ADI Leak Detection Terms & Conditions

For the attention of all our potential future customers and existing customers.

We recommend familiarising yourself with our Ts&Cs before securing your appointment. If you have any questions please give us a call on 0800 731 3843.

Quick Reference:

1. Nature of the Work
2. Access to Site/Parking
3. ‘No Find, no fee’ Guarantee
4. Suitability of our Services to your Problem
5. Accuracy of Information Provided
6. Requirements & Preparation for your Leak Detection
7. Equipment
8. Time allocated for Appointments
9. Quote Prices for Leak Detection
10. Localising the Leak
11. Limitations of the Non-invasive Method
12. Repairs
13. Guarantee on Repairs
14. Secondary/Multiple Leaks
15. Surface Plumbing Disclaimer
16. Securing your Appointment
17. Payment Terms
18. Cancellations and Aborted Jobs
19. Multiple Parties Involved in the Booking
20. Damage, Liability and Complaints
21. Challenging our findings/Re-attendance
22. Recording of Telephone Conversations
23. Head Office Opening Hours and Contact Details

 

1. Nature of the Work

We specialise in detecting leaks on:

• Swimming pools
• Filtration systems
• Spas
• Fountains
• Water mains pipes
• Hot feeds
• Cold feeds
• Central heating systems

We are not damp specialists, roof leak detection engineers, structural engineers, boiler engineers, waste/drainage investigators, builders, or tilers etc.

If you have no idea which of the above categories your leak falls into, our Engineers will undertake a process of elimination to establish the source of a leak, which will usually start with testing the sealed pipework of the property or the swimming pool/spa/fountain. If the sealed pipework is subsequently ruled out as being the source, we will then start to look at other possible causes such as waste/drainage, rising damp, bad ventilation, structural damage, faulty boiler, faulty water meter etc., or in the case of swimming pools/spas/fountains – breaches in the structure or liner. In these cases, the appointment will be chargeable and you may need to seek assistance from a specialist in the relevant field to fully resolve the issue.

In most cases we are able to carry out repairs to leaks identified. However this will depend on a number of factors – please see Section 12 for further details. Repairs carry an additional charge to the Leak Detection.

Despite the term ‘Trace and Access’ commonly used by insurance companies, a Leak Detection does not include making access to the leak, because we would not expose a leak without also having the intention of repairing it. The access fee would normally fall into the price you have been quoted for a ‘Repair’ and this can be broken down on your invoice upon request.

Please bear in mind that a leak must be active on the day of testing in order for it to be found. Leak Detections on leaks which suddenly stop leaking are fully chargeable.

2. Access to Site/Parking

Please ensure that access to the relevant property/ies is arranged in advance. It sounds obvious but this is often overlooked! The most common examples of when this can go wrong are listed here:

• Shared water supplies – we will usually need access to all properties on the shared supply
• When the booking involves multiple parties (e.g. Landlord, Managing Agents, and tenants)
• When the water supply goes across someone else’s property
• Houses of Multiple Occupancy where individual rooms are locked
• Flats – we may need access to the above/below/adjacent flat

Our Engineers’ equipment is quite heavy so we also ask you to ensure there is adequate parking within reasonable distance of the property. Please be advised that any parking charges (in the form of metered parking, permits, or penalties incurred if there is no allocated parking) will be added to the final invoice.  The same applies to toll charges or any other charges incurred in transit, such as the Congestion Charge.  Any jobs which have to be aborted on the day due to lack of access and/or available parking will still be chargeable.

3. ‘No Find, no fee’ Guarantee

Our ‘No find, no fee’ guarantee applies to our domestic customers for one Leak Detection appointment at one individual property only, for leaks on water mains up to 30m and hot and cold feeds. The ‘No find, no fee’ guarantee does not apply to Leak Detection on the following:

• Shared water mains
• Commercial/Industrial inquiries
• Pipework in ducting/insulation
• Swimming pool/spa/filtration systems
• Central heating system leaks. There are many factors which can complicate the investigation such as faulty boilers, build-up of sludge/oxides, presence of leak seal chemicals and stubborn, thermally activated leaks. Please see Section 6 for further details.
• Investigations which prove there is no leak on any pipework at the time of testing/leaks which stop leaking at the time of the investigation
• Leaks which do not meet the minimum size requirements to be found non-invasively

 

4. Suitability of our Services to your Problem

When an inquiry is made over the telephone or via email, we will attempt to establish the suitability of our services to your problem to the best of our knowledge and understanding, based on the information provided to us. We will advise you if we do not think our services are suited to your problem. We cannot not be held responsible for misdiagnosed problems and the Leak Detection appointment will be chargeable as quoted if the investigation proves that there is no leak.

