Terms and conditions

Welcome to the terms and conditions for the use of the Coal Authority’s (the “Authority”) electronic services:

• The Mining Reports online service (website) groundstability.com
• The Business to Business (B2B) Gateway Reports System for the provision of Con29M and Mining Reports and Combined Report

These Terms apply to the use of all the electronic services listed above and by accessing these services and/or placing orders through these services you agree to be bound by the Terms and Conditions set out below. If you do not agree to be bound by these Terms you may not use or access these services.

1. Definitions

1.1   In these Terms, unless the context otherwise requires, the following definitions shall apply:

• “Applicable Laws” means all laws, regulations, orders, rules, guidance, directions, judgments, directives, industry agreements or determinations in force from time to time applicable to a party and relevant to these Terms;
• “BGS” means the British Geological Survey of Kingsley Dunham Centre, Keyworth, Nottingham, NG12 5GG, a component organisation of the Natural Environment Research Council;
• “B2B Gateway” means the electronic exchange of information using XML based web services between the Authority and third parties;
• “Channel” shall mean the use of both the Website and the B2B Gateway;
• “Claims” means any and all proceedings, actions, suits, assessments, reassessments or claims of whatsoever nature or kind brought or made against the Authority by any person including regulatory or administrative (whether or not under common law, on the basis of contract, negligence, strict or absolute liability or liability in tort, or arising out of requirements of Applicable Laws), in respect of Losses or damage imposed on, incurred by, suffered by, or asserted against the Authority;
• “Combined Report” means a Con29M or any other report which is combined with a Report prepared by a third party provider;
• “CON29M” or “Mining Report” means a coal mining report provided by the Authority;
• “Constituent Parts” means the constituent parts of a Con29M or Mining Report or Combined Report through the B2B Gateway for the incorporation into third party reports as the context may require;
• “Customer” means the person, firm or company placing the Order, either on its own behalf as User or as agent for a User, and “Customers” should be interpreted accordingly;
• “Customer Account” means the account used by the Customer to use the B2B Gateway and place Orders with the Authority;
• “Customer Service Team” shall have the meaning given to it in clause 1.2;
• “Fee” has the meaning given to it in clause 1;
• “Ground Stability Reports” means the Report prepared by the Authority using data provided by BGS;
• “Groundsure” means Groundsure of Sovereign House, Church St, Brighton BN1 1UJ;
• “Guidance” means the Law Society of England and Wales User Guide and Guidance Notes 2018 (each as amended from time to time);
• “Insurance” means the insurance as set out in the Report;
• “Intellectual Property” means patents, utility models, rights to inventions, copyright and neighbouring and related rights, trademarks and service marks, business names and domain names, rights in get‑up and trade dress, goodwill and the right to sue for passing off or unfair competition, rights in designs, database rights, rights to use, and protect the confidentiality of, confidential information (including know‑how and trade secrets), and all other intellectual property rights, in each case whether registered or unregistered and including all applications and rights to apply for and be granted, renewals or extensions of, and rights to claim priority from, such rights and all similar or equivalent rights or forms of protection which subsist or will subsist now or in the future in any part of the world;
• “Knowledge Base” refers to a database used for knowledge sharing and management;
• “Losses” means all debts, costs, expenses, liabilities, obligations, losses, damages and penalties of whatsoever nature or kind and, except as otherwise expressly provided in these Terms, includes all reasonable out‑of‑pocket costs, disbursements and expenses paid or incurred by the relevant person in defending any Claim;
• “No Search Certificate” means a certificate provided by the Authority confirming a Property is not within an area affected by past, present or proposed coal mine workings;
• “Order” means any request for a Report made by the User;
• “Prohibited Act” means any one, or more, of the following:
  • to directly or indirectly alter any Report purchased from the Authority;
  • to disassemble, modify or paraphrase in any way Constituent Parts of any Report purchased from the Authority;
  • to pass on to another party a Report that has been modified, plagiarised or other summarised version of the Report;
  • to disassemble, modify or paraphrase the text when the Report is incorporated into another document;
  • to make deletions, omissions or reorganisation to the text of a Report including modifying an address to fraudulently obtain a No Search Certificate for a property that is on a coalfield;
  • to store or harvest the information provided within Reports or make ongoing/multiple uses of the information to provide reports or unrelated services;
  • to plagiarise Reports to produce the Customer’s own reports;
  • when ordering a Report, to impersonate any other person or entity or to use a false name or a name that the Customer is not authorised to use;
  • use any Authority supplied logo(s) in the Customer’s reports ;
  • the use of any registered or unregistered trademarks of the Authority without the Authority’s express written licence and consent;
  • to challenge trademarks belonging to Authority;
• “Property” means the address or location specified by the User in the Order;
• “Report” means a Combined Report or Mining Report (in printed, electronic or any other form) which has been prepared by the Authority in respect of the Property using data from, amongst others, the Suppliers and to which these Terms apply and, for the avoidance of doubt, include Constituent Parts and “Reports” should be interpreted accordingly;
• “Suppliers” means the Authority, BGS and Groundsure;
• “Terms” mean these terms and conditions;
• “User” means the person or persons authorised by the Customer to use the Channel, and “Users” should be interpreted accordingly;
• “Website” means the website found at groundstability.com;
• “Web Ordering” means on line ordering platform facility;
• “Working Day” means a day which is not a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday in the United Kingdom and where the banks in the city of London are open for business;
• “XML” is a mark-up language that defines a set of rules for encoding documents in a format which is both human‑readable and machine‑readable; and
• “XSD” formally describes the elements in an XML document.

