Customer terms
Domestic bin-cleaning service terms
These terms apply to domestic services supplied by Charles Ferguson Ward trading as Abbey Bin Cleaning, sole trader. Contact Abbey Bin Cleaning at enquiries@abbeybincleaning.com, 07512 615585 or 2 Laral Gardens, Newtownabbey, BT37 0LJ.
Service and price
The standard domestic service covers one to four Black or Brown wheelie bins at £5 per bin. Direct Debit charges are collected calendar monthly; the billing cadence is separate from the cleaning cycle and is not a payment per wash. Bins are normally cleaned on Abbey Bin Cleaning's four-week service cycle after the relevant council collection. More than four bins requires a separate review. Service remains subject to the exact property, bin details, council collection pattern, Abbey Bin Cleaning route, safe access and a confirmed start date.
Application and acceptance
Abbey Bin Cleaning saves an eligible application before any Direct Debit handoff. A postcode result, application, internal review or payment setup is not acceptance of the service and does not promise a route or start date. Abbey Bin Cleaning will confirm whether the application is accepted and provide the proposed service details separately. No route is allocated and no service is activated merely because payment setup succeeds.
Payment arrangements
GoCardless handles Direct Debit setup and customers' bank details do not enter Abbey Bin Cleaning's systems. Direct Debit charges are calendar-monthly at £5 per confirmed bin. Where the live provider configuration supports it, GoCardless may retry a failed collection and may notify the customer; Abbey Bin Cleaning does not need to recreate a payment solely because the first collection attempt fails. A customer paying by bank transfer must pay the equivalent of the first three washes upfront, calculated as £5 × the confirmed number of bins × 3 washes. Payment setup, a browser return, provider status or payment status does not by itself activate service.
Six-month service expectation
Abbey Bin Cleaning asks customers to remain with the service for a minimum of six months because very short-term or one-off domestic service is not economical. This is a business expectation and request, not a fixed contractual lock-in, a six-month non-cancellable contract, an early termination charge or a cancellation penalty.
Statutory cancellation and ending future service
Where the statutory right applies to a distance or off-premises service contract, the customer may cancel within 14 days after the day the contract is made by giving Abbey Bin Cleaning a clear statement through the published contact routes. If the customer expressly asks Abbey Bin Cleaning to begin service during that period and then cancels before it ends, Abbey Bin Cleaning may charge a proportionate amount for service properly supplied up to cancellation. The right can end early after full performance only where the law permits and the required request and acknowledgement have been obtained. Outside that statutory period, a customer may ask Abbey Bin Cleaning to end future service. Cancelling a Direct Debit instruction does not remove a charge already properly due. Rights and remedies that cannot lawfully be excluded remain unaffected.
Cancellation notice
A customer may cancel within an applicable statutory cancellation period by contacting Abbey Bin Cleaning and clearly identifying the contract and decision to cancel. The customer may, but does not have to, use this wording: ‘To Charles Ferguson Ward trading as Abbey Bin Cleaning, 2 Laral Gardens, Newtownabbey, BT37 0LJ, enquiries@abbeybincleaning.com: I give notice that I cancel my contract for domestic bin-cleaning services, ordered on [date]. Name: [name]. Address: [address]. Date: [date].’
Bin presentation and property access
The customer must present the agreed bins kerbside and reasonably accessible for cleaning on the service day. The customer must provide any gate code, access instruction or location information reasonably needed to reach them and must tell Abbey Bin Cleaning about relevant access changes or hazards. A bin that is not presented, is behind a locked gate without a supplied code, is inaccessible because required information was not provided, or is otherwise unavailable because the customer did not meet these requirements may be recorded as an attempted or missed visit, and no refund is normally due. Abbey Bin Cleaning may defer work where conditions are unsafe.
Disruption, missed services and refunds
Abbey Bin Cleaning normally continues operating in adverse weather. Service may be suspended or deferred where the relevant council suspends or does not carry out the corresponding collection, changes it in a way that prevents the scheduled service, or conditions are genuinely unsafe for staff, vehicles, equipment or the public. Abbey Bin Cleaning does not ordinarily refund a completed or properly attempted service. If Abbey Bin Cleaning misses a scheduled service through Abbey Bin Cleaning's own fault, the normal remedy is to reschedule the clean or carry it forward to the next suitable visit. If the customer instead ends the service because of that Abbey Bin Cleaning miss, Abbey Bin Cleaning may provide an appropriate refund for the unperformed service. This does not restrict any remedy required by law.
Moving address and changing bin quantity
A customer who moves may ask Abbey Bin Cleaning to change the service address. Abbey Bin Cleaning will check whether the new property is within the current service area and can be serviced; service does not transfer automatically to every address. A customer may also ask to change the number of bins. Any price change will reflect the confirmed quantity, take effect from the agreed operational or billing date, and use the current approved domestic rate of £5 per bin unless Abbey Bin Cleaning has approved and communicated a future pricing version.
Suspension or termination by Abbey Bin Cleaning
Abbey Bin Cleaning may suspend or end service where a customer materially fails to meet their obligations, including non-payment, repeated failure to make bins available or provide necessary access, misuse of the service or payment arrangements, abusive, threatening or inappropriate conduct towards staff, or another serious breach that makes continued service unreasonable. Abbey Bin Cleaning may act immediately where the breach, behaviour or risk is sufficiently serious. For less serious issues, Abbey Bin Cleaning may give the customer a reasonable opportunity to correct the problem before ending service. Abbey Bin Cleaning may take proportionate steps to protect staff, customers, property and the business from serious abuse or risk.
Changes, complaints and legal rights
Abbey Bin Cleaning will give reasonable advance notice of material service or price changes, which apply only to future service. Complaints follow Abbey Bin Cleaning's published complaints process. Nothing in these terms excludes or restricts rights or remedies that cannot lawfully be excluded, including rights under consumer law. These terms are governed by the law of Northern Ireland and disputes are subject to the courts that have jurisdiction under applicable law.