5. Accuracy of Information Provided

When an inquiry is made over the telephone or via email, we will attempt to obtain certain information about the suspected problem, and/or certain site-specific details. This is in order to ensure that the job is quoted accurately and the right number of Engineers are allocated to the job. You may be asked to provide information such as the number of radiators on a central heating system, the approximate length of an incoming mains supply, the number of properties a water mains pipe is serving, whether the site is domestic/commercial/industrial, how often a boiler is losing pressure, the size of a swimming pool and its current water level etc.  It is important that you answer these questions as accurately as possible and to the best of your knowledge. If a leak is not found because we are misinformed about any of these details, and consequently underprepared for the investigation, the ‘No find, no fee’ guarantee will be overridden and the appointment will be chargeable.

6. Requirements & Preparation for your Leak Detection

Internal & External Pipework

In order to carry out effective pressure testing of pipework, our Engineers will require access to all rooms and/or parts of the building associated with the pipework being tested and all existing relevant isolation points. These areas will need to be cleared as much as reasonably possible. Testing will also require all relevant stopcocks and points of isolation to be fully operational. We cannot be held responsible for faulty isolation valves. If testing cannot be carried out successfully due to inaccessibility or failed isolation points, the appointment will still be chargeable at the full quote price for Leak Detection. A quote will then be provided for our Engineers to return to carry out testing at our next earliest availability, and once all problems have been rectified.

Swimming pools, spas and fountains

• Please ensure that the pool/spa/fountain water is clean, clear of debris, and swimmable. If the water is unclean our divers may refuse to enter the water for Health and Safety reasons.
• Please ensure that the water is not colder than 18 degrees Celsius, as our Engineers may need to spend significant amounts of time under water. Cold water will reduce the amount of time that divers can spend underwater.
• Please ensure that the pool/spa/fountain is filled to its maximum capacity as it will not be possible to identify a leak in the structure or liner if the water is below the leak level.
• If the pool/spa/fountain is empty, we will still be able to test all the filtration system pipework, but not the structure or liner.
• If your pool/spa/fountain has multiple leaks, we will aim to identify all leaks in the first day of testing. In some cases this may not be possible, because smaller leaks may be disguised by the main leak, and further chargeable appointments may be required.
• Our Engineers carry a vast array of fittings, pipework, bungs and other tools and materials relevant to the task at hand. However, due to the huge diversity of pool/spa/fountain fittings, it may not be possible to supply or obtain certain less common, or unusual fittings required for testing on the day. In this case, special parts may have to be ordered and further chargeable works scheduled at a later date.

 

Central Heating System Leaks

• Turning ON the heating on the day of your appointment. If your central heating system is still capable of heating up, please turn the heating on a couple of hours before the start of the appointment to aid with the thermal imaging process.
• Exception – Under floor heating. Please leave this OFF. Please note this does not apply to under floor heating. Please ensure any under floor heating circuits are isolated (switched off) from the early morning on the day of the appointment, as these tend to generate so much heat that thermal imaging is rendered ineffective.
• Leak Sealant. Please bear in mind that the presence of leak sealant in a central heating system can significantly impede the Leak Detection process. It is your responsibility to inform our telephone staff at the point of booking if leak sealant has been installed into the system. We advise that leak sealant is removed from the central heating system using a cleaning chemical or by power flushing prior to testing. This however still does not guarantee effective testing as it has been known for sealant residues to remain in a central heating system even after cleaning procedures have been carried out. Please remember that central heating system leaks are not covered under our ‘No find, no fee’ guarantee.

1. Equipment

All Engineers arrive on site to a Leak Detection appointment with the following equipment as standard:

• Thermal Imaging Camera
• Hydrogen and Nitrogen tracer gas testing kit
• Acoustic Listening Device
• Endoscope Camera

• Damp meter

In addition, for swimming pools/spas/fountains:

• Hydrophones
• SCUBA equipment
• Electronic tracing equipment

Different methods/equipment are suited to different problems.  The Engineer will determine which of the above methods and equipment are best suited to the problem on the day.

8. Time allocated for Appointments

We allocate up to one whole day for all Leak Detection appointments. All appointments start at approximately 9:30am. There is no specific finish time and your appointment will last as long as it needs to, within reason.  If there are multiple leaks to be detected, or if repair works require an additional appointment in order to be completed, quotations for further works will be provided at the end of the first appointment.

