Grieve & Lombard Ltd — United Kingdom
Version: V1 Effective: 16 August 2026 Applies to: all engagements accepted on or after the effective date
These are the standard terms on which Grieve & Lombard Ltd provides professional services. They are incorporated into every engagement letter we issue and should be read alongside that letter and the schedule of services attached to it. Where the engagement letter and these terms conflict, the engagement letter prevails.
Clause numbering follows Part 3 of our engagement letter, so a reference in your letter to clause 3.23 is clause 3.23 below.
These terms are not website terms of use. If you are browsing this site rather than engaging us, see our Website Terms of Use.
These terms and conditions should be read alongside the Engagement Letter, the Schedule of Services and our privacy notice. An alphabetical index appears at the end.
Contents
A. The engagement
3.1 Applicable law and jurisdiction. The Engagement Letter, the Schedule of Services and these terms and conditions are governed by, and shall be construed in accordance with, the law of England and Wales. Each party agrees that the courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction in relation to any claim, dispute or difference concerning this engagement and any matter arising from it. Each party irrevocably waives any right to object to proceedings being brought in those courts, to claim that the proceedings have been brought in an inappropriate forum, or to claim that those courts do not have jurisdiction.
3.2 Period of engagement and acceptance. This engagement begins when you sign and return the acceptance page of the engagement letter, or if earlier, when you instruct us to begin work after receiving the engagement letter and these terms, in which case these terms apply to that work from the date we begin it. An electronic signature has the same effect as a signature in wet ink. We are not responsible for any period before that date.
3.3 Who performs the work. You are contracting with Grieve & Lombard Ltd. Some work may be performed by personnel of our South African affiliate, or by subcontractors we engage, in each case under our supervision and bound by the confidentiality and data protection terms in the engagement letter and these terms. We remain responsible to you for all work performed under this engagement, whoever performs it.
3.4 Implementation. We will assist with the implementation of our advice only where you specifically instruct us to and we agree in writing.
3.5 Interpretation. If any provision of the engagement letter and these terms is held to be void or unenforceable, that provision shall be deemed not to form part of this contract and the remainder shall be interpreted as if it had never been included. In the event of conflict, the Engagement Letter and the Schedule of Services take precedence over these terms and conditions.
B. Your responsibilities
3.6 Information and records. You will give us complete and accurate information and records, and will tell us about anything that might be relevant to the Services even where we have not specifically asked for it. You will provide records by any deadline we agree with you. Where records reach us after an agreed deadline, we will use reasonable endeavours to meet the relevant filing date but cannot guarantee it, and we will not be responsible for any resulting interest, penalty or surcharge.
3.7 Approval before submission. You are responsible for reviewing and approving accounts, returns and other documents before we submit them on your behalf. Approval confirms that, to the best of your knowledge, the document is complete and correct. You are responsible for bringing to our attention any error, omission or inaccuracy you become aware of after submission, so that we can help you make a voluntary disclosure.
3.8 Authorities to act. You will complete and maintain any authority we need to act for you with HM Revenue & Customs, Companies House or any other body, including agent authorisations and any authorisation required for Making Tax Digital. We cannot act until those authorities are in place, and we are not responsible for anything arising from a delay in putting them in place or from their lapsing.
3.9 Keeping us informed. You will tell us promptly of any change in your circumstances, ownership, residence, domicile or contact details, and will keep your contact details with us accurate and current so that documents are not sent to the wrong address.
3.10 Your own records. You remain legally responsible for retaining the documents and records relevant to your business and tax affairs, and for your own statutory filings. Nothing in this engagement transfers that responsibility to us.
C. Our responsibilities
3.11 Standard of care. We will provide the Services with reasonable care and skill.
3.12 Reliance on advice. We will endeavour to record advice on important matters in writing. Advice given orally, for example during a meeting or a telephone conversation, is not intended to be relied on unless we confirm it in writing. If you wish to rely on oral advice, please ask us to confirm it. Advice is valid as at the date it is given.
