Terms and conditions for a security guarding company

A security company is engaged to deter and observe, and is blamed when deterrence fails. The terms have to define the service by assignment instructions, put site conditions and information on the client, say what an incident report is and is not, deal with keyholding and alarm response, and settle what happens to the guards when the client changes contractor. I draft those terms for a fixed fee of £995, delivered in five working days.

Who this is for

Manned guarding, keyholding, alarm response, mobile patrol and event security companies in England and Wales working for business clients on sites, premises and events. These are business-to-business terms.

What matters in security guarding terms

Licensed operatives and the assignment instructions

Security operatives must hold the licence the Private Security Industry Act 2001 requires for their role, issued by the Security Industry Authority, and keyholding is itself a licensable activity under that Act, and the terms should say that the company supplies licensed, vetted staff and defines each site's service in written assignment instructions: hours, duties, patrol routes, reporting and escalation. The instructions are part of the contract, and duties outside them are extras. The client should have the right to request the removal of an operative without giving a reason, and the company the right to substitute.

Hours, cover and short notice

The terms should state the hours covered, the notice for changes, that additional hours and short-notice cover are charged at stated rates, and that the company uses reasonable endeavours to fill every shift with the remedy for a missed shift being a credit for the hours not covered. Bank holidays, overtime and travel should be stated. A client who wants a guaranteed operative on every shift is buying a different, priced level of service.

Site conditions, information and the client's responsibilities

The client controls the site. The terms should require the client to provide a safe workplace, welfare facilities, information about hazards, keys and alarm codes, and to keep its own insurance for the premises and their contents. The company's operatives do not take on the client's health and safety duties, and the terms should say that the client remains responsible for its property and for the conduct of its own staff and visitors.

Incidents, keyholding and alarm response

The terms should say that the company's duty is to perform the assignment instructions with reasonable skill and care, that it does not guarantee to prevent theft, damage or intrusion, and that incident reports record what the operative observed. Keyholding and alarm response should have their own section: response targets as estimates, what the responder does on arrival, when the police are called, and the charges for false alarms and attendances.

Fees, staff, liability and exit

Fees are invoiced weekly or monthly with interest and fixed compensation on late payment under the Late Payment of Commercial Debts (Interest) Act 1998 and a right to suspend. Where a contract changes hands, operatives assigned to it may transfer to the incoming contractor under the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006, and the terms should say who bears the cost and prohibit the client poaching staff. Liability should be capped at a figure matching the company's insurance, with consequential loss and loss of or damage to the client's property not caused by the company's negligence excluded, tested for reasonableness under the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977.

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

There was a break-in while our guard was on patrol. Is the company liable for the loss?

If the terms say the company performs the assignment instructions with reasonable skill and care and does not guarantee to prevent intrusion, and the guard followed the instructions, the loss falls on the client and its insurer. If the guard was absent or negligent, the company is liable, subject to the cap.

The client wants a different guard. Do we have to change?

The terms should give the client the right to ask for an operative to be replaced without reasons, and the company the right to decide who is deployed. Both sides get what they need.

We lost the contract and the client's new provider wants our staff's details. Must we provide them?

Where the transfer of undertakings rules apply, information about the staff assigned to the contract has to be provided, and the terms should say who bears the employment costs on exit. Take advice on the transfer itself; the terms only allocate the cost.

Related guidance and services

• Terms and conditions drafting, £995, the service this page describes
• Contract review, £495
• Terms and conditions for a facilities management contractor
• Terms and conditions for a commercial cleaning contractor

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.