Hosting & Maintenance Agreement

In Summary

This agreement explains the managed website services provided by TIC. It sets out what is included, what isn’t, and how we’ll work together to keep your website secure, reliable and up to date.

This Hosting & Maintenance Agreement applies to the managed website services provided by The Ideas Cupboard Limited, trading as TIC.

These terms apply to business customers who purchase website hosting, maintenance or related services from us, unless an alternative written agreement has been signed by both parties.

This agreement forms part of the contract between you and TIC and should be read alongside:

• your quotation or proposal
• any client-specific service schedule
• our Privacy Policy
• our Cookie Policy
• our Website Terms of Use

Where a client-specific schedule or written agreement differs from these terms, the client-specific document will take precedence for the services it relates to.

These terms may be updated from time to time. The latest version will always be published on our website and will apply to new services and renewals from the date shown.

In Summary

Our managed website services are designed to give you a single point of contact for keeping your website secure, maintained and available, allowing you to focus on running your business.

Depending on the package or services you have purchased, your agreement with TIC may include one or more of the following:

• Website hosting
• WordPress maintenance
• Website security monitoring
• Daily backups
• Backup restoration
• WordPress core updates
• Theme updates
• Plugin updates
• Minor website content changes
• Domain name management
• DNS management
• SSL certificate management
• Email hosting
• Email support
• Malware investigation and remediation
• Technical support
• Website migration services
• Compliance support

Not every service listed above is included within every package.

Your quotation, proposal or client-specific agreement will confirm which services are included as part of your subscription.

Where a service is not included within your package, we’ll always explain this before carrying out any chargeable work.

In Summary

Our aim is to proactively maintain your website rather than simply reacting when something goes wrong.

Where included within your package, TIC will carry out routine maintenance designed to keep your website secure, stable and compatible with current technologies.

Routine maintenance may include:

• WordPress core updates
• Theme updates
• Plugin updates
• PHP compatibility updates
• Security updates
• Firewall monitoring
• Malware scanning
• Performance monitoring
• Daily backups
• Monthly backup restore testing
• SSL certificate monitoring
• DNS management where required
• Minor website content updates
• General website health checks

Routine maintenance may be carried out without requesting separate approval each time.

Where maintenance requires significant changes to your website, introduces new functionality or may affect the appearance or operation of the website, we’ll discuss this with you before work begins unless immediate action is required to protect the website or hosting environment.

In Summary

Your hosting and maintenance package is intended to keep your existing website running smoothly. Larger improvements, redesigns and development work are quoted separately so you only pay for the work you actually need.

Unless specifically included within your quotation or service schedule, the following services are not included within your monthly hosting and maintenance subscription:

• Website redesigns
• Layout or structural changes
• New functionality
• Custom software development
• E-commerce development
• Booking systems
• Membership systems
• Search engine optimisation (SEO)
• Copywriting
• Graphic design
• Photography
• Video production
• Large-scale content creation
• Third-party software integrations
• Bespoke reporting
• Accessibility remediation
• Email migrations
• Microsoft 365 administration
• Google Workspace administration

Minor content updates, such as replacing wording, swapping images, updating opening hours or replacing downloadable documents, may be included where covered by your package.

Any work falling outside the agreed service will always be discussed with you before additional charges are incurred.

In Summary

We’re here to help when you need us. Our standard support is available during normal business hours, with emergency out-of-hours assistance available where included within your service package or by agreement.

TIC provides technical support during the following standard business hours:

Monday to Friday
9:00am to 5:00pm
Excluding weekends and UK public holidays.

Support requests may be submitted by email, telephone or WhatsApp using the contact details provided by TIC.

We aim to acknowledge support requests as quickly as reasonably practicable during normal business hours. While we always strive to resolve issues promptly, response and resolution times may vary depending on the nature, complexity and priority of the issue.

Support requests are prioritised according to their impact on your website or business. Critical issues affecting website availability, security or data integrity will normally take priority over routine maintenance requests or cosmetic changes.

Emergency support may be available outside normal business hours where reasonably possible.

