Terms and conditions for a car valeting and detailing business

A valeting or detailing business needs terms that deal with the matters that cause disputes: damage the customer says was not there before, stains that could not be removed, coating guarantees, no-shows that leave a bay empty, and fleet accounts that pay late. I draft those terms for a fixed fee of £995, delivered in five working days.

Who this is for

Mobile valeters, fixed site detailing studios, hand car washes and contractors doing fleet, dealership and leasing work in England and Wales, whether you trade as a sole trader or a limited company. Most sell to private motorists, who are consumers, and also to trade accounts. The law treats those two groups very differently, so one set of terms has to be written with both in mind.

What matters in valeting and detailing terms

What you are agreeing to do, and what you are not

Detailing sells an outcome, and the dispute is usually about whether the outcome was promised. A single stage machine polish will not lift every swirl, and a valet will not remove a stain that has been in the fabric for years. The terms should define the service by what is included, record that results on older, resprayed or previously polished paint vary, and match the wording you use when you take the booking. Under the Consumer Rights Act 2015 information a consumer relies on is binding, so the two cannot say different things.

Damage while the vehicle is in your hands

Every valeter will at some point face a customer who says the kerbed alloy, cracked trim clip or stone chip appeared on your watch. The terms should set out when the vehicle is in your care, how its condition is agreed at handover, and how and when a claim has to be raised. For business customers the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977 allows a liability cap in written standard terms where it is reasonable. Against consumers the Consumer Rights Act 2015 does not allow liability for a service to be limited to less than the price, and nobody can exclude liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence.

Mobile work, driveway bookings and the right to cancel

A job agreed on the customer's driveway is an off premises contract, and one booked online, by phone or by message is a distance contract, so the Consumer Contracts (Information, Cancellation and Additional Charges) Regulations 2013 give the customer fourteen days to cancel. Off premises bookings of £42 or less fall outside those Regulations. If you work inside the period without the customer's express request you may be paid nothing for it, and where the cancellation information was never given the period can extend by up to 12 months. Your terms and your booking wording have to work together.

Deposits, late cancellations and the slot you held

Valeting sells time. A cancelled full correction leaves a bay empty for a day, and a cancelled mobile job leaves a hole in the round. Terms can take a deposit and charge for a late cancellation or a no show, but the grey list in the Consumer Rights Act 2015 covers disproportionate default charges and keeping a prepayment with no matching obligation on you, and an unfair term does not bind the consumer. The workable answer is a charge that reflects what you lose, stated prominently before the customer books rather than in small print.

Coatings, sealants and what you guarantee

Ceramic coatings and paint protection film are sold on durability claims, and those claims become part of the contract. The terms should state what the guarantee covers, what it does not, what the customer has to do to keep it alive, who can claim under it and what happens when the car is sold. Where you apply a product made by someone else, the terms should deal with the manufacturer's warranty being the real remedy. The Sale of Goods Act 1979 implies terms about satisfactory quality and fitness in the products you supply, and excluding those against a business customer works only where it is reasonable.

Fleet, dealership and contract work

Trade work is a different exercise. A dealership or leasing company will push volume pricing and turnaround times, and their procurement team will read your liability clause. Payment matters most: where nothing is agreed, the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 gives a 30 day credit period, statutory interest and fixed compensation per debt. Where you take an on site contract off an incumbent, the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006 can move staff assigned to it to you. Fleet buyers also ask you to confirm waste carrier registration under the Control of Pollution (Amendment) Act 1989 and the Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2011. A fixed site discharging wash water to the public sewer needs a trade effluent consent under section 118 of the Water Industry Act 1991, and run-off to surface water drains is controlled by the Environmental Permitting (England and Wales) Regulations 2016.

What it costs

Customer or supplier terms and conditions, £995. One set of terms, customer-facing or supplier-facing, drafted for your business. Five working days.

Review of your existing terms, £495. You already have terms and want them checked and brought up to date. Returned marked up with my amendments and an explanation of the changes. Three working days.

Buying online forms the engagement on payment. The scope is what the terms and conditions drafting page describes, you accept the Terms of Service at checkout, and I email you within four working hours to get started. If you would rather ask something first, email me.

What you get

• A full set of bespoke terms drafted for your business, reflecting the legal requirements that apply to your business and sector
• A note in plain English explaining the terms I have drafted for you
• Liability, payment, termination and IP provisions that protect your position and are drafted to withstand scrutiny from the other side
• Guidance on how to incorporate the terms properly
• Your questions and comments answered by email or phone
• One round of amendments to finalise the terms ready for use

What is not included

• Negotiating your terms with individual customers (I am happy to quote for this as an additional service if required)
• Sector-specific regulatory compliance beyond the contract terms themselves
• Website privacy notice and cookie compliance, which I quote separately
• Terms governed by the law of another country
• Tax advice

Questions I am often asked

Can I use one set of terms for retail customers and fleet accounts?

One set can serve both where it is drafted with a consumer section covering cancellation and the protections a customer cannot sign away, and a business section carrying the liability cap and the payment terms. What fails is a fleet document handed to a private motorist, because the parts you rely on most are the ones that will not bind them.

I sell a monthly maintenance wash plan. Does that need different wording?

Recurring plans need their own drafting: what a month buys, how it renews, how the price can change and how either side ends it. One sided variation rights sit on the unfair terms list in the Consumer Rights Act 2015, and further subscription rules are being introduced under the Digital Markets, Competition and Consumers Act 2024. Consumers cannot be surcharged for paying by card under the Consumer Rights (Payment Surcharges) Regulations 2012.

What should my terms say about cars left overnight?

Multi day work deserves express wording: when the vehicle is in your care, what the customer confirms about its condition, whether keys stay with you, and what happens if the car is not collected once the work is finished. Any storage charge on a consumer has to be capable of justification, so it should reflect what the space costs you.

Related guidance and services

• Terms and conditions drafting, £995, the service this page describes
• Contract review, £495
• Employment contracts and handbooks, £595
• Terms and conditions for a commercial cleaning contractor
• Terms and conditions for a domestic cleaning business

This page is general guidance for businesses in England and Wales, not advice on your own circumstances. Last reviewed: September 2026. Email geoffrey@caesar.co.uk.