Frequently Asked Questions

All quotations issued by AC Screens & Shutters (Pty) Ltd are issued subject to Terms & Conditions.

The acceptance of the quotation by the Client constitutes agreement by the Client to these terms of contract. Any variation to these terms or any item in the quotation must be done in writing and receipt thereof acknowledged in writing by AC Screens & Shutters (Pty) Ltd.

Terms of contract

  1. This contract shall come into existence immediately upon acceptance, set overleaf or by telephone or telefax. It contains the entire agreement between the parties, and neither shall be bound by any prices and commitments given on the phone or by any representations whatsoever, or promises by a sales agent, if not recorded therein or confirmed in writing.
  2. AC Screens & Shutters (Pty) Ltd (hereafter referred to as the "Seller" guarantees its workmanship and quality of materials used, save for fair wear and tear and provided a proper and acceptable manner of use and method of cleaning is maintained, as follows: i. all aluminium components for a period of 5 (FIVE) years, excluding defects caused by mechanical damage. ii. the workmanship of the Seller for a period of 1 (ONE) year from the date of installation iii. standard specialised solar fabrics for a period of 5 (FIVE) years from date of installation, subject to the conditions prescribed by the manufacturer iv. tubular motors for a period of 5 (FIVE) years from date of installation, subject to the conditions prescribed by the manufacturer. Notwithstanding the aforesaid, no guarantee or warranty of any nature whatsoever, including that for workmanship or material supplied, shall apply should all amounts payable not be paid following completion of installation of any product sold.
  3. All dimensions and specifications submitted herewith are approximate and intended for information purposes only. The Seller cannot be held responsible for any discrepancies therein. Furthermore, all illustrations, advertisements, or other documents are intended to present a general idea and are not binding to the Seller.
  4. Whilst every endeavour shall be made to meet estimated delivery dates, no liability shall be attached to the Seller should the performance of this contract be delayed or interrupted due to any circumstances beyond the control of the Seller.
  5. The Seller shall under no circumstances be responsible for any loss incurred by the Buyer by reason of any incorrect information being supplied to the Seller, such as the type, colour or dimensions of the goods purchased, whether such information was communicated to the Seller by the Buyer personally and/or his architect, agent, builder or any other person acting on behalf of the Buyer.
  6. Should any unforeseen problems arise due to the crumbling or non-alignment of walls or other relevant structures, or should any other difficulties arise in installing the goods, the work done to rectify these problems shall be charged to the Buyer as additional to the contract.
  7. The Buyer hereto agrees to provide at his expense the necessary facilities to enable the Seller to carry out the installation of the work, such as electricity, water, et cetera.
  8. Where necessary, it is the sole responsibility of the Buyer to ensure that approval from the relevant local authorities, homeowners association or body corporate is obtained for the installation of the goods.
  9. Notwithstanding delivery of the goods and /or services to the Buyer, ownership of the goods shall remain vested in the Seller until such time as the full purchase price has been paid. The parties hereto specifically record that the goods do not constitute a fixture. In the event that the agreement is cancelled by the Seller for any reason, the Buyer irrevocably authorises the Seller to access and allow removal of the goods from the place of installation. However, the Buyer will be responsible for all risks to the goods, although not the owner, from the time of installation or delivery.
  10. In the event of the Buyer failing to pay any amount on the due date or retaining any portion of the contract price, then in addition to any other remedies available to it, the Seller shall be entitled to waive the discounts, if applicable, as well as to charge interest on any amount outstanding at one comma five per cent (1,5%) above the prevailing prime commercial overdraft rate.
  11. The Seller shall not be held liable under any circumstances whatsoever for any loss or damage, direct or indirect, consequential or otherwise, which may be sustained arising out of the agreement.
  12. The signatory binds him /herself jointly and severally as surety and co-principal debtor in solidum for the timeous payment of all amounts and the proper fulfilment of all other obligations which are payable and to be complied by the Buyer into this contract. The benefits of division, excussion and cession of action are specifically excluded.
  13. The Buyer hereby appoints the address set out overleaf as his domicilium citandi for all purposes of, and incidental to, the contract, and at which address he agrees to accept any notice of legal process. Furthermore, the signatory agrees that he /she shall be liable for all legal costs, commissions, and any other charges which may arise of the breach by the Buyer of any of the provisions of this contract on an attorney and client scale.
  14. The Seller retains the right to cancel the contract at its sole discretion should costs escalate unacceptably or should information become known that may indicate an unacceptable level or risk to the Seller if the Seller were to proceed with the contract.

