GENERAL TERMS OF ENGAGEMENT
INTENDED USERS
In accordance with our policies, valuation services will be provided solely for the use of the Client/s and Intended User/s as named. We do not take or accept responsibility to any other party whatsoever in respect of these services.
INTENDED USE
The valuation will be completed for the specific intended use stated. No responsibility is accepted in the event that the report is used for any other purpose. We do not purport to provide a site or structural survey in respect of the property to be valued, neither do we purport to be suitably qualified to provide professional advice in respect of building or site contamination including ‘Leaky Building Syndrome’.
DISCLOSURE
Valuation and consultancy services are provided on the basis that we have been provided with a full and frank disclosure of all information and other facts which may affect the valuation. We accept no responsibility or liability whatsoever for the valuation unless such a full disclosure has been made. We assume the information provided by the client and/or related party is accurate, and we reserve the right to amend our report and/or assessment of value if this information changes significantly or is proven to be incorrect.
INFORMATION SUPPLIED
Any information provided to us by a third party will be verified to the best of our ability. If, after investigation, we believe the information to be reliable, we will assume it as such. However, we accept no responsibility if this information proves to be inaccurate. Where applicable, the use of or reliance on any specialists will be clearly stated.
PUBLICATION
Neither the whole nor any part of any valuation report or any reference to the same may be included in any published document, circular or statement without our written approval as to the form and context in which it may appear.
MEDIA
You provide Valuation Partners Limited the right to take photographs and video of the asset being valued, both external and internal. The copyright of these will remain with Valuation Partners Limited and will not be sold to third parties.
VIEWS EXPRESSED
All opinions of value expressed by Valuation Partners Limited or its employees are subject to our statement of valuation policies and any conditions contained in our written report. No report, or part of report, should be read in isolation.
CONFIDENTIALITY
You shall at all times treat as confidential all non-public information and material received from us and shall not publish, release, or disclose the same without our prior written consent. For clarity, confidential information includes any intellectual property and sale prices of comparable sales.
PROFESSIONAL INDEMNITY INSURANCE
We undertake to have professional indemnity insurance in place for the duration of our engagement with you.
PROVISIONS OF SERVICES
The valuation is made on the basis of the description of the property in the report including any undertakings given by the owner in relation to the property and defined in the report. Valuation Partners Limited does not, and shall not assume any responsibility to any person other than the client for any reason whatsoever including breach of contract, negligence (including negligent mis-statement) or wilful act or default of themselves or others by reason of or arising out of the provision of this valuation or valuation services.
Any person, other than the client, who uses or relies on our service, does so at their own risk. Should any report or information be disclosed to any unauthorised party without our written consent, the named client will be held liable for a charge equivalent to Valuation Partners current insurance excess applicable under our policy.
If applicable, the report is not intended as a structural, site, services or engineering survey neither is it intended to be an environmental liability audit. We do not warrant the land is not subject to statutory rights not recorded on the relevant Record of Title and not apparent from visual inspection of the property. Substances such as asbestos, lead, other chemicals, toxic waste or other potentially hazardous materials, contaminants, could if present, adversely affect the value of the property. The stated value is based on the assumption that there is no material on or in the property that would cause loss in value. The recipient of our report is advised that the valuer is not qualified to detect such substances, quantify the impact or estimate the remedial cost. No historic search of land use has been made. We assume no responsibility in connection with such matters.
In preparing the report we will use all reasonable skills as a valuer, but we are not qualified to assess the stability, load bearing capacity or integrity of the land. Any assessment is made on the basis there are no outstanding requisitions from local or central government in respect of the land or improvements and that the property, where relevant, complies with all applicable legislation including but not limited to the Disabled Persons Community Welfare Act 1975, Building Act 2004, Health and Safety in Work Act 2015, Fire Safety and Evacuation of Buildings Regulations 2006, and Resource Management Act 1991.
We advise we have not obtained a Land Information Memorandum (LIM) but suggest prior to any dealing with this property, such a report be obtained from the Local Authority. Should any matters be disclosed by the LIM, surveys or environmental audit we reserve the right to revise our valuation opinion to take account of such matters.
Unless otherwise stated, it is assumed all improvements lie within title boundaries. We have made no survey of the property. The report will make every effort to provide a true valuation of the property as inspected, however the Valuer cannot comment on or make allowance for failure of any element of any structure, or if it contains materials, or design, or building systems, or have a standard of workmanship which effectively does not prevent damage from, or manage the presence of water or moisture to which the structure might reasonably be subjected, nor any consequence arising from such failure.
DATE OF VALUATION
This valuation will be current as at the date of valuation only. The value assessed herein may change significantly and unexpectedly over a relatively short period (including as a result of general market movements or factors specific to the particular property). We do not accept liability for losses arising from such subsequent changes in value. Without limiting the generality of the above comment, we do not assume any responsibility or accept any liability where this valuation is relied upon after the expiration of 90 days from the date of the valuation, or such earlier date if any factors that have any effect on the valuation are, or are likely to be apparent.
PROPOSED VALUATIONS (AS IF COMPLETE)
Where applicable, and based on the plans and specifications supplied by the client our ‘as if complete’ assessments are based on a good quality of workmanship and the issuing of a Code of Compliance by the applicable local authority. Any significant deviation in respect of style, design, layout, or construction may invalidate the valuation conclusions and we reserve the right to revise our valuation opinion to take account of such matters. Advances should be made by way of progress inspections completed by the Registered Valuer.
INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY
Valuation Partners Limited retain ownership of all opinions, documents and other intellectual property created by us; you must not provide our advice to others (such as using our opinions in any public document or statement).
JURISDICTION
These terms are governed by and construed in accordance with the current laws of New Zealand and the parties agree to submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the Courts of New Zealand for any disputes or proceedings arising.
LIMITATION OF LIABILITY
To the extent permitted by law, you agree that our total liability to you in connection with this matter, or on any related matters on which you engage us, will not exceed 5 times the fee charged including interest, costs and any other loss (the liability cap). The liability cap applies to liability of any kind, regardless of how it arises, whether in contract, in tort (including negligence), statute, equity or otherwise.
If we provide services to any persons or entities related to, or associated with you or to anyone else at your request (whether or not we also advise you) on a matter or series of related matters then our aggregate liability to you and all those persons and entities in relation to that matter (or series of related matters) will be subject to the liability cap. You must ensure that those persons or entities agree to this.
The liability cap accrues for the benefit of any partner, employee, or agent of ours that may have acted in connection with the matter, so that in no instance will the liability of any person, and all persons claimed against in the aggregate, be for more than the liability cap.
OUR DUTIES TO YOU
When we do work for you, we will: protect your privacy and confidentiality; act competently, promptly and according to your instructions; protect and promote your interests; give you clear information and advice; keep you informed about progress; treat you fairly and respectfully; and charge you a fee that is fair and reasonable subject to any legal obligations we have.
Our duties are owed to you, the client named in our scope of work. Nobody else can rely on our advice without our written consent.
YOUR PRIVACY
We consider client confidentiality to be of utmost importance. We will treat all information we hold about you in strict confidence. We will not use it or share it unless: you agree or ask us to; we need to so we can carry out work for you; or the law requires us to, (e.g. Inland Revenue, the Financial Markets Authority, and other government agencies have powers to compel us to provide information we have about you).
HOW WE AVOID CONFLICTS OF INTEREST
When we do work for you, we will always protect your interests. Before we accept a job from you, we will do our best to find out if any conflicts of interest exist. If we find a conflict at any time, we will immediately let you know and tell you how we plan to deal with the conflict. That may mean we stop working for you.
OUR FEES AND EXPENSES
We will always charge you reasonable fees. Unless we agree with you otherwise, our fees will be charged in accordance with the fee, or fee estimate, outlined in our Scope of Work.
TERMS OF PAYMENT
We may require you to pay a deposit, being an advanced payment for our services, before we commence work.
Payment for our services (and any associated expenses and disbursements) is due prior to the release of any reporting or by the date specified in our invoice to you, (whichever is indicated in the scope of work). Your valuation report will not be released until full payment is received.
If you do not make payment on the Due Date, you are in default and must pay default interest at the rate of 22% per annum, which shall accrue on a daily basis on the total amount outstanding from the Due Date to the date of payment in full. Payment of all money shall be without set-off or deduction of any kind. We will apportion payments to outstanding accounts as we think fit.
COSTS
You must pay our costs (including legal costs, as between solicitor and client) of any incidental to the enforcement or attempted enforcement of our rights, remedies and powers under these Terms of Engagement.
PERSONAL INFORMATION
Any personal information collected and held by Valuation Partners Limited will be used for purposes relating to the provision of valuation services. Under the Privacy Act 1993, the client has the right to access and correction of any personal information held by us.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Valuation Partners Limited has not and will not during the term of the agreement or at any time after it, assume any obligation as the Client’s Agent or otherwise which may be imposed upon the Client from time to time pursuant to the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 arising out of this engagement. Valuation Partners Limited and the Client agree that for the purposes of this Act, Valuation Partners Limited will not control the place of work in terms of this Act.
FORCE MAJEURE
Neither Valuation Partners Limited nor the Client will be liable for any act, omission or failure under this agreement (except failure to pay the fee) if that act, omission or failure arises directly from a force majeure event beyond the reasonable control of the party concerned.
AGENTS ACTING ON BEHALF OF THE CLIENTS
Where this Terms of Engagement has been entered into by an Agent (or a person purporting to act as Agent) on behalf of the Client, the Agent and Client shall be jointly and severally liable for all obligations owed to Valuation Partners Limited under this Terms of Engagement.
RISK MITIGATION
Valuation Partners Limited takes the Health and Safety of all its employees seriously. When entering a client’s property or premises, we will take reasonably practicable steps to mitigate any risks. If your site requires specific Health and Safety requirements or there are known hazards on the site please detail these prior to inspection.
DISPUTES
The parties agree that they will attempt to resolve any disputes in good faith. The parties agree to notify the other of the dispute in writing and agree to use their best endeavours to resolve the dispute. If the dispute is not resolved within 30 working days the notifying party can then proceed to mediation or arbitration.
TERMINATION
Either party may terminate this Agreement for any reason by providing three (3) working days' written notice. Termination shall be without prejudice, and the reason for termination need not be disclosed.
NOTICES
Any notice may be given by phone, in person, posted, or sent by email to you (or where you are a company, to any of your directors).
VARIATIONS
We shall be entitled at any time by notice in writing to you to vary any provision of these terms and you shall be bound by such variation.
CREDIT INFORMATION
You consent to us and any financier or credit-rating agency making enquiries of and obtaining any information about your financial standing and creditworthiness.
ASSIGNMENT
You must not subcontract or assign any of your rights, powers or obligations under our Terms.
