Vets practice for equine care in Kidderminster, Worcestershire

All fees are subject to VAT. Fee levels are determined by the level of skill required, the time spent on a case and according to the drugs, materials and consumables used. You will be charged for each visit your horse/pony/donkey receives from the practice. A detailed written invoice is routinely provided (by post) for all charges incurred, and the separate cost of medicines.

We accept payment in cash or by the following credit or debit cards:- Visa, Visa Electron, Switch, Maestro, Solo, and Mastercard. Card payments are usually taken by phone on the day of the consultation/visit. We are also able to accept payment by online banking.

Fees are due for payment either in advance or on the day of each visit, or when medicine or supplies are collected.

If all fees are not to hand when payment would normally be made we will send you an invoice. Invoices are due for payment on receipt. Where further reminders have to be sent we may add charges to cover the costs of administration.

If accounts remain unpaid they will be referred to an appropriate outside agency for collection and further charges will be levied in respect of costs incurred in collecting the debt such as production of reports, as well as the charges of the agency used.

Any card payments not honoured and any cash paid which turns out to be counterfeit will result in the original balance of the account being restored and any Bank or administration charges added

An administration fee of £25 +Vat will be charged for all accounts that are settled by instalment. An interest charge of 5% per month will be added after 30 days from the date the first invoice is generated.

We will always endeavour to provide you with an estimate of fees prior to any investigations or surgeries, but please enquire if this has not been discussed. We do not routinely provide estimates for routine consultations but are happy to discuss this on request. There may be situations in which it is difficult for us to be accurate and the final bill may vary because more or less treatment is required, complications may occur or because the full extent of treatment required is not apparent until treatment is started. 

We provide our own out-of-hours cover to Shepherds’ Veterinary Centre clients. OOH consultations including visit fees (within the normal radius of the practice coverage) range from £264.89-408.60 inc VAT, plus additional fees for medicines and investigative/treatment procedures.

Prescriptions are available from this practice. You may obtain prescription only medicines, Category V (POM-Vs) from your veterinary surgeon OR ask for a prescription and obtain these medicines from another veterinary surgery or pharmacy. The cost for a written prescription supply is £30.72*, per drug, each time a prescription is supplied.

Your vet may prescribe POM-Vs only for animals under their care. A prescription may not be appropriate if your animal is an in-patient or immediate treatment is necessary.

You will be informed, on request, of the price of any medicine that may be dispensed for any animal. The general policy for this practice is to reassess animals requiring repeat prescriptions every 4 months, but this may vary for individual circumstances and will be extended to 6months for very well managed, stable patients (and usually those on arthritis medications). The standard charge for this reassessment is a relevant visit fee plus a consultation fee of £60.00*. * Prices accurate at 16th December 2020.

We reserve the right to ask for full payment for insured animals and leave you to claim your costs back from your insurers. This is, indeed, our standard practice policy. We are, however, able to facilitate direct insurance claims from certain insurance companies. You would still be required to sign a claim form and pay any fees up to the excess. This must be arranged prior to undertaking any non-urgent procedure, or payment is due in full. In all cases, direct claims must first be authorised by senior management and confirmation of an active insurance policy without relevant exclusions by your insurance policy. Please note that it is your responsibility to pay any shortfall on the amount your insurance company pays us together with your excess.

If for any reason you are unable to settle your account in full at the normal time, we ask you to discuss the matter as soon as possible with one of our staff. Please note that part payment or payment in instalments may only be sanctioned by specified staff members (Graeme Shepherd, Ali Shepherd or Louise Childes) and must be agreed in writing. A reliable credit history is required for a monthly instalment plan, which will have an administration fee attached of £25+VAT and will incur interest charges after 30 days.

We hope you will never have cause to complain about the standard of service you receive from Shepherds’ Veterinary Centre. However, should you have a complaint it should be directed to our office manager in the first instance. All complaints are carefully investigated and we aim to respond within 14 working days.

Case records including notes, radiographs, photographs, laboratory results, ECGs and ultrasound scans are the property of and will be retained by Shepherds’ Veterinary Centre. We never discuss or sell confidential records to any third party, except when another veterinary surgeon requests them on your behalf. You, as a client, are entitled to a copy of clinical notes upon request.

Copies of radiographs can be supplied in a disc format at a cost of £5 per radiographic view.

In the event you would like a particular veterinary surgeon to examine your animal within the practice, please ask when you make the appointment. We encourage continuity where at all possible. We may suggest referral to a specialist equine referral centre on occasion – depending on the condition requiring further investigation or treatment, a number of referral options may exist varying in distance, equipment and level of professional qualifications held. We will arrange this referral for you and pass on relevant clinical records. You can choose a second opinion at another practice (we do the same in reverse) and we will send them clinical records on request.

All telephone calls are recorded for monitoring and training purposes

No addition or variation of these terms and conditions will bind the practice unless agreed by one of the partners in writing and signed. No agent or person employed by, or under contract with the practice has the authority to alter or vary these terms and conditions in any way.