2. Access

2.1   Users are provided with access to the Channel strictly in accordance with these Terms and in accordance with the attached schedules.

2.2    Any Orders placed by Users must be placed strictly in accordance with these Terms. These Terms supersede and take precedence over any previous terms supplied by the Authority and over any Terms which the Customer may seek to incorporate.

2.3    Customers and Users must register and have a credit account in order to use the B2B Gateway.

2.4    Customers and Users hereby acknowledge and agree that by using the Channel (or any part thereof) they agree to be bound by these Terms the contents of schedule 1 and any change made in accordance with clause 3.1.2.

3. Authority Rights

3.1    The Authority reserves the right to:

3.1.1  modify, withdraw, temporarily or permanently, or suspend access to the Channel (or any part thereof) with or without notice to the Customer for the purposes of investigation, repair, maintenance and support; or

3.1.2  change these Terms from time to time without prior notice.

4. Customer and User Warranties

4.1   The Customer and User hereby warrant:

4.1.1   that the personal information which they are required to provide when they register as a customer is true, accurate, current and complete in all respects;

4.1.2   to notify the Authority immediately of any changes to the personal information by contacting the Authority’s customer service team by email at groundstability@coal.gov.uk or by telephone on 0345 762 6848 (“Customer Service Team”);

4.1.3   not to impersonate any other person or entity or to use a false name or a name that the Customer or User is not authorised to use;

4.1.4   to cease accessing the Channel in the event of disagreement with these Terms;

4.1.5   to use the Channel only in accordance with Applicable Laws and these Terms;

4.1.6   they have not, nor shall they, commit a Prohibited Act nor have they been formally notified that they are subject to an investigation relating to an alleged Prohibited Act;

4.1.7   to abide by the acceptable use criteria outlined in schedule 1;

4.1.8   to abide by the conditions of use of the B2B Gateway outlined in schedule 1; and

4.1.9   to abide by, and accept the limitations contained within, the conditions for the provision of Ground Stability Reports contained within schedule 3 when requesting a Ground Stability Report (either individually or as part of the Reports).

5. Authority Warranties

5.1   The Authority shall use its reasonable endeavours to notify Customers by email of any planned outages so long as the Customer has provided an up to date email address.

