Pay My Bill

There are lots of ways for you to pay your account. If you wish to pay your bill online, our account details for receiving payments are:

Barclays Bank - Paton & Lee Ltd
Sort Code: 20 | 97 | 40
Account Number: 33021173

Please give your surname and horse name, or your invoice number as a reference when you pay online.

All too confusing?? You can also pay over the phone by calling 01376 513369. Our office opening hours are Monday-Friday 8.30am-5.30pm and Saturdays 9.00am-12.30pm. Or you can pay by cheque with the payment slip on your invoice.

Terms and conditions of business – Updated 1st January  2024

Thank you for choosing Paton and Lee to treat your horse, pony or donkey. We hope that we can offer you a high quality equine veterinary service for many years to come. This letter details our practice terms and conditions, some aspects of which may not be relevant to you. If you have any questions or queries about these terms, please feel free to contact the practice on our usual numbers.

ELIGIBILITY

Please note that you must be 18 years or older to register with Paton and Lee. If you are under the age of 18 you will need an adult to register on your behalf and take full responsibility for all terms and conditions of the account in the usual way.

FEES

All professional fees and drug charges are subject to VAT. You will receive a detailed invoice for every consultation, surgical procedure or transaction with us. You will also receive a monthly statement detailing any outstanding balance on your account.

ESTIMATE OF TREATMENT COSTS

We will happily provide a written estimate as to the probable costs of a course of treatment. Please bear in mind that any estimate given can only be approximate – often an animal’s illness will not follow a conventional course.

METHOD OF PAYMENT

You may settle the account using:

• CASH
• DEBIT/CREDIT CARD – e.g. Maestro, Solo, Mastercard, Visa, Delta
• ONLINE BANKING – Our account details are given on every invoice and on our website. Please give your surname and animal’s name as the reference.

For some procedures, pre-payment on a credit/debit card will be required.

SETTLEMENT TERMS                                                          

We do not offer account facilities. Clients are asked to pay at the time of treatment and we reserve the right to take payment in advance via debit/credit card.

If payment had not been received within the agreed terms then an additional late payment fee will be charged in respect of administrative costs incurred. Should it be necessary for reminders to be sent, interest will be charged on the outstanding balance for each month or part of a month for which payment remains outstanding at the rate of 3% above Barclays Bank PLC base rate, in force on the last day of each month, or the late payment fee, whichever is the greater.

In the event of non payment, any outstading balance will be passed over to our debt collector. Such action may cause your credit worthiness to be questioned elsewhere. If we do have to resort to sending the debt to our agency, then we will not be able to act for you in the future and we will give two weeks’ notice accordingly, stating that we will no longer provide veterinary care for your animals. We would then be unable to offer any further treatment to your animals, including emergency treatment.

Any cheque returned by our bank as unpaid, any credit card payment not honoured and any cash tendered that is found to be counterfeit will result in the original account being restored to the original sum, with a further charge of £25.00 being added in respect of bank charges and administrative costs, together with interest on the principal sum.

PROVISION OF PRESCRIPTIONS

Prescriptions are available from this practice and there is a standard fee for writing a prescription that is published on our website and in the practice office. Our fee for writing a prescription may change from time to time. You may obtain prescription only medicines, category V (POM-Vs) from your veterinary surgeon or as for a prescription and obtain these medicines from another veterinary surgeon or pharmacy. All prescriptions will be sent directly from Paton and Lee to the veterinary surgeon or pharmacy of choice - prescriptions will not be given directly to clients.

Your veterinary surgeon is only able to prescribe POM-Vs for animals under his or her 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 prescribed for your animal.
• The general policy of this practice is to re-assess an animal requiring repeat prescriptions at least every 6 months, but this may vary with the individual circumstances. There is a standard charge for re-examination.
• Each prescription will cover the quantity of medication required for a period of up to 3 months’ treatment, at the veterinary surgeon’s discretion.

PET HEALTH INSURANCE

Paton and Lee strongly recommend that our clients consider taking out animal health insurance to provide cover for equines against unexpected illness or accidents.