3.13 Electronic communication. Unless you tell us otherwise, we will communicate with you and with any third party you instruct us to by email or other electronic means. Electronic communication carries a risk of non-receipt, delayed receipt, misdirection and interception, and it is not secure. We use virus-scanning software, but we cannot accept liability for damage or loss caused by viruses, or for communications that are corrupted, altered or intercepted after dispatch. The recipient is responsible for virus-checking emails and attachments. If you would prefer us to use hard copy, tell us and we will, except where electronic submission is mandatory.
Documents we send by post or DX are deemed to arrive at your postal address two working days after the day of sending.
When we access information held electronically by HM Revenue & Customs, we may be able to see more information than we need. We will access only the records reasonably required to carry out the Services.
3.14 Commissions and other benefits. We may receive commission or another benefit for introductions to other professionals, or in respect of transactions we arrange for you. Where we do, we will tell you in writing the amount and the terms of payment and receipt. The same applies where the payment is made to, or the transaction arranged by, a person or business connected with ours. Our fees will not be reduced by the amount of any commission or benefit unless we tell you otherwise; where we do reduce our fees by the amount retained, we will apply the HM Revenue & Customs concession that allows VAT to be calculated on the net fee after deduction of the commission.
3.15 Investment advice. Investment business is regulated under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. We are not authorised to give investment advice, including advice on insurance. If you need it, we may refer you to a person authorised by the Financial Conduct Authority or licensed by a designated professional body.
3.16 Intellectual property. We retain copyright in every document we prepare in the course of this engagement, except where the law provides otherwise.
D. Fees and payment
3.17 Basis of our fees. Our fees are as set out in your engagement letter, or in the proposal it refers to. Our fees reflect the time spent on your affairs, the level of skill and responsibility involved, the importance and value of the advice, and the level of risk.
An estimate of our fees is not contractually binding unless we say expressly that it is. Where we quote a fixed fee or a range for a particular assignment, we do not fix fees more than a year ahead, because a quote needs to be reviewed in the light of events. If unforeseen circumstances make a quote inadequate, we will tell you the revised figure or range and seek your agreement to it.
Our fees exclude VAT, which we will add where chargeable. Disbursements and expenses we incur on your behalf will be added where appropriate. Unless we agree otherwise, our fees do not include the cost of any third party, counsel or other professional.
3.18 Annual review of fees. We review our fees annually and may adjust them with effect from 1 September, by no more than the increase in the Consumer Prices Index published by the Office for National Statistics for the 12 months to the preceding 30 June. Where our costs change materially for reasons outside our control, we may propose a further adjustment. We will give you at least 30 days’ written notice of any adjustment. If you do not accept it, you may end this engagement by written notice before it takes effect, and we will charge only for work done to that date.
3.19 Requests for payment and VAT invoices. Depending on the Services, we will issue requests for payment monthly, quarterly, annually, or as a single request. A request for payment is due within 7 days of issue. We will issue a VAT invoice on receipt of your payment.
It is our normal practice to ask clients to pay by monthly direct debit, and to adjust the monthly amount periodically by reference to actual billings.
If you do not accept that an amount requested is fair and reasonable, you must tell us within 21 days of receiving the request, failing which you will be treated as having accepted that payment is due.
3.20 Late payment. Where you are acting in the course of a business, we may charge interest on late payment at 8% above the Bank of England base rate under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998. We may also suspend the Services, or cease to act, on written notice where payment is unduly delayed. We intend to exercise these rights only where it is fair and reasonable to do so.
On termination you may appoint a new adviser. Where a new adviser requests professional clearance and handover information, we may charge a reasonable fee for providing it.
3.21 Fee protection and insurance. You may be entitled to assistance with your professional fees, particularly for an HM Revenue & Customs investigation, through an insurance policy you hold or membership of a professional or trade body. Unless the insurance was arranged through us, you need to tell us about it. You remain liable for our fees whether or not all or part of them are payable by your insurer.