9. Quote prices for Leak Detection

Quote prices for Leak Detection vary depending on whether the inquiry is domestic/commercial, the size of the problem and the location of the property in question. You will have been quoted for your Leak Detection over the phone and/or via email.  Your quote price for Leak Detection is for up to one day of Leak Detection using the methods and equipment listed in Section 7.

10. Localising the Leak

We will do our utmost to localise a leak to the closest degree of accuracy that is physically possible using the non-invasive methods listed in Section 7. Usually we will be able to narrow it down to an area such as several floor tiles/a particular corner or section of a room or driveway/behind a specified fixture. However, to accurately confirm the location of a leak there is no substitute for physically exposing the leak area.

11. Limitations of the non-invasive method

Upon receiving your inquiry we may ask you a series of questions which serve to establish the ‘findability’ of your leak (rate of pressure on your boiler, floor composition, rate of movement on the water meter etc.) or in other words, to find out if your leaks meets certain size requirements to be found non-invasively. If a leak is known to fall short of these requirements we reserve the right to withdraw the ‘No find, no fee’ guarantee. We will always inform you if the information you provide causes us to believe the leak is too small to be found non-invasively, and if as a result we will be withdrawing the ‘No find, no fee’ guarantee.

In addition to a leak being too small, there are other factors which may limit our ability to pinpoint the location of a leak exactly:

• Non porous flooring/materials such as, but not limited to ducting, vinyl, insulation, celotex, DPCs
• Leaks located under suspended floors

In these cases our equipment may enable us to narrow down the location of a leak to a room or larger area only.

12. Repairs

If, in your initial inquiry you have also been provided with a quote price for the repair, this quote price will only be applicable if the repair can be carried out on the same day as the Leak Detection. Our Engineers will always endeavour to carry out the repair on the same day as the Leak Detection, however this is not always possible.  Our Engineers will usually carry out repairs in situations which meet the following criteria:

• There is sufficient time left in the day to complete the repair
• The repair can be completed without imposing risks of injury to people or unnecessary damage to property
• The problem is accessible using the Engineers’ hand digging tools on the day and falls within the Engineers’ physical limitations (i.e. not requiring the assistance of a second Engineer/flooring contractor/builder/kitchen fitter to take out a fitted kitchen unit etc.)
• The Engineer feels he/she is the professional person most suited to carry out the repair
• The Engineer already has all materials required, or can feasibly source all materials required on the day

 

However, our Engineers reserve the right to refuse to carry out a repair for any reason they deem valid in their professional opinion.

 

13. Guarantee on Repairs

Repairs carried out by our Engineers are guaranteed for 3 months from the date the repair is carried out. If a repair should fail within this time scale, upon request we will arrange for one of our Engineers to return to the property to rectify the repair free of charge. If, upon returning, it is discovered that the problem is in fact unrelated to the repair previously carried out by our Engineer, the appointment will be chargeable depending on the amount time spent on site and the extent of the works carried out to establish the source of the problem. In these cases, the payment terms are exactly the same as any other Leak Detection appointment, see Section 17.

If a repair should fail outside of this time scale, upon request we will arrange for one of our Engineers to return to the property to repeat the Leak Detection investigation and/or carry out a repair at an agreed price.

14. Secondary/Multiple Leaks

If you have multiple leaks, our Engineers will endeavour to locate and rectify all of them within one day and within the specified quote prices. However, this is not always possible and we may have to provide you with a quote to have the works completed on a different day. Unless our Engineers are informed about the possibility of the presence of multiple leaks, they will focus their attention on locating and rectifying the main suspect leak only. Please be advised that carrying out a repair to pipework that is already in poor condition may cause leaks to appear at other weak spots along the pipe run.  We accept no liability for additional leaks that arise following a Leak Detection & Repair and any further works required to rectify any additional leaks will be chargeable.

15. Surface Plumbing Disclaimer

Please be advised that any surface plumbing or leaks and/or faults identified during testing will need to be rectified as discovered in order to continue testing for an underground/hidden leak. Our engineers will endeavour to rectify these on the day in order to continue testing. Surface plumbing repairs which are carried out to enable testing to continue come with no guarantee. Please also be advised that pressure testing on pipework can sometimes bring to light existing plumbing faults which we cannot be held responsible for.

