The contract that governs your order
Version 2.0 · Effective 28 August 2026 · Supersedes all earlier versions
This is a trade-only contract. We supply the sign trade, shopfitters, contractors and resellers. By placing an order you confirm you are acting in the course of a business and not as a consumer. The Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 do not apply to this contract.
Your attention is drawn in particular to clause 14 (Limitation of liability), clause 6 (Damage, shortage and non-delivery) and clause 9.6 (No set-off).
1.1 A reference to a statute includes its amendments and re-enactments. Headings do not affect interpretation. “Including” means “including without limitation”.
2.1 These Conditions apply to every sale we make and override any terms you seek to impose, whether in a purchase order, an acknowledgement, a specification, a framework agreement or any other document, and whether or not that document is referred to in the Contract.
2.2 No variation of these Conditions and no representation about the Goods has any effect unless agreed in writing and signed by a director of the Company.
2.3 A quotation is an invitation to treat, not an offer. Quotations are valid for 7 days from their date unless we withdraw them sooner or state a different period on the quotation itself.
2.4 Your order is an offer to buy the Goods on these Conditions. No order is accepted until we issue an Order Acknowledgement or, if earlier, deliver the Goods.
2.5 Manufacture does not begin until you have approved the Artwork and the order details in writing. Approval may be given by email.
2.6 You must make sure the terms of your order and any Specification are complete and accurate.
3.1 You are responsible for checking the Artwork before you approve it — every dimension, every spelling, every colour reference, the layout, the materials and the fixing method. We accept no liability for an error that was visible in Artwork you approved.
3.2 Where you supply the Specification or the Artwork, you indemnify us against any claim that our use of it infringes a third party’s intellectual property, including fonts, logos, images and branding. It is your responsibility to hold the licences you need for any font or image you send us.
3.3 We retain ownership of the drawings, visuals, renders, templates, engineering and setting-out we produce, including the Artwork we prepare. You may use them for the purposes of this Contract. You may not use them to obtain a competing quotation or to have the Goods made elsewhere.
3.4 We may make minor changes to the Specification to comply with UK statutory or regulatory requirements, provided they do not materially affect performance or appearance.
3.5 Samples, prototypes, test pieces and physical mock-ups are chargeable unless we agree otherwise in writing.
This clause matters. Signage is manufactured, not printed to a screen, and these are the tolerances within which Goods are correct.
4.1 The description of the Goods is that set out in our quotation. Images, renders, samples, mock-ups, catalogues and advertising are illustrative only and do not form part of the Contract.
4.2 Tolerances vary by process and by material, and we work to what each will actually hold. Goods within the tolerances below conform to the Contract.
4.2.1 Where a dimension is critical — a fixed aperture, an existing tray, a set-out that has to match something already on site — tell us before you order. We will confirm in writing the tolerance we can hold on that dimension, and price it accordingly. Without that, the tolerances above apply.
4.3 Colour. A colour reference — Pantone, RAL, BS or a named brand colour — is a target, not a guarantee. We match as closely as the material allows. You accept that:
4.4 LED variation. LED colour temperature, brightness and hue vary between production batches within the manufacturer’s stated tolerance. Goods within that tolerance conform to the Contract. Where visual consistency across a set matters, tell us at order stage and we will batch-match where we can.
4.5 Illuminated products. Some variation in brightness across a face, and some visibility of internal structure, LED pattern or seams, is inherent in illuminated signage and is not a defect.
4.6 Neon flex. Minimum bend radius, minimum stroke width and the appearance of joints and terminations are constrained by the material. Artwork is adjusted where needed to make a design manufacturable, and those adjustments are shown on the Artwork you approve.
4.7 A repeat or extension order may not match the original run in colour or in LED appearance, for the reasons in clauses 4.3 and 4.4.
5.1 Delivery is kerbside only, at your premises or another address you give us, unless we agree otherwise in writing. Delivery takes place when the Goods are unloaded at that address.
5.2 We do not provide installation, offloading equipment, forklift or crane, access equipment, electrical connection, or removal of existing signage. We are a supply-only manufacturer — see clause 11.
5.3 You must give us a delivery address that a rigid vehicle can reach, and enough labour to receive and unload the Goods.
5.4 Delivery dates are estimates. Time of delivery is not of the essence and may not be made so by notice. We are not liable for any delay caused by a carrier, supply chain disruption or anything beyond our reasonable control. No delay entitles you to terminate the Contract unless it exceeds 180 days.
5.5 Where Goods are delivered in instalments, each delivery is a separate contract. A failure or a claim in relation to one instalment does not entitle you to treat the whole Contract as repudiated.
