If you have any questions about our policies, processes or how we’re dedicated to helping your business succeed, please contact us. By approving a quote, paying an invoice, or continuing to use services provided by Vancouver Island Designs, the Client agrees to these Terms & Conditions.

Quotes, Estimates & Proposals

All quoted prices are based on the estimated amount of time needed to accomplish everything outlined in your quote.

WEBSITE DESIGN: Once your deposited has been received, the design, structure and functionality of your new website will be built and once online, access will be provided. You’ll have opportunities to suggest changes along the way.
Additional Content & Functionality: You shouldn’t feel limited to your initial goals and if additional content, pages or functionality is desired you will be charged our current hourly rate. A separate quote can also be provided. Please contact us for our current hourly rate.

GRAPHIC DESIGN: All graphic design projects are charged hourly. Please contact us for our current hourly rate. Generally no deposit is required for smaller graphic design projects. A deposit may be required if the project exceeds 10 hours in duration. Proofs will be provided for your approval and changes made as desired. Once the final proof has been approved, payment is due, unless otherwise stated.

PLEASE NOTE: Our goal is to create the highest quality graphics & websites. The quotes and estimates we provide are often based on an assumption of time needed to work with (at the time unseen) text and photo (etc) content that is supplied by our clients.

If after receiving this content, we deem that more time is needed to create the graphics in a quality format, you will be notified. Your verbal or written agreement to move forward will be seen as your acknowledgement of the extra charges that will appear on your invoice. Ultimately, you the client are responsible for payment of the total invoice once we’ve received your written or verbal approval to have the project completed. Invoices are non-negotiable, however payment plans are available. This note was unfortunately made necessary to ensure that we’re fairly compensated for the time we spend on client projects, however as a policy, it helps to keep costs down for all clients.

Additional Time

Payments

New Websites: A deposit of 50% is due before work can begin. The balance is due once the website has been launched online.** Also due at this time are the fees for hosting, website management, domain registration(s)* & email registration(s)* for the year following the website’s activation.
*If applicable
** Launched online, means that the website is accessible on the internet.

Stalled Projects: If a project has stalled (with over one month of inactivity), the balance owing for work completed to that point will be due. Additionally a restart fee may apply, depending on the duration of inactivity and/or costs incurred while the project was stalled.

Graphics Design, Website changes and all other services: Generally no deposit is required for existing clients’ smaller projects but one may be required for new clients or large projects.

Payment Plans: We’re happy to work with your budget to create a payment plan that allows you to benefit from our services. Please contact us for more details.

Overdue Accounts and Late Payments

Late fees are charged on all overdue invoices. If payment has not been received within 30 days from the invoice due date, your account may be suspended. This includes website hosting and email accounts. Any current projects will also be suspended until your account has been paid in full.

All efforts will be made to collect payment to ensure your website remains operational however we maintain the right to disconnect your services (website, domain and email) at anytime after payment is 30 days overdue, in fairness to all our clients there will be no extensions but payment plans are available.

If two or more invoices have not been paid on time within a one year period: We reserve the right to request a retainer or request that payment be made in full before more work is completed.

Suspended Accounts

Vancouver Island Designs reserves the right to suspend hosting, email services, maintenance, or website access if invoices remain unpaid beyond their due date.

Services may be restored upon full payment of all outstanding amounts, including any applicable late fees or reinstatement fees.

Vancouver Island Designs shall not be liable for any damages, losses, or interruptions resulting from suspension due to non-payment.

Your account will be suspended if payment is not received within 30 days of the invoice date. A reconnection fee of $200 will apply to re-launch your website and $25 to re-setup email accounts .

Email Service Terms and Conditions:

Tech Support

We guarantee the proper function of your email server/service. Tech support is included if a problem arises with your email due to the email server, server settings, domain settings etc.

If your email service is working properly and you require Tech support because of your specific device, email client software, local ISP settings or any other reason not directly related to the email server and it’s service you will be charged our hourly rate for this time.

If a problem arises with a product or service that we provide, tech support is included only if the problem is attributed to the product or service that we provide. If the problem is attributed to your local environment, computer, device then you will be charged our hourly rate.

We are not responsible for backing up or otherwise managing email accounts.

Information about our Best Practises:

Search Engine Optimization and Search Engine Ranking

Your website comes with advanced Search Engine Optimization and will be submitted to Google for indexing. It can take up to two months to achieve your natural position in the search engine ranking. The algorithm for determining your position is complex but is based more than anything on the written content and “alt” tags of the photos on your website, including testimonials also helps increase your ranking. Having other reputable websites to link to your website is also very important to acquiring a high ranking.