16. Securing your Appointment

Unless an alternative arrangement has been submitted to you in writing, card details must be provided to secure an appointment. Card details are stored securely and not used until payment is taken using our online virtual payment terminal on the day. Card details will be deleted once the payment transaction has been authorised and the outstanding balance for the days’ work has been settled. We must be provided card details to secure a booking, even if you wish to pay by cash or with a different card on the day. Once your appointment has been secured with card details, you will receive a confirmation email with a copy of these Ts&Cs and the appointment will be subject to the cancellation policy outlined in Section 18.

17. Payment Terms

Unless an alternative agreement has been submitted to you in writing, fees for Leak Detection and/or repair are payable on the day the works are carried out at the end of the appointment by credit card, debit card, cash or BACS. We do not accept cheques. Engineers will not be given authorisation to leave site until payment has been settled.

18. Cancellations and Aborted Jobs

Should you wish to cancel an appointment, we require 1 working day/24 hours’ notice by direct telephone call to ADI Head Office (0800 731 3843). For example, if you wish to cancel a job booked for a Monday, you must inform a member of the team in the office by 9:30am the Friday before. For swimming pool/fountain/spa Leak Detection we require 2 working days/48 hours’ notice. Appointments cancelled after these specified time frames will be fully chargeable, and payment will be taken from the card that was used to secure the booking. The same applies to jobs which have to be aborted or are cancelled on the same day that they are due to take place, (for example due to lack of access to property/parking, uninformed tenants etc.).

19. Multiple Parties Involved in the Booking

Where bookings are made on behalf of other individuals/businesses, or involve multiple individuals/businesses (e.g. landlords, tenants, managing agents, plumbers, other contractors, letting agents, pool maintenance companies, builders etc.) it is the responsibility of the person making the booking to ensure that all other parties involved are informed of the arrangements and the requirements for the appointment on the day. We will not be held responsible for any claims by any party of being uninformed or misinformed about our services and requirements for the appointment to take place.

20. Damage, liability and complaints

We accept no liability for the following:

• Costs incurred from investigations which prove there is no leak – these are fully chargeable at the price you were quoted for Leak Detection. Examples of cases like this include but are not limited to: waste/drainage issues, rising damp, bad ventilation, structural damage, faulty boiler, faulty water meter etc.
• Damage to property or other services created during any essential activity required to detect, access and/or repair a leak.
• Damage caused by any leaks which we were not able to detect.
• Damage caused by any other parties in attempt to access a leak, access/invasive works are carried out entirely at your own risk.
• Stopcocks/valves/points of isolation which are already deteriorating and fail to function properly following the Leak Detection.
• Radiators not getting hot/heating systems not working properly after a Leak Detection. In a small minority of cases, there may be problems getting the heating system to function properly after a Leak Detection/Repair. This is an inevitable risk involved with draining and refilling a central heating system. Usually the problem can be resolved by bleeding air from the system, however sometimes there may be other underlying problems due to system design or installation. We recommend contracting a local heating engineer to resolve any ongoing problems and we do not accept liability for any additional works required to get the heating system working properly again or any costs involved with this.
• Leaks which spring up elsewhere on the pipework following a repair. When repairs are carried out to pipework which is already deteriorating/weak/corroding, it is possible for additional leaks to ‘spring up’ at other weak spots along the pipe run. We will not be blamed for these additional leaks, as this is an intrinsic risk involved with repairing a leak then putting the weak pipework back under normal operating pressure.

 

21. Challenging our findings/Re-attendance

In situations where do not carry out a repair to a leak, and you later have reason to question or doubt our findings, we will re-attend to confirm the Leak Location under the following circumstances:

• The leak meets our minimum size requirements (these are different depending on the type of leak, please contact Head Office for further details).
• Attendance is requested within 2 weeks of the original Leak Detection.

If a second investigation proves that the results of the first investigation were incorrect, (within the limitations of Section 11) there will be no charge for the second visit. If we are still unable to locate the leak we will refund our original fee for Leak Detection. However, if we find that the leak is in the same location as indicated in the first investigation, the appointment will be chargeable at the same rate as the original Leak Detection appointment, and subject to the payment terms detailed in Section 17.

22. Recording of Telephone Conversations

All inbound and outbound telephone calls to/from our Head Office are recorded for training and monitoring purposes.  We reserve the right to use telephone call recordings as evidence in the process of handling a complaint or legal claim.

23. Head Office Opening Hours and Contact Details

Please direct any questions about our services/Terms & Conditions to our Head Office.

Opening Hours: Monday – Friday, 08:30am-5:30pm (excl. Bank Holidays)

Tel: 0800 731 3843

Email: [email protected]