5.6 If you fail to take delivery, or we cannot deliver on time because you have not given us access, instructions or authorisations, then risk passes to you, the Goods are deemed delivered, we may invoice you, and you are liable for our storage, insurance and redelivery costs.
5.7 The carrier is your agent, except for the purposes of sections 44 to 46 of the Sale of Goods Act 1979.
What you must do at the point of delivery. Almost every transit claim that fails, fails at the door. If your driver or your site signs the carrier’s note clean, the carrier is entitled to say the Goods arrived in good order — and so are we. Please make sure whoever receives the delivery knows these four steps.
6.1 You must inspect the Goods on delivery.
6.2 Time limits for notifying us. Notice must be in writing, quoting our order number, and must be given within:
6.3 Where damage occurred in transit you must also notify the carrier within the same period.
6.4 Do not install, use, alter or attempt to repair Goods you have notified to us. If you do, we are not liable for that claim. Wait for our instruction.
6.5 We may ask for photographs, video, or the return of the Goods for inspection. Where you return Goods at our request, you pay the return carriage and we reimburse it if the claim is upheld.
6.6 The quantity recorded by us on despatch is conclusive evidence of the quantity delivered, unless you can prove otherwise.
6.7 Our liability under this clause is limited to replacing the affected Goods, or issuing a credit note for them, at our option. It does not extend to installation costs, re-visit costs, access equipment, site costs, or any loss described in clause 14.2.
7.1 Risk in the Goods passes to you on delivery.
7.2 Title does not pass until we have received in full, in cleared funds, all sums due to us in respect of the Goods and all other sums owed to us by you on any account.
7.3 Until title passes you must:
7.4 You may resell the Goods before title passes only in the ordinary course of your business, at full market value, and as principal on your own behalf.
7.5 Your right to possession ends immediately if you become insolvent as described in clause 19.2, if you suffer any execution levied against your property, if you fail to perform any obligation under this or any other contract with us, if you are unable to pay your debts within the meaning of section 123 of the Insolvency Act 1986, if you cease to trade, or if you charge or encumber any of the Goods.
7.6 You grant us, our agents and our employees an irrevocable licence to enter any premises where the Goods are or may be stored, at any time, in order to inspect them or — where your right to possession has ended — to recover them. You will procure the same right from any third party whose premises the Goods are on.
7.7 We may recover payment for the Goods even though title has not passed.
8.1 The price is the price in our quotation or Order Acknowledgement. Errors and omissions are excepted.
8.2 Prices exclude VAT, delivery, installation, electrical connection, access equipment, survey and removal of existing signage unless the quotation says otherwise.
8.3 Long-lead orders. Where more than 90 days pass between the date of our quotation and the date of manufacture for a reason not attributable to us, we may increase the price to reflect a documented increase in the cost of materials, energy or exchange rates since the quotation. We will tell you before we proceed, and you may cancel the affected Goods within 5 Working Days without charge.
8.4 Where you change the Specification, the Artwork or the quantity after approval, we may adjust the price and the delivery date.
9.1 Payment terms are those agreed in writing. Time for payment is of the essence.
9.2 If you do not have an approved credit account with us, a deposit of between 50% and 100% of the Contract Price is payable on order, with the balance payable in cleared funds before despatch. The deposit level is confirmed at order stage and may be higher where special, non-standard or high-value materials are required.
9.3 We may withhold manufacture, release or despatch until cleared funds are received, and may suspend work or delivery while any sum is overdue.
9.4 Every payment and every remittance must quote our order or invoice number. We may appropriate a payment to whichever invoice we think fit.
9.5 Interest is payable on overdue sums at 8% a year above the Bank of England base rate, accruing daily, before and after judgment, together with the fixed sum and reasonable recovery costs provided for by the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998.
9.6 No set-off. You must pay every sum due in full, without any deduction by way of set-off, counterclaim, discount, abatement, retention or otherwise, unless you hold a valid court order requiring us to pay you an equivalent amount. A dispute about one order does not entitle you to withhold payment on that order or on any other.
9.7 All sums outstanding become due immediately on termination of the Contract.
10.1 We warrant that on delivery, and for the periods below, the Goods will be free from defects in materials and workmanship under normal use.
10.2 “Fitted and wired by us” means assembled onto its tray or panel and wired in our workshop, and delivered to you as a complete, tested unit. It does not mean site installation — we never install, and clause 11 says so. Mounting the finished unit to the wall or structure is your installer’s work either way.
10.3 An extended warranty applies only if it was bought at the time of order and is stated on the invoice.
10.4 Where we are not the manufacturer of an item, our obligation is limited to transferring to you, so far as we are able, the benefit of the warranty given to us by the manufacturer.
