Terms & Conditions

Bush House Veterinary Group provides 24-hour veterinary care*

for small animals across three branches in Carmarthenshire. We are committed to offering you and your pet the highest standards in veterinary healthcare. Our experienced team of veterinarians and clinical professionals provide excellent treatment and care to patients, to ensure your pet benefits from appropriate and compassionate treatment. We will support and advise you in routine care throughout the life of your pet.

Our Commitment to You

We aim to provide a first-class service to the best of our ability and provide you and your pet with a high standard of care. Where appropriate we may advise, and with your agreement, refer you and your pet to an appropriate centre for more in depth investigation and treatment which is not available at our practice.

Fees

All fees are due for payment at the time of the consultation/operation or when booking in operations. All fees, diet & drug charges are subject to VAT at the current rate. Fee levels are determined by the level of expertise and time spent on a case and according to drugs, consumables and materials used. Details of our fees are available upon request and a detailed invoice provided for every consultation, procedure or transaction.

Non Attendance Fees. Due to loss of revenue from non attendance it is necessary to charge for missed appointments unless 24 hrs notice given.

Methods of Payment

You MUST settle your accounts using credit/debit cards, cash, direct bank transfer or via Nordhealth link at time of attendance. The accounts of hospitalised cases should be paid up to date when the balance reaches £300.

Estimates of Treatment Costs

We will happily provide a written estimate as to the probable cost of a course of treatment or procedure. Please bear in mind that any estimate given can only be approximate and additional costs, which cannot be predicted at the outset, may occur as treatment progresses.

Inability to Pay

We have a Pay on the Day Policy. If for any reason you cannot pay, we ask you to discuss the matter with a member of staff before treatment takes place. Emergency treatment to alleviate suffering will always be given irrespective of ability to pay. If your account remains unpaid after 30 days we will pass your account to Proserve Debt Agency and a 20% admin charge will be applied to your account.

Complaints & Standards

We hope to ensure you never have reason to complain about the standards of service received from us. However, should you feel that there is something you wish to raise, please email your concern to: info@bushhousevetgroup.co.uk.

Feedback

We are always pleased to receive feedback on our services, so please do let us know your thoughts so we can continue to improve. To do this, please visit our Facebook page where you can review us!

Insuring Your Pets

We recommend you take out insurance for your pet; however we are not permitted to recommend any one insurance company. As not all pet insurance policies are the same, it is a good idea to look at the amount of time, money or both that you can claim for. We recommend lifetime insurance. We require payment at the time of treatment and our staff will then endeavour to complete the insurance claim paperwork for a small admin fee on your behalf. Whilst we try to assist quick processing of your insurance claim, please note it is your responsibility to bring in your form and liaise with your insurer with any issues. Should payment not be received within 3 months, you will be required to settle your account.

Data Protection

The care given to your pet may involve undertaking some specific investigations, e.g. taking radiographs, sending samples to external UK laboratories. The ownership of the resulting radiographs and all other records will remain at all times with the practice as part of your complete and comprehensive records. Charges made for x- rays, lab work are for the interpretation of them and lab costs. If required, we can arrange to have copies of x-rays made but this would be at your expense. Radiographs and copies of all laboratory results, with a summary of the history will be passed on, by request, to another Veterinary Surgeon with your consent.

You may view your pet’s clinical notes on request by appointment only. Please note it is your responsibility to provide us with accurate and up to date contact details.

In accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), we have implemented a privacy notice to inform you, our clients, of the types of data we process about you. We also include within this notice the reasons for processing your data, the lawful basis that permits us to process it, how long we keep your data for and your rights regarding your data.

Please go to the following link to access our full Privacy Notice and to be able to update your information and update your preferences for data. www.bushhousevetgroup.co.uk

Pharmaceuticals

Our vets may prescribe Prescription Only Medicines, Category V (POM-Vs) for animals under his or her care. POM-Vs can only be dispensed with authorisation from a vet.

Written prescriptions are available at a charge (ask in branch) if the animal has had a recent health check by a vet. Or a paid to health check with the vet may be necessary.

A prescription may not be appropriate if your pet is an in-patient or immediate treatment is necessary. You will be informed, on request, of the price of any medicine that may be prescribed for your animal.

We ask you give the practice a minimum of 48 hour notice for repeat prescriptions.

The policy of this practice is to re-assess all animals requiring repeat prescriptions every three months, but this may vary with individual circumstances. Ask in branch for cost of re- examination plus the cost for the medication. As the majority of flea and worm treatments are also POM-Vs, these can only be dispensed if the animal has received a health check by this practice in the last 12 months, in accordance with Veterinary Medicines Directorate

(VMD) legislation.

Emergency Cover

*Bush House Vets now have surgeries 7 days a week to support our clients around working hours. If you should require a vet out of our normal 7 day open hours please phone your local Bush House Vet Branch and the phone service will offer you an option to be directed to our Emergency service. This service is provided by Vets Now (01792 775572), a Veterinary hospital at: 20 Viking Way, Winch Wen, Swansea SA1 7DA where appropriate care can be given with 24 hr on site monitoring and Vet and nurse support for your pet. It is the client’s responsibility to arrange to get your pet to the Swansea surgery and to bring your pet back the following morning either to Bush House Ammanford branch or home if your pet has been discharged as well enough to go home.

Taxi details are available should you require these. Vets Now emergency prices are displayed on our website.

Home Visits

Home visits can be arranged during surgery hours. Ask in branch for current cost of a home visit excluding medication or additional treatment fee. The visit fee must be paid by card over the phone at the time of booking. It is usually in the best interest of your pet to be seen at a surgery where facilities and a full range of drugs are available.

Vaccination Reminders

Bush House Veterinary Group will aim to contact you either by email or text in order to advise you of your pet’s upcoming healthcare treatments, including annual vaccinations unless you choose to OPT out, please inform us if this is the case.

Whilst we make every effort to send out reminders for your pet’s healthcare, these are provided as a complimentary service and the responsibility to keep them up-to- date remains with you. In particular, please be aware that PETS passports require rabies vaccinations and annual vaccinations, so please keep a personal record of when these are due. Bush House Veterinary Group accepts no liability for any loss, damages or costs which may result from the failure of a client receiving any reminder.

Ethos

Our ethos is that clients give their pet thebest possible health care and we believe that this can be supported by joining our Vetsure Pet Health Plan and being insured.

Abuse against staff

Physical and/or verbal abuse against staff will not be tolerated. Should you become abusive to staff, we reserve the right to de-register you as a client and will give you two weeks’ notice to find alternative veterinary services for your pet.