Below are Alchemist’s standard terms and conditions. Please read through them thoroughly. Make sure you (The Client) fully understand these terms and their implications before you commence any project with Alchemist. These terms and conditions may change from time to time without notice. Please contact us if any part of this document is unclear.

Commencement of work

Submitting a design brief and paying a deposit to Alchemist constitutes your agreement to these terms and conditions.

Payment terms

The Client agrees to pay a 50% deposit of the quoted amount to commence any design project. The balance is due prior to delivery. This deposit becomes non-refundable once Alchemist has allocated resources or begun research or design work. It also remains non-refundable if The Client changes their mind. Alchemist aims to provide design services that meet and exceed each client’s needs and expectations. Even so, a change of mind after a project has commenced means The Client forfeits the initial 50% deposit. They also owe a pro-rata payment based on the time spent.

Projects lasting more than four calendar weeks require a progress payment. The Client agrees to pay 50% of the balance per month until the project concludes. Any outstanding amount becomes payable in full upon delivery.

The Client must settle all printing accounts in full before Alchemist releases files to the printer. Accounts not paid COD incur a late administration fee of £20. A further late payment fee applies if an account remains outstanding for 14 days after the invoice date: 5% of the project cost for each week payment stays overdue. Please contact us as soon as you’re aware of any difficulty paying an invoice, so we can discuss a solution that works for your company.

Design samples

The Client agrees to allow Alchemist to showcase any or all work created during a project as part of Alchemist’s portfolio. Alchemist recognises the confidential nature of client projects and agrees to display project work only once the product or site has been publicly launched or has commenced.

Force majeure

Alchemist is not liable for any failure or delay in supplying or delivering products or services where the cause lies wholly or partly outside its reasonable control. Examples include:

• War, natural disasters, strikes, lockouts, industrial disputes, or unrest
• Government restrictions or transport delays
• Fire, power outages, or hosting-supplier failures
• Breakdown of plant, theft, vandalism, riots, or civil commotion
• Accidents of any kind, or acts of terrorism

Fees for service

The fee for service is the cost estimate provided by email, unless the work undertaken exceeds what was outlined. If the work exceeds the items in the quote, The Client agrees to pay appropriate fees for the excess. This work falls outside the scope of the original agreement. Alchemist will notify The Client of any increase in project scope wherever possible.

Excess work

Excess work means any addition to the list of items in the Estimate of Services. It also covers any change to finished artwork after an authorised representative of The Client has signed it off. During a project, The Client will sometimes need extra design work, or extra files once the project is complete. When this happens, Alchemist will tell The Client that the request falls outside the scope of the original estimate. The Client must then agree to any such changes in writing, and pay £50 per hour for the additional work.

A request for additional design work not covered in the original quote requires a progress payment before Alchemist carries out further work. Otherwise, all additional costs go onto the final invoice, payable prior to delivery of the design files.

Publishing or releasing work performed on The Client’s behalf cannot happen before Alchemist receives cleared funds.

Once work has commenced, any booking fees, delivery fees, design commencement fees, or progress payments become non-refundable if The Client terminates the contract.

Liability & litigation

All work and materials Alchemist provides to The Client will be free and clear of all liens and encumbrances. The Client may lawfully use them without infringing the copyright, trade secret, patent, or trademark rights of any third party.

Alchemist will indemnify and hold The Client harmless against all claims for injury or death to persons, or damage to property. This includes litigation costs and legal fees. It covers claims arising from or incidental to the services performed during the project. The exception is where the negligence of The Client or its employees caused the claim. In such cases, Alchemist will notify The Client in writing with full details of the claim.

Indirect or consequential losses are not covered. This applies to losses arising from The Client’s reliance on information in the materials Alchemist prepares, including (without limitation) loss of profit, loss of contracts, or pure economic loss. Any liability is strictly limited to the direct costs of remedying the supplies themselves. It does not cover claims for delays, out-of-sequence working, non-productive overtime, or awarded costs. Third-party liability is specifically excluded, unless separately agreed in writing.