Unless emergency support is included within your service package, out-of-hours work is chargeable at £120 per hour, with a minimum charge of one hour.

TIC reserves the right to determine whether an issue constitutes an emergency requiring immediate attention.

In Summary

Keeping your website secure is a shared responsibility. We’ll look after the hosting environment and ongoing maintenance, while you help by keeping your information accurate and letting us know before significant changes are made.

To help us provide a reliable and secure service, you agree to:

• Provide accurate contact and billing information.
• Respond to requests for approval or information where reasonably required.
• Keep login credentials secure.
• Use strong passwords for all website and hosting accounts.
• Enable multi-factor authentication where available.
• Notify TIC before creating additional administrator accounts wherever reasonably practicable.
• Notify TIC before installing new plugins, themes or significant third-party integrations wherever reasonably practicable.
• Ensure any content supplied to us is accurate, lawful and that you have the necessary rights to use it.
• Pay invoices within the agreed payment terms.

Where changes are made by you or by a third party acting on your behalf without notifying TIC, we cannot accept responsibility for any resulting compatibility issues, security vulnerabilities, website failures or service interruptions.

Additional work required to investigate or rectify issues caused by unauthorised changes may be chargeable.

In Summary

Many of the websites transferred to TIC have been developed by third parties. While we’ll always do our best to identify and resolve existing issues, we can’t accept responsibility for problems that existed before our services began.

Where TIC takes over the hosting or maintenance of an existing website, the website may contain coding defects, security vulnerabilities, unsupported software, configuration issues or other problems introduced before the commencement of our services.

Although we will use reasonable skill and care when assessing and maintaining transferred websites, TIC cannot accept responsibility for defects, vulnerabilities or technical issues that pre-date the start of our agreement.

Where existing issues are identified, we’ll explain the risks involved and recommend appropriate remedial work.

Any work required to correct historic issues, redesign poorly implemented functionality or replace unsupported components may be chargeable unless otherwise agreed in writing.

Where immediate action is required to protect the security, stability or availability of the website or hosting environment, TIC reserves the right to take reasonable temporary measures before discussing longer-term solutions with you.

In Summary

Technology changes quickly. To help keep your website secure and compatible, we may recommend replacing or removing software that is no longer supported by its developer.

From time to time, software used by your website may reach the end of its supported life or become known to present a security, stability or compatibility risk.

This may include, but is not limited to:

• WordPress core.
• Themes.
• Plugins.
• PHP versions.
• Third-party integrations.
• Custom software.

Where software has reached end of life, is no longer supported or presents a significant security risk, TIC may recommend its replacement, upgrade or removal.

If unsupported software creates an immediate risk to your website, other hosted websites or the wider hosting infrastructure, TIC reserves the right to temporarily disable, isolate or remove the affected software where reasonably necessary to protect the hosting environment.

Where reasonably practicable, we’ll always discuss the available options with you before taking action.

However, where delaying action would significantly increase the risk of compromise, service disruption or harm to other hosted services, we may take proportionate emergency action before contacting you.

Any work required to replace unsupported software that falls outside your maintenance package will be quoted separately wherever reasonably possible.

In Summary

We take regular backups to help protect your website against unexpected problems. While backups form an important part of our service, no backup solution can guarantee recovery in every situation, so sensible data management remains a shared responsibility.

Where included within your service package, TIC performs automated daily backups of hosted websites.

Backups are normally created during the early hours of the morning, typically at approximately 2:00am, although this may vary depending on server load and maintenance schedules.

Backups are retained for approximately 30 days, allowing previous versions of your website to be restored where appropriate.

As part of our internal quality procedures, backup integrity is routinely verified through scheduled restore testing to help ensure backups remain usable.

Backups are intended to assist recovery following accidental deletion, software failure, website corruption or other unexpected incidents.

Although we take reasonable steps to maintain reliable backup systems, no backup solution can guarantee successful recovery in every circumstance. Backup integrity may be affected by factors outside our reasonable control, including data corruption, hardware failure, malicious software or issues already present within backed-up data.