10.5 The warranty does not cover:
10.6 The warranty is conditional on you having notified us within the periods in clause 6.2, on you not having used, altered or repaired the Goods after giving notice, and on you giving us a reasonable opportunity to inspect.
10.7 Our obligation under the warranty is to repair or replace the Goods, at our option. Where we do so, we have no further liability for that defect. Replaced Goods become our property.
10.8 Repaired or replaced Goods carry the unexpired balance of the original warranty period, or 180 days from repair or replacement, whichever is longer.
10.9 The warranty is return-to-base. It does not include removal, re-installation, access equipment, scaffolding, traffic management, electrical isolation or making good.
This is absolute. The Sign Group™ is a supply-only manufacturer. We do not install, and we do not carry out work on site — on any job, for any customer, at any price. Everything we make is delivered kerbside for you or your installer to fit.
11.1 We do not, in any circumstances: install, fix or hang the Goods; carry out electrical connection, wiring or commissioning on site; provide access equipment, scaffolding, powered access or traffic management; remove, dispose of or make good around existing signage; or attend site to survey, supervise, or advise on an installation.
11.2 No employee, agent or subcontractor of ours has authority to agree otherwise. Anything to the contrary in a quotation, an email or a conversation has no effect unless it is agreed in writing and signed by a director under clause 2.2.
11.3 Any drawing, template or setting-out we produce is for our own manufacturing purposes. It is not a structural, electrical, asbestos or condition survey and you may not rely on it as one.
11.4 Installation is your responsibility, and choosing a competent installer is your responsibility. Before you order, satisfy yourself that the Goods can be installed safely in the position intended — the substrate, the structure, the fixings, the access and the electrical supply are all matters for you. Clause 12 sets out what that means in practice.
11.5 Where we supply fixing details, drawings or instructions with the Goods, they are guidance for a competent installer, given in good faith on the information you gave us. They do not transfer responsibility for the installation to us.
11.6 We are not liable for anything arising out of installation — the cost of installing, removing, re-installing or accessing the Goods; damage caused during installation; or any loss arising from an installation that does not follow our instructions or good trade practice. Clause 14.2 applies.
12.1 Obtaining Advertisement Consent, planning permission, Listed Building Consent, landlord’s consent, licences and any other permission needed to display or install the Goods is your responsibility, not ours. We do not check whether consent exists.
12.2 A refusal, revocation or condition imposed on any consent, whenever it occurs, does not entitle you to cancel a bespoke or made-to-order item, or to withhold payment. Clause 13 applies.
12.3 Electrical work. Where the Goods are to be connected to a mains supply, connection must be carried out by a competent person in accordance with BS 7671, with a local means of isolation. Illuminated Goods must be connected only to the power supply we specify.
12.4 IP ratings are achieved only where the Goods are installed in the orientation and conditions we specify, with cable entries sealed as instructed. An IP rating is not a guarantee against water ingress in any position.
12.5 You are responsible for the suitability of the substrate, the structure and the fixings for the position, weight and wind loading of the Goods.
13.1 An order for bespoke or made-to-order Goods may not be cancelled once accepted, except with our written consent and on terms that you indemnify us in full against all losses, including loss of profit, the cost of all labour and materials used or committed, and all charges and expenses arising.
13.2 Where we agree to cancellation before manufacture begins, we may retain an administration charge and the cost of any material already ordered.
13.3 Storage. We store completed Goods free of charge for 5 Working Days after we notify you they are ready. After that we may charge storage at a rate we notify you of before it starts to run.
13.4 Disposal. If Goods remain uncollected 6 months after we notify you they are ready, and we have given you 30 days’ written notice, we may dispose of them. Disposal does not discharge your liability for the Contract Price.
13.5 We do not accept returns. Everything we make is bespoke or made to order and cannot be sold to anyone else. This does not affect your rights where Goods are damaged, are not what you ordered, or have not been made in accordance with the Artwork you approved — those are dealt with under clauses 6 and 10.
Nothing in these Conditions limits or excludes our liability for death or personal injury caused by our negligence, for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, for breach of the terms implied by section 12 of the Sale of Goods Act 1979, or for anything else that cannot lawfully be limited.
14.1 Subject to that, our total liability to you in contract, tort (including negligence), breach of statutory duty, misrepresentation or otherwise, arising in connection with the Contract, is limited to the Contract Price of the affected Goods.
14.2 Subject to the paragraph above, we are not liable to you for any of the following, whether direct or indirect: loss of profit; loss of sales, business or revenue; loss of or damage to goodwill or reputation; business interruption; loss of anticipated savings; loss of contract; wasted management or office time; the cost of installing, removing, re-installing or accessing the Goods; the cost of scaffolding, access equipment, traffic management or site attendance; liquidated damages or penalties levied on you by your own client; or any indirect or consequential loss.