Please be aware that it is your responsibility to settle your account on our normal terms, regardless of any insurance claims being made. Any insurance payments for veterinary fees must be made direct to us from the insurance company unless the balance for any insurance claim has already been cleared in full by our client, in which case our client can request that the insurance payments are made directly to them. Any costs that are not covered by your policy must be settled under our normal terms, including the policy excess, insurance form processing/administrative fees, livery fees, excluded treatment items and excluded supplements, etc. Insurance forms will only be processed after the policy excess and the £30 non refundable insurance administration fee have been paid to the practice.

Where treatment is expected to exceed £1000 from the onset of a condition, pre-payment will be required on a debit/credit card before treatment can begin.

Payment will be required under our normal terms if your insurance company does not settle any claim, or if the costs of any treatment given exceed your insurance limit.

If a case is referred to an external centre, payment is due directly to that centre in accordance with their own terms and conditions.

REFERRALS AND SECOND OPINIONS

Paton and Lee will always promptly facilitate any requests from clients for referral or a second opinion. All relevant clinical history and other clinical information e.g. radiographs, lab results will be forwarded to the veterinary surgeon who will be taking on the case. The practice refers the majority of its cases to Rossdales, Newmarket. However, if a client has a preference for a particular specialist, this can be arranged.

With respect to requests for the practice to provide a second opinion, we will ensure that this is conducted in a professional manner. This will involve the practice directly contacting the original veterinary surgeons for all clinical history and making them aware that a second opinion has been requested. Once the horse has been examined, the practice will discuss the findings and proposed treatment plans with the original veterinary surgeon, as soon as it is appropriate. We will not attempt to take over the case, unless the client requests changing practices.

COMPLAINTS AND STANDARDS

We always aim to provide the very best service to all our clients and hope that you never have recourse to complain about the standards of service received from Paton and Lee. However, there may be a specific problem which you wish to discuss or an area where you feel we could improve our service to you.

It is practice policy to ensure that all complaints are dealt with swiftly. A complaint is considered to be any form of verbal or written correspondence from a client (or other interested party), claiming dissatisfaction with respect to a member of staff or the overall service provided by the practice.

Written complaints may be send to Paton and Lee Ltd at Hoo Hall, Oak Road, Rivenhall, CM8 3HG, or by email to practicemanager@patonandlee.co.uk

Verbal complaints may be made by telephone to 01376 513369 or in person to any member of staff. Lucy Mayes is our staff member responsible for handling client complaints, so you may wish to contact Lucy in the first instance. Lucy will register all complaints in the practice’s complaints register.

If a complaint is received by any member of staff other than the Directors, the complaint will be immediately forwarded to a Director who will take overall responsibility for investigating and responding to the complaint. Where a complaint is about the Directors, another senior member of Paton and Lee Ltd will take overall responsibility for investigating the complaint to avoid any conflict of interest. We aim to acknowledge all complaints within 24 hours, and to investigate and respond to all complaints within 10 working days. Where it is not possible to fully respond to a complaint within 10 working days, for example if an investigation has not been fully completed within that time, we aim to provide progress reports giving an indication of when a full reply will be given.

Paton and Lee Ltd have a full written complaints procedure which is available below. Complaints are reviewed individually and annually to identify any trends which may indicate a need to take further action. The overall responsibility for any complaint falls with the Directors of the practice.

OWNERSHIP OF RADIOGRAPHS AND OTHER RECORDS

The care given to your animal may involve making some specific investigations, for example taking radiographs, ECG or performing ultrasound scans. Even though we make a charge for carrying out these investigations and interpreting their results, ownership of the resulting record, for example a radiograph, remains with Paton and Lee. Copies, with a summary of the clinical history, will be passed on by request to another veterinary surgeon taking over the case once all outstanding fees have been settled.

HALF-PRICE VISIT FEE ‘ZONE’ DAYS

Our 'Zone Days', which offer half price visit fees for all routine work, are exceptionally popular. We feel that they are the best way to keep the cost of routine veterinary work down. The main practice territory is divided into nine 'zones' (Map available online) and the half price days are held Monday to Friday in different areas (excluding the Christmas period). Each of the nine zones is therefore visited once every fortnight.

To help you plan for these days and make the most of the half price visit fees, we now have A4 posters available for every zone we cover. They are now available for the whole of 2023. If you would like a copy of the poster for your area, either download the images from our website or just let the office know and they will send one out to you.