5.2   No warranty is given or representation made that records will be accurate or not become obsolete or incorrect over any period of time. The contents of Reports shall remain valid for a period of ninety (90) days from the date of issue. The Authority shall have no liability for the contents of Reports beyond this time.

5.3   The Property will be located with reference to Ordnance Survey (“OS”) digital publications.  The Authority cannot and does not warrant that the OS information is up‑to‑date, complete or accurate and accepts no liability for the plotted position of property as shown on published OS maps.

5.4   No representations, warranties or terms (whether express or implied by statute, common law, custom, trade usage, course of dealing or otherwise) are given in relation to the Report unless they are expressly set out in these Terms, save to the extent that such terms cannot be excluded by Applicable Laws.

5.5    The Suppliers shall be deemed not to know the purpose for which Reports are required even if such purpose is made known to them. Neither Supplier makes any warranty or representation as to either the suitability of land/property for any particular use or purpose or its value, and shall not in any circumstances be liable for any loss or damage at all arising from reliance on Reports in relation to these matters.

6. Payment and Fees

6.1   Fees and charges for Reports ordered through the B2B Gateway and Web ordering will be published on the Website and are subject to amendment from time to time. All prices are subject to VAT at the current rates and are correct at the time the property search transaction was recorded on the system. The total cost of the Order is the price of the Reports ordered plus VAT (“Fee”).

6.2   Orders can only be placed through the B2B Gateway by credit account holders who will be invoiced monthly.

6.3    The Authority cannot guarantee to cancel a search once a request has been made. No refund or transfer of the Fee (or part thereof) will be made once a search has been logged onto the Authority’s computer system. The Authority’s cancellation policy will apply.

6.4    If a property search is made where no information is held by the Authority, the Authority will reply with a negative response that no information is held and no refund or transfer of any Fee (or part thereof) will be made. This includes instances where optional follow up reports are requested e.g. interpretive reports, claims history reports etc.

6.5   If a property search is submitted on the Website with the enquiry boundary defined, this will be used to produce the Report. Boundaries cannot be amended or changed after submission.  If an amendment is required Users will have to make a fresh search with payment of the appropriate Fee and no refund of the original Fee shall be made. The Authority’s cancellation policy will apply.

7. Compliance with Laws

7.1   Reports will be provided subject to these Terms and in accordance with the duties of the Authority under the Coal Industry Act 1994 and Applicable Laws.

7.2   These Terms incorporate the User Guide 2018 (as amended) and apply to all Reports made including those using CON29M.

8. Report Contents

8.1    Mining Reports and Ground Stability Reports shall contain the information outlined in schedule 2.

8.2    Reports relate only to coal mine workings and any minerals worked in association with coal. The presence of workings of other minerals will not necessarily be disclosed. The User may need to make separate enquiries regarding other minerals to the appropriate sources of information in certain areas where these other minerals are known to exist or have been worked.

9. Intellectual Property

9.1    All Intellectual Property rights in the Reports belong to the Authority, BGS and Groundsure. View the Groundsure terms and conditions.

9.2    By using the Authority’s services, the Customer and Users acknowledge the subsistence and validity of such rights and agree not to challenge the rights, whether directly or indirectly, or take any action which may have the foreseeable consequence of undermining the integrity or validity of the rights.

9.3     The Customer further agrees not to use of any of the Authority’s or BGS’ Intellectual Property without the Authority’s express written licence and consent.

9.4    Intellectual Property rights are not transferred by possession of a Report; however, recipients of Reports can use them for the purposes for which the Reports were provided. Intellectual Property in any third party material contained within the Reports other than that owned by the Authority or BGS is owned by the third party data provider.

9.5    The Reports are provided without warranty that they or any material contained therein will not infringe third party Intellectual Property rights.