Approval of final artwork

Alchemist takes great care to avoid errors. However, it accepts no responsibility for typographical errors, spelling mistakes, or incorrect information in any project committed to print or production. The Client is responsible for proofreading and approving all final copy before artwork goes into production. Email verification from The Client’s representative is conclusive proof of artwork approval, prior to its release for printing, implementation, or installation. Once a final, approved design has gone to print, no refunds or reprints are available for oversights in The Client’s proofreading.

Print returns & refunds

The Client may approve the final product in writing, committed to print, or posted publicly. Once this happens, Alchemist is not responsible or liable for any errors it contains. It is also not responsible for changes or amendments made after approval. The Client is solely responsible for notifying Alchemist of any errors, and must do so during the revision cycle, before Alchemist generates the final files.

If a reprint becomes necessary due to content errors, The Client must inform Alchemist within three days of product acceptance, and must return the product (at their own cost) within 10 days of acceptance for assessment.

As with all print projects, payment for a reprinted project must be made in advance.

Print – Colour variations

With all printing, some colour variation is possible between what you see on screen and the final printed product, or between print runs. This results from the nature of CMYK and bulk-run printing systems. Alchemist does not offer reprints at its own expense for this reason.

Copyright

Alchemist retains full ownership of the design concepts and materials it produces. Once Alchemist delivers a final concept and receives full payment, complete ownership rights transfer to The Client. Unused concepts remain Alchemist’s property. Alchemist may still use paid-for concepts in its promotional materials and design portfolio. It also retains the right to display a small byline crediting its design work, except on corporate stationery, unless The Client requests otherwise.

Unapproved concepts and ownership before payment

This grant of copyright doesn’t extend to design proposals or concepts submitted but not approved for the final work. Ownership of all artwork and website architecture stays with Alchemist until it receives final payment. Certain elements used in creating client projects also remain Alchemist’s property, including raw files, fonts, patterns, stock images, textures, colour palettes, and other non-exclusive items.

Where required, Alchemist reserves the right to use stock images when creating designs. It will outline the cost of this to The Client prior to purchase, unless the proposal quote already includes it.

Usage rights

Except for Alchemist’s own promotional use, all services provided are for The Client’s exclusive use only. The Client may not use designs for other promotional items, websites, or printed materials without permission. Once The Client pays all invoices, the Project Proposal will outline reproduction rights for all approved final designs. Alchemist will assess pricing for any additional usage as needed.

Licensing

Under the UK Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, the licensing of copyright requires mutual agreement between client and designer. Copyright remains Alchemist’s property until such an agreement is in place. As part of Alchemist’s standard terms of business, the copyright licence automatically releases to The Client upon receipt of final payment for the commissioned work. Alchemist reserves the right to use all artwork and concepts produced during the project for its own promotion, including concepts not selected, and any revisions. This covers print or digital portfolios, social media, and blogs, except where The Client has specifically requested otherwise in writing.

Goodwill

This proposal assumes goodwill from both Alchemist and The Client regarding:

• What can reasonably be achieved within a given time frame
• Making the best use of resources to achieve the most effective outcomes

Website design credit

The Client agrees to allow Alchemist to feature the completed website (or other design), along with a link to The Client’s site, on Alchemist’s own website for self-promotional purposes.

International work

Some Alchemist clients are based outside the UK. As global specialists in a niche market — logo design, graphic design, and web design — Alchemist creates work for clients worldwide. This work relies on communication tools such as Skype, FaceTime, WhatsApp, Dropbox, email, and chat, as well as more traditional methods like the telephone.

Termination policy

Circumstances beyond either party’s control can sometimes require a project’s cancellation. Should The Client cancel a project after it has commenced, Alchemist retains the advance payment (deposit) as compensation. This covers design and administration time, resources purchased and allocated, research time, and administration costs. A project more than 50% complete also requires a pro-rata payment for time spent up to the cancellation notice, at an hourly rate of £50. Alchemist and The Client determine the completion percentage through negotiation.

When Alchemist cancels a project due to unforeseen circumstances, it will refund the deposit to The Client in full and in a timely manner.