Payment for all work carried out on our half price visit fee days must be made either in advance or at the time of your visit. Payment can be made either by calling the office or by paying the veterinary surgeon on the day. If payment cannot be made at the time of your visit, Paton and Lee Ltd reserve the right to refuse to carry out any work requested.

Unfortunately, we are unable to offer half price visit fees for any areas outside of the marked 'zones'.

Zone Day appointments must be booked at least 48 hours in advance. If you are unable to book your appointment at least 48 hours in advance the office may offer you a full-price visit at another convenient time, or you may have to book onto a subsequent 'zone day'.

Exact times for these half price visits cannot be offered in advance. You will not be able to choose the specific veterinary surgeon you would like to carry out the work, but all of our veterinary surgeons are experienced horse vets and we are an equine-only practice. You will be contacted by telephone the day before your appointment to be advised of your allotted time. If more than one owner is being seen at a single yard, then the half price visit fee will still be divided between the owners as normal, making a further saving.

On some of our busier zone days it is possible that we will be over-subscribed even if you do book your appointment at least 48 hours in advance. On those occasions you may be offered a half price visit fee on an alternate day, usually on the Friday morning after your scheduled zone day.

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

FULL COMPLAINTS POLICY AND PROCEDURE

Paton and Lee view complaints as an opportunity to learn and improve for the future, as well as a chance to put things right for the person that has made the complaint. It is practice policy to ensure that all complaints are dealt with rapidly and to:

• provide a fair complaints procedure which is clear and easy to use for anyone wishing to make a complaint
• publicise the existence of our complaints procedure so that people know how to contact us to make a complaint
• make sure everyone at Paton and Lee knows what to do if a complaint is received
• make sure all complaints are investigated fairly and in a timely manner
• make sure that complaints are, wherever possible, resolved and that relationships are repaired
• gather information which helps us to improve what we do

Definition of a complaint
A complaint is considered to be any form of verbal or written correspondence from a client (or other interested party), claiming dissatisfaction with respect to a member of staff or the overall service provided by the practice.

Where complaints come from
Complaints may come from a variety of sources e.g. clients, members of the local community, other organisations. A complaint can be received verbally, by telephone, by email or in writing. This policy does not cover complaints from staff, who should use Paton and Lee's Discipline and Grievance policies.

Confidentiality
All complaint information will be handled sensitively, telling only those who need to know and following any relevant data protection requirements.

Responsibility
Overall responsibility for this policy and its implementation lies with the Directors.

Review
This policy is reviewed and updated as required

It is practice policy to ensure that all complaints are dealt with swiftly. A complaint is considered to be any form of verbal or written correspondence from a client (or other interested party), claiming dissatisfaction with respect to a member of staff or the overall service provided by the practice.

Written complaints may be send to Paton and Lee Ltd at Hoo Hall, Oak Road, Rivenhall, CM8 3HG, or by email to info@patonandlee.co.uk Verbal complaints may be made by telephone to 01376 513369 or in person to any member of staff. Lucy Mayes is our staff member responsible for handling client complaints, so you may wish to contact Lucy in the first instance. Lucy will register all complaints in the practice’s complaints register.

If a complaint is received by any member of staff other than the Directors, the complaint will be immediately forwarded to a Director who will take overall responsibility for investigating and responding to the complaint. 

In many cases, a complaint is best resolved by the person responsible for the issue being complained about. If the complaint has been received by that person, they may be able to resolve it swiftly and should do so if possible and appropriate. Whether or not the complaint has been resolved, the complaint information should be passed to Lucy Mayes (member of staff responsible for client complaints) within twenty-four hours. On receiving the complaint, Lucy Mayes will record it in the Complaints Register and associated folder. She will review the complaint with the personnel involved and a Director. If it has not already been resolved, she will delegate an appropriate person to investigate it and to take appropriate action. If the complaint relates to a specific person, they should be informed and given a fair opportunity to respond. We aim to acknowledge all complaints within 24 hours, and to investigate and respond to all complaints within 10 working days. Where it is not possible to fully respond to a complaint within 10 working days, for example if an investigation has not been fully completed within that time, we aim to provide progress reports giving an indication of when a full reply will be given.

Whether the complaint is justified or not, the reply to the complainant should describe the action taken to investigate the complaint, the conclusions from the investigation, and any action taken as a result of the complaint.

All forms of correspondence should be recorded in the Complaints Register and associated folder along with the conclusion of the case concerned. The overall responsibility over any complaint falls with the Directors of the practice.