9.6    Where the Report is incorporated into another document, the relevant text shall be identified as originating from the Authority which must be acknowledged as the author.

9.7    Where any material belonging to the Authority is incorporated into another document or otherwise with the licence and consent of the Authority, the Authority asserts all its moral rights and in particular that of being identified as the source of the material which must be acknowledged by the following expression:

• “This material is reproduced by kind permission of The Coal Authority – © The Coal Authority – all rights reserved.“

10. Data Protection

10.1    The Authority will use personal information to:

10.1.1   fulfil Orders placed by Users;

10.1.2   process payment for Orders; and

10.1.3    inform Users about similar products or services that the Authority provided that Users may stop receiving these at any time by contacting the Authority.

10.2   The Customer or Users’ personal details will not normally be disclosed to third parties. In some circumstances, however, the Authority may need to disclose personal details to a third party so that it can provide a service requested by a Customer or User, or fulfil a request for information.

10.3   Further details of how the Authority may process personal information are set out in the privacy policy. View our privacy policy.

10.4   The Website uses cookies in order to run the application required to fulfil Orders. View our cookie policy.

10.5   Card payment details are not gathered by the Authority but are dealt with entirely by the third party WorldPay service.

11. Insurance

11.1    Insurance will not be provided by the Authority for any products derived from the CON29M Constituent Parts used. Responsibility for the requirement and provision of insurance lies with third parties. View more information on the Authority’s insurance terms.

11.2    Mining Report: Insurance cover will be provided to owners of the Property to mitigate against any loss of value attributable to any material change of any of the information in a subsequent residential CON29M or Mining Report from that contained in the CON29M or Mining Report to which the insurance attaches. The period of insurance cover is the full term of ownership of the Property. The amount of insurance cover is:

11.2.1   up to £20,000 where a residential Report was obtained from the introduction of the scheme in October 2003 to the end of April 2008; or

11.2.2   up to £50,000 where a Report was obtained after 1st May 2008 and up to 30th November 2024; or;

11.2.3   up to £100,000 where a Report was obtained after 30th November 2024.

11.3    Ground Stability Report: Insurance cover will be provided to owners of the Property to mitigate against any loss of value, up to a maximum of £100,000 attributable to any material change of any of the information in a subsequent residential Ground Stability Report from that contained in the Ground Stability Report to which the insurance attaches. The period of insurance cover is 25 years or until the sale of the property.

11.4    It is suggested that the Report and insurance certificate should be kept with the title deeds.  The insurance cover takes account of circumstances where a Report was obtained by the seller of the Property as part of a Home Report (Scotland) or where the Property is being sold by way of auction. Cover is also provided where a Report is obtained in the event of a re-mortgage of the Property or where the owner simply elects to obtain a fresh Report.

11.5    The insurance does not cover non‑residential property; neither does it cover physical damage to property caused by coal mining subsidence for which other remedies already exist, in particular, but not limited to, the Coal Mining Subsidence Act 1991 (as amended).

11.6     The insurance does not cover any element of a Combined Report which is not otherwise covered or contained in the Mining Report. It also does not cover any element of the Con29M Constituent Parts or No Search Certificate Constituent Parts.

11.7    The insurance is not a substitute for any normal homeowner building and contents insurance cover.

11.8    The insurance is underwritten by Liberty Legal Indemnities.  The insurance certificate provided with the residential Report outlines the terms and conditions of this insurance.

11.9     The Authority reserves the right without notice to change insurers to a suitable alternative equivalent insurer.

12. Force Majeure

Time shall not be of the essence in respect of the provision of the Report and a Supplier will not be liable to the Customer or the User for any delay or failure in performance of its obligations which result from circumstances beyond its reasonable control (including, without limitation, fire, explosion, flood, tempest, unusually adverse weather conditions, war, hostilities, riot, acts of terrorism, strike, lock out or other form of industrial action, failure or shortage of power supplies, telecommunications or processing failure or computer malfunction) or the acts or omissions of any person for which a Supplier is not legally responsible.