Terms & Conditions for Services & Repairs

Repairs & Services

  1. Repairs and Services are primarily offered on products manufactured and installed by AC Screens & Shutters.
  2. All repairs will carry a warranty ranging from 0 (Zero) months to 1 (One) year, depending on the type of repair. The default warranty is 6 months, unless otherwise specified (also refer to overriding clause 1.4 below).
  3. Products which require repair or service which are still under Guarantee or Warranty will be assessed accordingly, but in general, if installation is still within the Workmanship Guarantee period, no charges will apply. If the product is outside of the Workmanship Guarantee period but within the product Warranty period, then minimum Call-out and Labour charges will apply, but parts may be free of charge. See Terms & Conditions and Somfy Motor Warranty
  4. If we, at our sole discretion, agree to service products supplied by another manufacturer, then such repairs will carry no warranty, nor do we assume any liability or responsibility whatsoever for future repairs or servicing of such products, unless specified otherwise in writing when quoting for the work after full assessment.
  5. We do not offer free repair quotations as the nature of a repair requires us to dispatch a team to assess the fault and specify the parts and labour required to carry out the repair. This initial call-out is a billable service, irrespective of whether or not our quotation is eventually accepted or even whether we are able to repair the fault, unless specified otherwise in writing when quoting for the work.
  6. The assessment call-out and labour fees will vary depending on the distance to the site, product type, fault description or other factors and will be quoted before we send a team to the site. The Client must explicitly accept these charges, in particular in the event of emergency repairs or other cases where advance payment is waived.
  7. The Client is to ensure that the product is accessible for us to work on, including providing access to the property, opening up of ceilings or bulkheads, provision of scaffolding, etc. The call-out fee may be forfeited if we are unable to access the product. Any additional costs or delays incurred to access the product will be for the Client’s cost, such as waiting time, scaffolding, making good ceilings, repainting, etc.
  8. If the assessed fault is minor and we are able to repair it within the time available and have spare parts on hand, then we will immediately proceed with repairing the product. Any parts used and additional time spent will be billed in addition to the call-out fee. If the Client prefers that we assess only and not repair, then this must be specified.
  9. If major parts are required or if time or any other factors prevent us from repairing the product immediately, then we will provide a report and quotation for additional work once our team returns to the office. The Client must explicitly confirm acceptance of our additional quotation before we can proceed with completing the repair.
  10. All T&C’s, including Warranties, are not covered in this document at Terms & Conditions
  11. Any changes to the above clauses must be agreed and recorded in writing.

Payment

  1. The assessment call fee is payable in full in advance and is due even if the product is not repaired.
  2. Additional parts and time used to repair the fault are payable on presentation of an invoice or a proforma.
  3. Further work quoted to complete the repair is payable a minimum 75% in advance, or 100% in advance at our sole discretion. If further work is required, it does not affect the payment of work done up to that point.


AC Screens & Shutters is a registered SOMFY EXPERT.

The Warranty from AC Screens on Somfy motors is therefore 6 years from the manufacturer’s date stamp on the motor (instead of 5 years as per the standard Somfy Warranty). Other than this 1-year extension on the Warranty, all other terms are the same, and can be viewed here.

In addition to the standard Somfy Warranty, if a Somfy motor supplied by AC Screens should fail under warranty, then as a value-added service:

  1. If the failure is within the first year and installation is within 100km of one of AC Screens’ branches, we will remove the motor and replace it with a new motor immediately, at no charge.
  2. If the failure occurs after year one of the installation date but within the Somfy Warranty period, we will remove the motor and replace it with a repaired motor immediately, and the client will only be charged for the call-out fee and labour. The original warranty will still be in effect thereafter.

Warranty is subject to the Terms & Conditions as prescribed by AC Screens & SOMFY. Somfy terms are available at https://www.somfy.co.za/conditions-of-use. After diagnosis of the fault, the client may be billed if the warranty is not approved by SOMFY.