14.3 All warranties, conditions and other terms implied by statute or common law are excluded from the Contract to the fullest extent permitted by law, save for those implied by section 12 of the Sale of Goods Act 1979.
14.4 The provisions of clauses 5, 6, 10 and this clause 14 set out our entire liability to you.
14.5 You indemnify us against all liability, actions, proceedings, costs, claims, damages and demands brought or threatened against us by any third party in connection with the Contract, except to the extent we are liable to you under these Conditions.
14.6 You must maintain adequate insurance covering your obligations under the Contract, and produce evidence of it on request.
15.1 Unless you tell us otherwise in writing, or a signed non-disclosure agreement is in place, we may use images and video of the Goods, including partially completed and bench-tested Goods, for our own marketing — our website, social media, email marketing, award entries and industry publications.
15.2 If that is a problem on a particular job, tell us in writing and we will not publish, and will remove already-published material where reasonably possible.
15.3 We will not identify your end client by name without your agreement.
16.1 Each of us will keep confidential any information the other identifies as confidential, and will use it only to perform the Contract. This does not apply to information that is or becomes public through no fault of the receiving party, or that must be disclosed by law.
16.2 Our prices, discount structures and quotations are confidential to you and must not be passed to a competitor.
16.3 Clause 15 is an agreed exception to this clause.
We are not in breach of the Contract, and not liable for any delay or failure to perform, where the cause is beyond our reasonable control. That includes act of God, fire, flood, storm, war, terrorism, riot, civil commotion, malicious damage, epidemic or pandemic, compliance with any law or government order, industrial action, accident, breakdown of plant or machinery, failure of utilities or communications, cyber attack, import or export restriction, and the default or failure of a supplier or subcontractor. If the event continues for more than 90 days, either of us may terminate the affected Contract on written notice, and you will pay for Goods and work completed to that date.
18.1 Each of us will comply with the Bribery Act 2010, the Modern Slavery Act 2015 and all applicable anti-slavery, anti-bribery and anti-corruption law.
18.2 Each of us will comply with the UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018 in relation to any personal data exchanged under the Contract. Our Privacy and Cookie Policy explains what we do with yours.
19.1 We may suspend performance or terminate the Contract immediately on written notice if you fail to pay any sum when due, if you commit a material breach that you do not remedy within 14 days of notice, or on the occurrence of any event in clause 19.2.
19.2 Insolvency events. You suspend or cease to carry on business; you are unable to pay your debts within the meaning of section 123 of the Insolvency Act 1986; a bankruptcy order is made against you; you make an arrangement or composition with your creditors; a meeting of creditors is convened; a resolution is passed or a petition presented for your winding up; an administrator, administrative receiver, receiver or manager is appointed over any of your assets; or any analogous event occurs in any jurisdiction.
19.3 Termination does not affect any right or remedy that has already accrued, and clauses 6, 7, 10, 14, 15, 16, 18 and 21 survive it.
20.1 Assignment. We may assign or subcontract the Contract or any part of it. You may not without our prior written consent.
20.2 Severance. If any provision is held to be invalid or unenforceable, it is severed to the minimum extent necessary and the rest of the Contract continues in force.
20.3 No waiver. A failure or delay by us in enforcing any provision is not a waiver of it, and a waiver of one breach is not a waiver of any later breach.
20.4 Third parties. A person who is not a party to the Contract has no right under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 to enforce any of its terms.
20.5 Entire agreement. The Contract constitutes the entire agreement between us and supersedes all previous agreements and understandings. You acknowledge that you do not rely on any statement or representation not set out in the Contract. Nothing in this clause limits liability for fraudulent misrepresentation.
20.6 Law and jurisdiction. The Contract and any dispute arising out of it are governed by English law, and the courts of England and Wales have exclusive jurisdiction.
21.1 Notices under the Contract must be in writing and delivered by hand, sent by pre-paid first-class post to the registered office, or sent by email to info@thesigngroup.co.uk.
21.2 A notice is deemed received: if delivered by hand, on the day of delivery; if posted, on the second Working Day after posting; if emailed before 4:00pm on a Working Day, at the time of transmission, and otherwise on the next Working Day.
21.3 Notices to us must be marked for the attention of a director.
21.4 This clause does not apply to the service of proceedings.
These Conditions apply to every order placed on or after the effective date shown at the top of this page. An order placed before that date is governed by the version in force when it was placed. The current version is always published at www.thesigngroup.co.uk/terms-conditions.