13. Reliance and Liability

13.1   Only the following persons may rely on the Reports:

13.1.1   the owner of the Property at the time the Report is prepared;

13.1.2   any purchaser of the whole of the Property from the owner described in clause 13.1.1 above; and

13.1.3   any person who provides funding to the persons in clause 13.1.1 or 13.1.2 above which is secured on the whole of the Property.

The Reports are prepared for use by such persons only and the Report should not be relied upon by any other third party.

13.2    Customers or Users may not act in reliance upon the Report (either by purchasing the Property, providing funding secured on the Property or carrying out any works on or affecting the Property) more than ninety (90) days after its date of issue.

13.3    In the event that new mine entry information becomes available to the Authority within ninety (90) days of the issue of a CON29M the Authority will notify the Customer, as soon as reasonably practicable, informing them of the change and the nature of the change.

13.4    The Authority will not be liable for any Losses of whatever nature and however arising due to the unavailability of the B2B Gateway.

13.5     The Report is prepared for the Property on the basis of information on the Property’s location and type provided by the Customer and/or the User, and consequently the Suppliers exclude all liability which may arise from:

13.5.1    any errors or omissions in the information so provided or from any failure to check for discrepancies between the Order and Report; or

13.5.2    reliance on the Report for any other property, or if a Report on a residential property is used for a non‑residential or commercial property or for the development of the Property, and vice versa.

13.6    Except in the circumstances described in clause 13.12:

13.6.1   where insurance cover has been provided to owners of the Property to mitigate against any loss of value attributable to any material change of any of the information in a subsequent Report from that contained in the Report to which the insurance has been provided, the Suppliers shall have no liability to the extent of the matters insured and is limited to, the lesser of:

13.6.1.1    the reasonable costs of carrying out necessary remedial work on the Property reasonably promptly; or

13.6.1.2    the difference between the true market value of the Property and the market value of the Property on the basis of the Report at the time of reliance on the Report in accordance with these Terms; and

13.6.2    without prejudice to the provisions of clause 12, the total aggregate liability of the Suppliers to the Customer and the User arising from any other Claim arising from or in connection with the performance, non-performance or delay in producing the Report or the use of the B2B Gateway or the Website, not insured in accordance with clause 11 is limited to the amount of the Fee paid for the relevant Report.

13.7    Except in the circumstances described in clause 13.6 the Suppliers will not be liable to the Customer or the User for: loss of business, goodwill, profits or savings, loss of use or opportunity, lost or wasted staff time or for any indirect or consequential loss (whether arising from negligence, breach of contract or in any other way) even if the Suppliers were advised of or knew of the likelihood of that loss or type of loss arising.

13.8     Where the Authority prepares a Combined Report the Authority shall have no liability for the contents of third party reports prepared and provided as part of that Combined Report.

13.9     The databases comprising the subject matter of a licence granted to the Authority by a third party and which are licensed to the Customer or a User by the Authority are made up of information supplied to the Authority by third parties under statutory obligation and of which the Authority has no direct knowledge and has not necessarily had the opportunity to verify. Accordingly, it can have no liability for the accuracy of the information comprising the databases licensed to it or for any loss of whatever nature directly or indirectly caused which may result from any reliance placed upon it. The licensee takes the information as provided without any such express or implied warranty and must rely upon its own enquiries and where necessary obtain appropriate insurance against any loss arising.

13.10    Property owners may have the benefit of remedies (to the extent that these are applicable (if at all) under the Coal Mining Subsidence Act 1991 (as amended), which contains provisions relating to the making good, to the reasonable satisfaction of the claimant, of physical damage from coal mine workings, including disused coal mine entries.

13.11     Customers and Users attention is drawn to the additional limitations contained within the conditions for the provision of Ground Stability Reports at schedule 3 which apply when requesting a Ground Stability Report (either individually or as part of the Reports).