Clients remain responsible for maintaining independent copies of business-critical records where appropriate and should not rely solely on website backups for statutory or long-term record keeping.

Website restoration requests are carried out as quickly as reasonably practicable and may be prioritised according to the severity of the incident.

Where restoration is required as a result of changes made by the client or a third party, restoration work may be chargeable if not included within the client’s service package.

While TIC provides daily website backups as part of many hosting packages, clients remain responsible for ensuring they have appropriate business continuity arrangements for information that is critical to the operation of their business.

Website backups are intended to assist in restoring website functionality and should not be regarded as a replacement for wider business continuity, document retention or statutory record-keeping procedures.

In Summary

Website security is an ongoing process rather than a one-off task. We continuously monitor the hosting environment and may take immediate action where necessary to protect your website and other websites hosted by TIC.

TIC continuously monitors the hosting environment for security threats, unusual activity and indicators of compromise using a combination of automated systems and manual review where appropriate.

Security monitoring may include:

• malware detection
• firewall monitoring
• login monitoring
• vulnerability monitoring
• server health monitoring
• SSL certificate monitoring
• resource monitoring
• suspicious activity alerts

Where a genuine security risk is identified, TIC may take reasonable emergency action without prior approval where delaying action could significantly increase the risk of:

• website compromise
• data loss
• service interruption
• malware spreading
• disruption to other hosted websites
• damage to the wider hosting environment

Emergency action may include:

• temporarily disabling vulnerable plugins or themes
• temporarily suspending website access
• blocking malicious traffic
• isolating compromised files
• resetting user credentials
• applying urgent security patches
• restoring from backup where appropriate

Where emergency action has been taken, TIC will notify the client as soon as reasonably practicable and explain what action was taken and why.

Where security incidents result from unsupported software, compromised passwords, unauthorised administrator accounts or third-party modifications, additional investigation or remediation work may be chargeable.

In Summary

We fully support responsible security testing. However, because testing can affect live services and shared infrastructure, we ask that you speak to us before carrying out penetration testing against systems we manage.

Clients wishing to carry out penetration testing, vulnerability scanning or other security assessments against websites or hosting services managed by TIC should notify us in advance wherever reasonably practicable.

Advance notice allows us to:

• prevent legitimate testing from being mistaken for malicious activity
• avoid unnecessary firewall blocks
• minimise disruption to hosted services
• monitor testing safely
• provide appropriate technical assistance where required

Unauthorised or excessive automated scanning may trigger security systems designed to protect the hosting environment.

Where testing requires temporary firewall changes, dedicated environments or additional technical assistance, this work may be chargeable.

Nothing within this agreement prevents clients from carrying out legitimate security testing of systems they own, provided such testing is conducted responsibly and does not adversely affect other customers or the wider hosting environment.

In Summary

Your domain name is one of your most valuable business assets. We’ll help manage registrations, renewals and DNS where included within your service, but it’s important that renewal invoices are paid promptly to avoid unnecessary disruption.

Where TIC registers or manages domain names on behalf of a client, renewal reminders and invoices will normally be issued before the renewal date.

Domain renewals are processed upon receipt of payment.

Failure to pay a renewal invoice before the domain expires may result in temporary interruption of website and email services.

Where a domain remains unpaid for more than 10 days after its expiry date, our hosting provider may apply a £90 domain recovery fee before the domain can be reinstated.

This recovery fee is imposed by the hosting provider and is not a charge applied by TIC. Additional registry or renewal fees may also apply depending on the domain extension and the policies of the relevant domain registry.

Unfortunately, once a domain has been released by the registry and becomes publicly available again, recovery may no longer be possible. TIC cannot guarantee the successful recovery of expired domain names.

Where included within your service, TIC may also manage DNS records relating to websites, email services and other supported systems.

Clients requesting DNS changes managed by third parties may be asked to provide appropriate authorisation or account access before work can be completed.

Where substantial technical investigation or migration work is required in relation to domain names or DNS management, additional charges may apply and will be discussed before work begins wherever reasonably practicable.

