Terms & Conditions

Prior to commencing the research, it will be ensured that your requirements have been fully understood, and that the likelihood of success has been communicated to you. A cheque for 50% of the proposed cost will then be required from you before the research commences. Financial information is never retained by The Family History Company.

Research will be conducted as far as possible from original source material, and transcriptions and other secondary sources where used will not be relied on as fact. Original documents will be included with the research report as far as possible; when this is not possible due to copyright a full and accurate transcription shall be made.

Authoritative source material will be used to prove your ancestry and where necessary more than one source will be consulted. For 19th and 20th century research you will be provided with copies of the original birth and marriage certificates which were obtained to prove your ancestry, as well as cross referenced census information.

Ambiguous results will be communicated to you with such wording as "possibly" or "probably", and will not be cited as fact. All stages of research will be recorded, and all source material will be cited in the research report. The Timescale for research will be communicated in advance and you will be sent regular communications to keep you up to date on the progress of your research. Where appropriate preliminary searches will be conducted free of charge to ensure that the research is feasible.

Where research cannot proceed to the extent originally anticipated, the reasons for this will be explained to you and any fees will be reduced pro-rata. Once the final reports have been posted any outstanding payments will need to be paid within 30 days of that date.