13.12    Nothing in these Terms shall limit or exclude liability for:

13.12.1   death or personal injury arising from its negligence;

13.12.2    fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation; or

13.12.3    any other matter which cannot be excluded or limited by Applicable Laws.

14.  Indemnities

14.1    The Customer agrees fully to indemnify, defend and hold the Authority, BGS, Groundsure and their officers, directors, employees, agents and suppliers, harmless immediately on demand, from and against:

14.1.1   all Claims and Losses (including all legal fees), arising out of any breach of these Terms by the Customer;

14.1.2    any other liabilities arising out of its use of the Channel, or the use by any other person or systems accessing the Channel using the Customer’s account and/or User personal information; and

14.1.3   all Claims and Losses (and associated legal costs) incurred by the Authority, BGS or Groundsure arising out of or in connection with any Claim made against the Authority for actual or alleged infringement of a third party’s Intellectual Property rights arising out of or in connection with the Customer’s use of the Reports supplied in accordance with these Terms.

14.2    In the event that such breach shall result in legal proceedings of whatever nature being brought against the Authority, BGS or Groundsure by any third party howsoever, the Authority, BGS and Groundsure reserve the right at their absolute election to defend such proceedings and bring any necessary counterclaim through their own legal advisors in respect of the cost and to which the indemnity in clause 14.1 shall apply.

15. Confidentiality

The Customer and the User acknowledge and agree that all documentation (whether provided in paper, electronic or other form) relating to the adoption and use of the services provided under these Terms (including, without limitation, under the Schedules) shall be treated as confidential at all times and shall not be reproduced, shared with, transferred, divulged or disclosed (in whole or in part) to any person or entity (other than to a court of competent jurisdiction, employees of the Customer or User or to their external advisers or consultants themselves subject to a duty of confidentiality in identical terms to that contained in this clause 15) without the express prior written consent of the Authority.

16. Termination and Suspension

16.1    The Customer shall immediately contact the Authority upon suspected or actual knowledge of any breach of the Terms.

16.2    The Authority reserves the right to suspend and/or permanently remove without notice use of the B2B Gateway from Customers and/or Users where they are deemed to have breached these Terms.

16.3    If the Customer or User is in default under clause 4 the Authority may by notice:

16.3.1   require the Customer or User to remove any personnel whose acts or omissions have caused the default from using the Customer Account (if applicable);

16.3.2   immediately terminate the Customer Account; or

16.3.3   take any other such remedial steps as the Authority may reasonably require.

16.4  Any notices served by the Authority under clause 16.3 above shall specify the nature of the Prohibited Act or default, the identity of the party who the Authority believes has committed the Prohibited Act or default, the action that the Authority has elected to take (including where relevant) and the date on which the Customer Account shall terminate.

17. Coal Authority Records

17.1    Reports will be prepared only from the records in the possession of the Authority. These records may not be complete. Given the indeterminate accuracy of many of the source records, and the occasional delay in the completion of updates to records, the Authority is unable to take account of and reflect in Reports any possible difference between the actual and plotted position of a mine entry or its likely size or depth. The approximate location of any reported mine entries will be identified on a plan within the body of Reports.

17.2    The records in the possession of the Authority are derived from a number of sources and, as such, are of various ages, scales and condition. As a consequence information sourced from such records is of variable reliability. Additionally, in any particular area there may be information held by others as to historical coal (and other) mining which is not in the possession of the Authority. In the circumstances, the Authority is unable to give any warranty and makes no representation that the information comprised in the records in its possession is complete, accurate, exhaustive or reliable.

17.3     Plans of abandoned coal mines, the coal holdings register and licence register can be viewed at the Authority’s Mining Records Office, by prior appointment. View the separate terms and conditions and charges that apply or find out more by telephoning 0345 762 6848.