I guarantee to do my best to help your website achieve a high ranking position, but I cannot guarantee a certain position. Once your website has reached it’s initial peak position (after two months), more text and photo content can be added and /or edited to better compete with website listings ranked higher.

Quality Guarantee

Your website will be built using the latest versions of proven and trusted software, that is for the most part open source. Validity and cross-browser compatibility are tested thoroughly in the major browsers (Safari, Chrome and Microsoft Edge) and all mobile devices.

As with all technologies, advancements and progressive enrichment is inevitable. While this eventually benefits us all it may cause future compatibility issues and errors with some of the features on your website. I cannot guarantee that there will be no future costs billed to you that are associated with fixing these issues but I do ensure that the adjustments will be done quickly and efficiently to minimize costs. You will be notified beforehand of any issues of this nature that arise. With my website maintenance plan you’re covered for the cost of up to 2 hours of labour each year. Addition changes are charged at our current hourly rate (please inquire).

Website Security and Liability

Security, Liability & Third-Party Services

Vancouver Island Designs implements advanced security measures designed to reduce the risk of malicious attacks, unauthorized access, and data compromise. While these measures are industry-standard and regularly monitored, no website or online system can be guaranteed to be completely secure. New vulnerabilities and threats emerge regularly.

Accordingly, Vancouver Island Designs does not guarantee that a website will be free from interruption, compromise, data loss, or unauthorized access.

The Client acknowledges that ongoing software updates and maintenance are critical to website security. Under an active hosting and maintenance plan, Vancouver Island Designs performs regular updates, monitoring, and backups as part of the service. Failure to maintain an active maintenance plan may significantly increase risk.

To the maximum extent permitted by law:

1. Limitation of Liability
Vancouver Island Designs’ total aggregate liability arising out of or related to services provided shall not exceed the total fees paid by the Client to Vancouver Island Designs in the twelve (12) months immediately preceding the claim.

2. Exclusion of Certain Damages
In no event shall Vancouver Island Designs be liable for any indirect, incidental, consequential, special, exemplary, or punitive damages, including but not limited to loss of revenue, loss of profits, loss of data, loss of business opportunity, business interruption, reputational harm, or loss of anticipated savings, even if advised of the possibility of such damages.

3. Third-Party Services Disclaimer
Vancouver Island Designs is not responsible for failures, outages, policy changes, security breaches, data loss, service suspensions, or other issues caused by third-party providers, including but not limited to:

Hosting providers
VPS infrastructure providers
Domain registrars
Email service providers (including Microsoft 365)
Software vendors or plugin developers
Payment processors
Cloud services or CDN providers

All third-party services are subject to the terms, policies, and limitations of the respective provider.

4. No Warranty of Uninterrupted Service
Services are provided on an “as-is” and “as available” basis. Vancouver Island Designs makes no warranty that services will be uninterrupted, error-free, or immune from cyber threats.

5. Client Responsibility
The Client is responsible for maintaining secure passwords, managing authorized access to their accounts, and notifying Vancouver Island Designs promptly of any suspected breach or unauthorized activity.

Copyright FAQ

We only use professional, royalty-free stock photography, our own original images and artwork or material submitted by our clients. Images gathered off the internet generally cannot be used because of copyright infringement.

As per Canadian copyright laws, we are the lawful copyright holder of the artwork, graphic design, code that we write and create. We authorize our clients to use the website, designs and product/content that we create for its indented use only. If you want to be the copyright holder of the website or designs that are created we are happy to pass this on (once final payment has been received in full) as desired. Please contact us if you have any questions.

Learn more about Copyright in Canada as it affects graphic and website design.

Termination, Suspension & Transfer of Services

Termination by Either Party

Suspension for Non-Payment

Transfer of Domains, Hosting, or Email Services

Additional Legal Terms

The following sections form a binding part of these Terms & Conditions and apply to all services provided.

Force Majeure

Governing Law

Dispute Resolution

Modifications to Terms

Vancouver Island Designs reserves the right to update or modify these Terms & Conditions at any time.

Continued use of services after updates constitutes acceptance of the revised Terms.

Entire Agreement

These Terms & Conditions, together with approved quotes and invoices, constitute the entire agreement between the parties and supersede any prior discussions or understandings.

terms & conditions of service

Availability & Response Times:

Email Service Terms and Conditions:

Information about our Best Practises:

Security, Liability & Third-Party Services

Termination, Suspension & Transfer of Services

Additional Legal Terms

Modifications to Terms

Entire Agreement

Our partners

Website design

Graphic design

Instructions