In Summary

Where email hosting forms part of your service package, we’ll help keep your email service available and supported. However, you’re still responsible for the day-to-day management of your mailbox and retaining important business records where required.

Where included within your service package, TIC may provide or manage business email hosting and related services.

Email hosting services may include:

• Mailbox creation and removal.
• Password resets.
• Email client configuration.
• Basic troubleshooting.
• DNS configuration relating to email services.
• Spam filtering where supported.
• Mailbox migration where specifically agreed.

Unless otherwise stated, email hosting does not include ongoing mailbox administration, user training, advanced compliance configuration or recovery of permanently deleted emails.

Clients remain responsible for:

• Managing the contents of their mailboxes.
• Retaining business records where required by law.
• Ensuring sufficient mailbox storage is available.
• Protecting login credentials.
• Enabling multi-factor authentication where available.

Where Microsoft 365, Google Workspace or other third-party email platforms are used, support may be limited by the capabilities and availability of those providers.

TIC cannot guarantee the uninterrupted delivery of email services, as delivery is dependent upon third-party networks, internet connectivity and recipient mail systems beyond our control.

In Summary

We believe our pricing should be simple and transparent. You’ll always know what you’re paying for, and services will only renew once payment has been received.

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, all managed website services are invoiced in advance.

Invoices are payable within 7 working days of the invoice date.

Hosting and maintenance services may be provided on either a monthly or annual basis, depending on the package selected.

Services do not renew automatically.

Renewal invoices are generated before the renewal date to allow sufficient time for payment. Your service will only be renewed once payment has been received.

Failure to pay an invoice by the renewal date may result in the suspension or termination of the affected service.

Additional work requested outside the scope of your hosting and maintenance package will be invoiced separately upon completion unless alternative arrangements have been agreed in advance.

Standard chargeable work is billed at £60 per hour.

Out-of-hours work requested by the client, or emergency work not included within the client’s service package, is billed at £120 per hour, with a minimum charge of one hour.

TIC reserves the right to review its pricing from time to time. Where changes affect an existing service, reasonable notice will be provided before the next renewal.

In Summary

We hope to work with our clients for many years, but if either party decides to end the agreement, we’ll work together to make the process as straightforward as possible.

Either party may terminate this agreement by giving 30 days’ written notice, unless an alternative notice period has been agreed in writing.

Where services are paid annually, termination will normally take effect at the end of the current paid period unless otherwise agreed.

Termination of this agreement does not remove the client’s responsibility to pay any outstanding invoices relating to services already provided.

Following termination:

• Website hosting services will cease.
• Maintenance services will end.
• Monitoring services will stop.
• Email hosting services, where provided by TIC, may be disconnected.
• Premium software licences supplied by TIC may be removed or transferred, depending on the licensing terms.

Website files, databases and associated hosting data will normally remain available for 30 days following termination unless legal, security or technical circumstances require earlier removal.

After this period, TIC reserves the right to permanently remove all hosted data.

In Summary

If you decide to move your website elsewhere, we’ll provide reasonable assistance to ensure a smooth transition. Additional migration work may be chargeable depending on the complexity involved.

Upon request, TIC will provide reasonable assistance to facilitate the transfer of your website to another hosting provider.

Standard handover may include:

• Website files.
• Website database.
• DNS information where applicable.
• Domain transfer assistance where TIC manages the domain.
• Reasonable technical information required for migration.

Where migration requires substantial technical input, extended consultation, bespoke development or troubleshooting, additional charges may apply.

Premium software licences owned by TIC remain the property of TIC unless otherwise agreed.

Where a premium licence cannot legally be transferred, it may be disconnected 14 days after the completion of the migration unless alternative arrangements have been agreed.

Where domains are managed by TIC, transfer requests will normally be processed once any outstanding invoices have been settled.

TIC is not responsible for delays caused by third-party registrars, hosting providers or domain registries.

In Summary

You always remain the owner of your business, your content and your data. We simply provide the services needed to host, maintain and support your website. Some software licences supplied by TIC remain our property unless otherwise agreed.