Where The Client cancels the project, Alchemist retains ownership of all copyrights, original artwork, and disks.

Website design post-completion alterations

Once web design is complete, Alchemist gives The Client the opportunity to review the finished work. Alchemist will make one set of minor changes at no extra cost, within 14 days of the start of the review period. Minor changes include small textual edits and small adjustments to the placement of items on the page. They don’t include changes to images, colour schemes, or navigation features. The Client can notify Alchemist of any minor changes by email, confirmed by post. Alchemist will consider that The Client has accepted the original draft if it receives no written notification within 14 days of the start of the review period. After this, an hourly fee of £50 applies to any further tweaks or amendments.

Confidentiality

Alchemist’s employees must not disclose any confidential affairs of The Client or its associated companies to anyone, except in the course of their duties. This applies at any time during or after their work on a project, without The Client’s prior written consent.

Late payments & default

Accounts not paid within 15 days incur a late administration fee of £20. A further fee applies to accounts that remain outstanding for 30 days after the invoice date: 5% of the project cost for each week payment remains overdue.

An account is considered in default if it remains unpaid 30 days from the invoice date. It’s also in default if The Client explicitly states they don’t intend to pay an invoice, unless Alchemist has agreed to prior arrangements. In these cases, Alchemist may, at its sole discretion, suspend any or all services it provides to The Client. This includes hosting, website files, design concepts, artwork, and email, and it may pursue debt collection until it receives the full outstanding balance. It applies to any unpaid accounts for services ordered, including but not limited to design, hosting, domain registration, search engine submission, maintenance, sub-contractors, printers, photographers, and libraries. Daily bank interest also applies for each day payment remains overdue.

Suspending these services doesn’t relieve The Client of its obligation to pay the amount due. Alchemist will remove files from external servers, such as hosted e-commerce solutions, and hold them until The Client pays in full, or for up to 30 days.

If The Client’s account falls into default, they agree to pay Alchemist’s reasonable legal expenses and third-party collection agency fees incurred in enforcing these terms and conditions.

All copyright for work performed stays with Alchemist until it receives full payment for the project. In the case of payment default, Alchemist reserves the right to reuse or resell the work.

No liability applies to Alchemist for loss of income or damage to The Client resulting from work removed from third-party servers due to non-payment. In turn, The Client agrees not to take legal action arising from invoice disputes or the removal of disputed work in such cases.

Amendments to these terms & conditions

The Client must provide any amendments to these terms and conditions in writing, and an authorised representative of Alchemist must sign them before work on this submission begins.

Freelance contractors and confidentiality

All contractors employed by Alchemist are bound by a strict confidentiality and non-disclosure agreement. They are also bound by a strictly enforced non-solicitation agreement for 36 months after their work with Alchemist concludes. Should a contractor breach this agreement, Alchemist will act swiftly. It will inform The Client that the contractor is no longer an Alchemist representative and is acting independently.

Alchemist will pursue any contractor who breaches this agreement through the appropriate legal channels.

Alchemist aims for complete security for its clients. When selecting contractors, it bases its decisions on previous work, references, and background checks with prior employers. Compliance with Alchemist’s strict guidelines on professional behaviour and ethics also plays a part.

Disclaimer

Graphic design, strategy, photography, TVC, illustration, and marketing are all highly creative and subjective art forms. Alchemist takes every possible care with the professional advice it offers, along with any suggested creative concepts and their implementation. However, Alchemist cannot be held responsible for variations between expectation and outcome.

Alchemist provides all information on this website for general information purposes only. We try to keep it up to date and accurate. However, we make no warranties about the accuracy, completeness, suitability, reliability, or availability of the information, products, services, links, or graphics found here. You use this information at your own risk. Alchemist is not liable for any loss or damage arising from your use of this website, including loss of data and indirect or consequential loss. It also has no control over websites linked from this site.

Third-party websites remain under the control of their own owners. Alchemist is not liable for your use of them. Linking to these sites does not imply that Alchemist endorses or recommends any information or views expressed in their content.