3.22 Lien. Insofar as the law and the rules of our Professional Body permit, we may retain documents belonging to you that came into our possession in connection with an engagement for which fees or disbursements remain outstanding, until those amounts are paid in full. This does not apply to statutory registers, to books of account you are required by law to keep, or to anything we hold in our capacity as your registered office.
E. Liability
3.23 Limitation of liability. Our aggregate liability to you, and to any other person we have agreed may rely on our work, for all claims arising out of or in connection with this engagement — whether in contract, tort including negligence, breach of statutory duty or otherwise — is limited to £2,000,000.
For claims arising from the loss of, damage to, or unauthorised access to or disclosure of documents or data, our aggregate liability is limited to £250,000.
Nothing in the engagement letter and these terms limits or excludes our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or for any other liability that cannot lawfully be limited or excluded.
You agree not to bring a claim of a kind covered by these limits against any of our members, principals, directors, employees or agents personally.
3.24 Exclusions. We will not be liable for loss, penalties, interest or additional tax liabilities caused by:
- the acts or omissions of any other person;
- the provision to us of incomplete, misleading or false information;
- your failure to act on our advice, or to provide us with relevant information;
- any delay or failure in performance caused by circumstances outside our reasonable control; or
- information material to the Services being withheld or concealed from us, or misrepresented to us.
The last of these does not apply where the misrepresentation, withholding or concealment was, or should have been, evident to us in carrying out the agreed procedures with reasonable care and skill, without enquiry beyond what would have been reasonable in the circumstances.
Where we refer you to another firm and you engage that firm directly, we accept no responsibility for its work and will not be liable for any loss it causes.
3.25 Indemnity for unauthorised disclosure. You agree to indemnify us and our agents against any claim, including a claim in negligence, arising out of any unauthorised disclosure by you, or by any person for whom you are responsible, of our advice or opinions, whether in writing or otherwise. This indemnity extends to the cost of defending the claim, including our time at our usual rates.
3.26 Third party rights. Our advice and information is for your sole use. Unless we have expressly agreed in the Engagement Letter that a named third party may rely on our work, we accept no responsibility to any third party — including any group company to which the engagement letter and these terms is not addressed — for advice, information or material produced as part of our work for you that you make available to them.
No person other than a party to this agreement has the right to enforce any of its terms under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999, save that our members, principals, directors, employees, agents and subcontractors may enforce clauses 3.23 to 3.25 as if they were a party. No consent from any such person is required to vary or rescind this agreement.
F. Confidentiality and data
3.27 Confidentiality. Communication between us is confidential. We will take all reasonable steps not to disclose your information except where we are required to and as set out in the privacy notice. Unless you authorise us to disclose information on your behalf, this applies during and after the engagement. Where we subcontract work on your affairs to other tax or accounting professionals, they are bound by our confidentiality and security terms.
3.28 Data protection. We act in accordance with our privacy notice, published at www.grievelombard.com/uk/privacy-policy/, which forms part of the agreement between us.
3.29 Retention of papers. You are legally responsible for retaining documents and records relevant to your tax affairs. We will return original documents on request.
Records are retained in line with our privacy notice — tax compliance records for seven years from the end of the relevant tax year; ad hoc advisory records for six years from the end of the relationship; and ongoing-relationship data for the duration of the relationship plus six years. We may destroy stored correspondence and papers more than seven years old, including your documents if not reclaimed within that period.
Corporate clients must retain their own records for six years from the end of the accounting period.
Individuals, trustees and partnerships must retain their own records for five years and ten months after the end of the tax year where there is trading or rental income, and 22 months after the end of the tax year otherwise.
Please tell us if you require any specific document to be returned, or retained for longer.
When we cease to act, we will seek to agree the position on access to cloud accounting records to ensure continuity. This may require you to enter into direct agreements with the software providers and to pay for that service separately.