Unless otherwise agreed in writing, all original content supplied by the client, including text, images, logos, branding and documentation, remains the property of the client or the respective copyright owner.

Where TIC creates bespoke designs, graphics, code or other original work specifically for the client, ownership will normally transfer to the client once all related invoices have been paid in full, unless alternative licensing terms have been agreed.

Third-party software, commercial themes, plugins and software licences remain subject to their own licence agreements and may not be transferred where prohibited by the software publisher.

Premium software licences purchased and maintained by TIC remain the property of TIC unless specifically transferred or reassigned by written agreement.

Where a client transfers their website away from TIC, any premium licences owned by TIC may be removed or disconnected 14 days after migration unless alternative arrangements have been agreed.

TIC cannot accept responsibility for disputes relating to ownership of websites, domain names, software or content that pre-date the commencement of our services.

Clients warrant that any material supplied to TIC does not infringe the intellectual property rights of any third party and agree to indemnify TIC against claims arising from content supplied by the client.

In Summary

Where requested, we can assist with technical evidence for compliance schemes and security assessments. However, responsibility for achieving or maintaining certification always remains with the organisation seeking certification.

Where included within your service package or agreed separately, TIC may provide reasonable technical assistance in support of compliance activities, including:

• Cyber Essentials
• IASME Cyber Assurance
• DCC Compliance
• Security questionnaires
• Technical audits
• Website security reviews

Our assistance may include providing technical information, configuration details, evidence of security controls and recommendations for improvement.

While we will always use reasonable skill and care when providing compliance assistance, TIC cannot guarantee that any organisation will achieve or retain certification or accreditation.

For the purposes of UK data protection legislation, TIC will process personal information only where necessary to provide the contracted services.

Where TIC processes personal data solely on behalf of a client, we will act in accordance with applicable UK data protection legislation and any agreed data processing arrangements.

Both parties agree to take appropriate technical and organisational measures to help protect personal information against unauthorised access, loss or misuse.

In Summary

We’ll always provide our services with reasonable care and skill. However, some events are outside anyone’s control, and it’s important that both parties understand where responsibility begins and ends.

TIC will provide its services using reasonable care, skill and professional judgement.

Nothing in this agreement excludes or limits liability where it would be unlawful to do so, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence, fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot legally be excluded.

To the fullest extent permitted by law, TIC shall not be liable for indirect or consequential loss, including loss of profit, loss of business, loss of anticipated savings, loss of goodwill or loss of opportunity arising from the use of our services.

TIC cannot accept responsibility for delays, interruptions or failures caused by circumstances outside our reasonable control, including but not limited to:

• Internet service outages.
• Power failures.
• Domain registry issues.
• Third-party software defects.
• Hosting infrastructure failures outside our direct control.
• Distributed denial-of-service attacks.
• Acts of government.
• Industrial disputes.
• Extreme weather.
• Natural disasters.
• War, terrorism or civil unrest.

Where reasonably possible, we’ll always work with our clients to minimise disruption and restore services as quickly as practicable.

Nothing within this agreement limits the statutory rights available under the laws of England and Wales.

In Summary

Technology evolves quickly, and occasionally these terms may need updating. Where changes affect existing services, we’ll always aim to give reasonable notice before they take effect.

TIC may update this agreement from time to time to reflect changes in legislation, technology, security requirements or the services we provide.

The latest version of this agreement will always be published on our website together with the version number and effective date.

Where changes materially affect an existing service, reasonable notice will normally be provided before the revised terms apply to future renewals.

Continued use or renewal of managed website services after the effective date of a revised agreement will constitute acceptance of the updated terms.

If you have any questions about this agreement or would like clarification before purchasing or renewing a service, we’d be pleased to help.

We believe good communication prevents misunderstandings, and we’re always happy to explain how our services work.

The Ideas Cupboard Limited
Trading as TIC

Unit 5 Marlborough Road
Wrexham Industrial Estate
Wrexham
LL13 9RJ

Email: support@ticltd.uk

Website: www.ticltd.uk