17.4     Some records are derived from licensed operators whose plans for current and future coal mining may change at any time. They are required, by section 58 of the Coal Industry Act 1994, to exercise all due diligence to secure the provision of full and accurate information to the Authority in accordance with the provisions of the licences which they hold.

17.5     In certain instances (usually relating to older records in the custody of the Authority) it has been necessary for the Authority to make assumptions as to the most probable positions of mine entries, the depth, date and extent of coal workings, the number and inclination of seams and the nature of the mineral worked, e.g. in certain areas records attribute more than one name to a single seam.

18. BGS Data

18.1     The information in the Ground Stability Report from BGS is based on, and limited to, its own expert interpretation of the geological data that it holds.

18.2     The Ground Stability Report is concerned with the contents outlined in schedule 2.

18.3     The Ground Stability Report is based on and limited to an interpretation of the records in the possession of BGS and as provided to the Authority at the time the search is answered.  This ground stability search uses the BGS GeoSure database which is based on 1:50,000 scale digital geological mapping. The answers given should only be treated as indicative for the Property and its surrounding area.

18.4     Other more specific and detailed information may be held by BGS for the site, and an assessment of this could result in a modified assessment of ground stability potential. View this more detailed assessment on the BGS website.

18.5     The BGS information in the Ground Stability Report is carried out for a rectangle or circle centred on the digitised boundary of the property covering the extent of the digitised boundary and including a 50 metre zone around it, which takes into account the accuracy of the geological hazards data reported.

18.6     An indication of natural ground instability does not necessarily mean that the Property will be affected by subsidence. Such an assessment can only be made by inspection of the property itself by a qualified professional. This will take into account a variety of contributing factors, such as property type and build quality, and nearby vegetation, in particular, trees.

19. Third Party Data and Information

Where additional data from third party data providers is included within or combined with Reports the provision of this data is subject to the terms and conditions of the third party data holder. This includes but is not limited to instances where the Authority prepares a Combined Report. In the event of any conflict of meaning or effect for the avoidance of doubt the Authority’s terms and conditions take precedence over any third party terms and conditions in so far as they relate to the Authority or the Reports.

20. Audit Rights

20.1    The Customer shall provide evidence of compliance with its obligations under these Terms, if requested by the Authority.

20.2     The Customer will maintain accurate and complete records of is transactions through the B2B Gateway for a period of seven (7) years from the date of the Order. The Authority and/or its representatives shall have the right on reasonable notice during business hours to enter the Customer’s premises to inspect and audit Customer systems, operations and all supporting documentation to ensure the Customer’s compliance with these Terms and to take copies of any necessary records. The Customer shall, at its own expense, make appropriate employees and facilities available to provide the Authority and/or its representatives with all reasonable assistance to enable such inspection, auditing and copying to take place.

20.3    The Customer will comply with reasonable measures stipulated by the Authority as a result of any audit.

21. Complaints Procedure

21.1    View how to make a complaint about the Coal Authority’s service. The Authority aims to provide an excellent service. Should there be any cause for complaint please, in the first instance, contact (quoting the search reference number):

The Coal Authority
Commercial Reports and Advisory Services
200 Lichfield Lane
Mansfield
Nottinghamshire
NG18 4RG
Telephone: 0345 762 6848
Email: groundstability@coal.gov.uk

21.2  If the matter is not resolved appropriately, please write to:

Customer Services Team
The Coal Authority
200 Lichfield Lane
Mansfield
Nottinghamshire
NG18 4RG

21.3  If you’re still unhappy with the response from the Customer Services Team, you can contact our Chief Executive who will ensure that the complaint is reviewed. A response will be issued within 10 working days.