G. Regulatory
3.30 Client identification and anti-money laundering. Like other professional services firms, we are required to identify and verify our clients under UK anti-money laundering legislation. We cannot start work until that is done. We may request and retain information and documentation for these purposes, and may search appropriate databases, including through identity verification software. We may also need to establish the source of your funds or wealth.
You must tell us if you carry on business that requires you to be supervised under the anti-money laundering regulations, including if you accept or make high value cash payments of £10,000 or more, or the equivalent in any currency, in exchange for goods.
3.31 Reporting obligations. We are required by law to report knowledge or suspicion of money laundering to the National Crime Agency. We may be prohibited from telling you that we have done so, or the reason for it, and we may have to stop work on your affairs without explanation. We will not be liable for any loss, damage or cost arising from our compliance with our statutory or regulatory obligations.
3.32 Professional standards. We apply the ethical standards of the ACCA Code of Ethics and Conduct and of Professional Conduct in Relation to Taxation, and accept instructions to act for you on that basis. Where a Professional Body is named in the Regulatory Information panel, we also observe and act in accordance with its bye-laws, regulations and ethical guidance; copies are available from us on request and from that body’s website.
We will not undertake tax planning that breaches Professional Conduct in Relation to Taxation. We comply with the general anti-abuse rule and with any applicable targeted anti-avoidance rules, and we do not advise on arrangements requiring notification under the Disclosure of Tax Avoidance Schemes rules.
Unless you authorise us to, we will not exercise any authority to correct an error made by HM Revenue & Customs that comes to our attention.
3.33 Anti-facilitation of tax evasion. Neither party will engage in any activity, practice or conduct that would constitute an offence under sections 45 or 46 of the Criminal Finances Act 2017. Each party has and will maintain reasonable prevention procedures.
3.34 Conflicts of interest. Where a conflict of interest arises in our relationship with you, or between you and another client, and it can be addressed by suitable safeguards to protect your interests, we will adopt those safeguards. Where a conflict cannot be managed in a way that protects your interests, we will be unable to provide further services, and we will tell you promptly. Subject to our confidentiality obligations, we reserve the right to act for other clients whose interests are not the same as, or are adverse to, yours.
3.35 Internal disputes within a client. If we become aware of a dispute between the parties who own, or are otherwise involved in the ownership and management of, a business client, we will not provide information or services to one party without the express knowledge and permission of all parties. Unless all parties agree otherwise, we will continue to supply information to the registered office or normal place of business for the attention of the directors or proprietors. If we receive conflicting advice, information or instructions from different directors or principals, we will refer the matter back to the board, partnership or LLP and take no further action until it has agreed what is to be done.
3.36 Professional indemnity insurance. We hold professional indemnity insurance. The insurer, the limit of indemnity and the territorial coverage are stated in the Regulatory Information panel, and further details are available from us on request.
3.37 Complaints. We aim to give you a high-quality service. If any part of it falls short, we want to know.
Please raise any complaint with Lester Lombard at lester@grievelombard.co.uk or on +44 (0)20 4591 0166. We will acknowledge your complaint in writing within 5 working days and respond substantively within 20 working days. If we cannot meet that timescale we will tell you why, and when you will hear from us.
If you are not satisfied with that response, you may ask for your complaint to be reviewed by Andrew Grieve or Gareth Lombard, founding partners, neither of whom will have carried out the work complained of. They will respond within a further 20 working days.
Where a Professional Body is named in the Regulatory Information panel and you remain dissatisfied, you may refer your complaint to that body within any time limit it applies. Where no Professional Body is named, we are not within a professional body complaints scheme, and your rights beyond the review above are those you have at law.
H. Ending the engagement
3.38 Termination. Either of us may terminate this agreement by giving not less than 21 days’ written notice to the other. We may terminate immediately where you fail to cooperate with us, or where we have reason to believe you have provided us or any regulatory body with misleading information. Termination is without prejudice to any rights accrued before it.
