber;
all timber changes colour over time with exposure to light, and new boards or blocks used in repairs will age at a different rate from the original floor.

8. Gap filling and seasonal movement

Wooden floors expand and contract with changes in temperature and humidity through the seasons, and move with the structure of the building. Gap filling with resin filler or timber slivers reduces gaps and draughts, but because of this natural movement, filler may crack, shrink or work loose and gaps may reopen over time. This is a characteristic of the timber, not a defect in our work. For this reason, gap filling is excluded from our service guarantee.

9. Drying and curing times

We will tell you when the floor can be used. As a general guide, light foot traffic in socks is possible after a few hours, furniture can be returned carefully after 24–48 hours, and rugs should not be laid for about a week while the finish fully cures. Drying times depend on the product, temperature, humidity and ventilation. We are not responsible for damage caused by using the floor, replacing furniture or laying rugs earlier than advised, or by other trades working on the floor.

10. Cancellations and postponements

If you are a consumer and the contract was made away from our business premises or at a distance, you have the right to cancel within 14 days of accepting the Quotation without giving a reason. If you ask us to start work within that period, you will pay for work carried out and materials ordered up to the time you cancel.

After the cancellation period, if you cancel or postpone with less than 7 days' notice, we may keep the deposit to cover materials ordered and the loss of the booked dates. We will always try to offer a new date first. If we need to postpone because of illness, equipment failure, severe weather or other circumstances outside our control, we will let you know as soon as possible and agree a new date with you; we will not be liable for any other costs caused by the delay.

11. Guarantee

Our floor restoration work comes with a 3-month service guarantee from Completion. If a fault caused by our workmanship or the materials we supplied appears within that period, we will return and put it right free of charge. The guarantee applies under normal use and provided our aftercare advice is followed. It does not cover gap filling (see section 8), water damage, damage from furniture without protection, pets, grit or footwear, existing structural or subfloor defects, damp, natural colour change, or floors cleaned with unsuitable products. Full details are on our service guarantee page. The guarantee is in addition to your statutory rights.

12. Liability and insurance

We hold public liability insurance and can provide a copy of the certificate on request. We are responsible for loss or damage that is a foreseeable result of our breaking these terms or failing to use reasonable care and skill. We are not responsible for loss that was not foreseeable, for business losses (for consumer customers), or for damage caused by pre-existing defects, hidden services under the floor that you did not tell us about, or the actions of other people.

Where you are a business customer, our total liability is limited to the price of the Services. Nothing in these terms limits our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud, or for anything else that cannot be limited by law, and nothing affects your statutory rights as a consumer.

13. Complaints

If you are not happy with any part of our work, please tell us as soon as possible, ideally before we leave site or within 7 days of Completion. We will discuss the issue with you, arrange to inspect the floor if needed and agree how to put things right. Please give us a reasonable opportunity to resolve the matter before arranging for anyone else to carry out remedial work.

14. Photos and data protection

We may take photos of the floor before, during and after the work for our records and, without showing any personal details or identifying the property, for our website and marketing. Please let us know if you would prefer us not to use photos of your floor. We handle your personal data as described in our privacy policy.

15. General

These terms, together with the Quotation, form the whole agreement between you and us. If any part of these terms is found to be unenforceable, the rest will remain in force. We may update these terms from time to time; the version in force when you accept the Quotation will apply to your work.

These terms are governed by the law of England and Wales, and any dispute will be dealt with by the courts of England and Wales.