Variation of the Complaints Procedure
The Directors may vary the procedure for good reason. This may be necessary to avoid a conflict of interest, for example, a complaint about Directors should not also have a Director as the person leading a review.

Monitoring and Learning from Complaints
Complaints are reviewed individually and annually to identify any trends which may indicate a need to take further action. 

Receiving Complaints 
Complaints may arrive through channels publicised for that purpose or through any other contact details or opportunities the complainant may have. Complaints received by telephone or in person need to be recorded. The person who receives a telephone or in person complaint should:

• Write down the facts of the complaint
• Take the complainant's name, address and telephone number
• Note down the relationship of the complainant to Paton and Lee (for example: client)
• Tell the complainant that we have a complaints procedure
• Tell the complainant what will happen next and how long it will take
• Where appropriate, ask the complainant to send a written account by post or by email so that the complaint is recorded in the complaint's own words.

This privacy policy sets out how Paton and Lee Ltd uses and protects any information that you give Paton and Lee Ltd when you use this website.

Paton and Lee Ltd is committed to ensuring that your privacy is protected. Should we ask you to provide certain information by which you can be identified when using this website, then you can be assured that it will only be used in accordance with this privacy statement.

Paton and Lee Ltd may change this policy from time to time by updating this page. You should check this page from time to time to ensure that you are happy with any changes. This policy is effective from 2016.

What we collect

We may collect the following information:

• name and job title
• contact information including email address
• demographic information such as postcode, preferences and interests
• other information relevant to customer surveys and/or offers

What we do with the information we gather

We require this information to understand your needs and provide you with a better service, and in particular for the following reasons:

• Internal record keeping.
• We may use the information to improve our products and services.
• We may periodically send promotional emails about new products, special offers or other information which we think you may find interesting using the email address which you have provided.
• From time to time, we may also use your information to contact you for market research purposes. We may contact you by email, phone, fax or mail. We may use the information to customise the website according to your interests.

Security

We are committed to ensuring that your information is secure. In order to prevent unauthorised access or disclosure, we have put in place suitable physical, electronic and managerial procedures to safeguard and secure the information we collect online.

How we use cookies

A cookie is a small file which asks permission to be placed on your computer's hard drive. Once you agree, the file is added and the cookie helps analyse web traffic or lets you know when you visit a particular site. Cookies allow web applications to respond to you as an individual. The web application can tailor its operations to your needs, likes and dislikes by gathering and remembering information about your preferences.

We use traffic log cookies to identify which pages are being used. This helps us analyse data about web page traffic and improve our website in order to tailor it to customer needs. We only use this information for statistical analysis purposes and then the data is removed from the system.

Overall, cookies help us provide you with a better website, by enabling us to monitor which pages you find useful and which you do not. A cookie in no way gives us access to your computer or any information about you, other than the data you choose to share with us.

You can choose to accept or decline cookies. Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies if you prefer. This may prevent you from taking full advantage of the website.

Links to other websites

Our website may contain links to other websites of interest. However, once you have used these links to leave our site, you should note that we do not have any control over that other website. Therefore, we cannot be responsible for the protection and privacy of any information which you provide whilst visiting such sites and such sites are not governed by this privacy statement. You should exercise caution and look at the privacy statement applicable to the website in question.

Controlling your personal information

You may choose to restrict the collection or use of your personal information in the following ways:

• whenever you are asked to fill in a form on the website, look for the box that you can click to indicate that you do not want the information to be used by anybody for direct marketing purposes
• if you have previously agreed to us using your personal information for direct marketing purposes, you may change your mind at any time by writing to or emailing us at info@patonandlee.co.uk

We will not sell, distribute or lease your personal information to third parties unless we have your permission or are required by law to do so. We may use your personal information to send you promotional information about third parties which we think you may find interesting if you tell us that you wish this to happen.

You may request details of personal information which we hold about you under the Data Protection Act 1998. A small fee will be payable. If you would like a copy of the information held on you please write to Paton and Lee Ltd, Hoo Hall, Oak Road, Rivenhall, Essex, CM8 3HG.

If you believe that any information we are holding on you is incorrect or incomplete, please write to or email us as soon as possible, at the above address. We will promptly correct any information found to be incorrect.