Where we are engaged for a one-off piece of work, the engagement ends when that work is completed, and the date of completion is the termination date. Where we provide recurring work, and unless immediate termination applies, the termination date is 21 days after the date of the notice, a later date we agree, or the date at the start of a period for which you tell us before we begin work that you will not require our services.
We owe you no duties beyond the termination date and will not undertake further work after it.
3.39 Consequences of termination. On termination we will endeavour to agree with you the arrangements for completing work in progress, unless we are required for legal or regulatory reasons to cease work immediately. In that event we are not required to carry out further work and are not responsible for any consequence arising from the termination.
3.40 Disengagement. Where we resign or are asked to resign, we will normally issue a disengagement letter so that our respective responsibilities are clear. If we have no contact with you for a year or more, we may send a disengagement letter to your last known address and cease to act.
Following termination, we will return your documents on request and at your cost. Documents we are unable to return are retained and destroyed in accordance with clause 3.29.
3.41 Your right to cancel. Where you are a consumer and this engagement is agreed away from our business premises or at a distance, you may cancel within 14 days of the day we confirm acceptance, without giving a reason. To cancel, tell us in writing at lester@grievelombard.co.uk, or use the cancellation form supplied with your engagement letter. If you ask us to begin work within the cancellation period, you may still cancel, but you must pay for the work we have done up to the point you tell us.
3.42 Continuity. We maintain arrangements for another practitioner to take over the conduct of our work in the event of the incapacity or death of the person responsible for your affairs. That person is bound by the same confidentiality obligations.
I. General
3.43 Notices. A notice under this agreement must be in writing. A notice sent by email is deemed received on the next working day after sending, unless the sender receives notification of non-delivery. A notice sent by post or DX is deemed received two working days after the day of sending. Notices to us should be sent to lester@grievelombard.co.uk or to our business address.
3.44 Variation. We may vary these terms and conditions by giving you at least 30 days’ written notice. If you do not accept the variation, you may end this engagement by written notice before it takes effect, and we will charge only for work done to that date. Any other variation requires the written agreement of both of us.
3.45 Assignment. You may not assign or transfer your rights under this agreement without our written consent. We may subcontract work in accordance with clause 3.3.
3.46 Force majeure. Neither of us is liable for any delay or failure to perform obligations under this agreement caused by circumstances outside our reasonable control.
3.47 Entire agreement. This document forms the entire agreement between us in relation to the Services, and supersedes any prior discussion, correspondence or representation. Neither of us has relied on any statement not set out in it. This clause does not limit liability for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.
3.48 Severance. See clause 3.5.
Index
Anti-facilitation of tax evasion 3.33 · Anti-money laundering 3.30 · Applicable law 3.1 · Approval before submission 3.7 · Assignment 3.45 · Authorities to act 3.8 · Cancellation rights 3.41 · Commissions 3.14 · Complaints 3.37 · Confidentiality 3.27 · Conflicts of interest 3.34 · Continuity 3.42 · Data protection 3.28 · Disengagement 3.40 · Electronic communication 3.13 · Entire agreement 3.47 · Exclusions of liability 3.24 · Fees, basis of 3.17 · Fees, annual review 3.18 · Fee protection insurance 3.21 · Force majeure 3.46 · Implementation 3.4 · Indemnity 3.25 · Information and records 3.6 · Intellectual property 3.16 · Internal disputes 3.35 · Interpretation 3.5 · Investment advice 3.15 · Keeping us informed 3.9 · Late payment 3.20 · Liability, limitation of 3.23 · Lien 3.22 · Notices 3.43 · Payment 3.19 · Period of engagement 3.2 · Professional indemnity insurance 3.36 · Professional standards 3.32 · Reliance on advice 3.12 · Reporting obligations 3.31 · Retention of papers 3.29 · Severance 3.5 · Standard of care 3.11 · Termination 3.38 · Third party rights 3.26 · Variation 3.44 · Who performs the work 3.3 · Your own records 3.10
Version history
V1 — 16 August 2026. First publication. Replaces the previous Terms & Conditions page, which combined website terms of use with terms of business.