Chief Executive
The Coal Authority
200 Lichfield Lane
Mansfield
Nottinghamshire
NG18 4RG

21.4   There may be the right to refer to the Parliamentary Ombudsman, where details are:

The Parliamentary and Health Service Ombudsman
Millbank Tower
Millbank
London
SW1P 4QP
Telephone: 0345 015 4033
Fax: 030 061 4000
Email: enquiries@ombudsman.org.uk Web: www.ombudsman.org.uk

Licensing Activities under the Information Fair Trader Scheme (IFTS)

21.5  Should there be a complaint about the Authority’s licensing activity under the Information Fair Trader Scheme in the first instance, contact:

Principal Manager – Information Management
The Coal Authority
200 Lichfield Lane
Mansfield
Nottinghamshire
NG18 4RG
Telephone: 0345 762 6848
Email: groundstability@coal.gov.uk

21.6  If the matter is not resolved appropriately, please write to:

Head of Mining Information
The Coal Authority
200 Lichfield Lane
Mansfield
Nottinghamshire
NG18 4RG

Making a Complaint under the PSI Regulations

21.7  The procedures for investigating complaints under the Re‑use of Public Sector Information Regulations 2005 apply to all IFTS members, including volunteers to the scheme. Should there be a complaint about something which falls within the scope of the Regulations, please view and follow the process set out in the PSI complaints procedure.

Making a Complaint under the IFTS

21.8  Some elements of the IFTS commitment fall outside the scope of the PSI Regulations. One example of this difference is that IFTS requires members to maximise the re‑use of all information, unless there is a very good reason to justify refusal whereas the Regulations state that a public sector body may permit re‑use. To make a complaint under IFTS, please view and follow the process set out in the IFTS complaints procedure.

21.9 Enquiries are made and the replies prepared in accordance with the Authority’s and the British Geological Survey’s Terms and Conditions (as amended from time to time), User Guide 2018 and the Law Society’s Guidance Notes 2018. These are available by contacting the Authority’s Customer Service Team. These Terms apply regardless of the method used to order and receive Reports.

21.10 In addition to the above clause 21.9, enquiries made and replies prepared for the non‑CON29M element of Combined Reports are in accordance with the terms and conditions of the third party data provider.

22. General

22.1    Any notice required to be given under these Terms shall be in writing addressed to the Authority’s address, or, to the Customer’s ordinary trading address (as appropriate).

22.2    The benefit of these Terms cannot be assigned or transferred by the Customer or the User without the Suppliers’ prior written consent. The Suppliers may assign any or all of their rights and obligations under these Terms without prior notice.

22.3    No waiver by the Authority of any breach of these Terms by the Customer or a User shall be considered to be a waiver of any subsequent breach of the same or any other provision.

22.4    If any provision of these Terms is held by any competent authority to be invalid or unenforceable in whole or in part the validity of the other provisions of these Terms and the remainder of the provision in question shall not be affected thereby.

22.5    These Terms (together with the Order and the Guidance) constitute the entire agreement relating to the supply of the Reports and the relationship which that supply creates between the Suppliers and Customers and Users. No prior statement, representation or arrangement of any nature (whether written or oral) will add to, vary or waive these Terms and the Customer and the User acknowledge that they have not relied on any statement or representation made by or on behalf of the Authority or any other Supplier in agreeing to place their Order. Nothing in this clause will operate to limit or exclude liability for fraud.

22.6    Except to the extent that these Terms confer benefits on the Suppliers and the Users, no third party is entitled to the benefit of these Terms under the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999.

22.7    Should the enquirer or user of the search believe there to be any personal or financial connection between the Authority as provider of the CON29M search, and the Authority and the BGS in the case of Ground Stability Reports, and any other person involved in the sale of the subject property, they should make this known to the Authority.

22.8    These Terms are governed by English law. The English courts (where the Property is situated in England or Wales) and the Scottish courts (where the Property is situated in Scotland) have exclusive jurisdiction to deal with any dispute which may arise out of or in connection with them.

These terms are available in larger print for those with impaired vision.

Schedule 1: B2B Gateway use

Unless otherwise specified, the following terms applies to both Test and Live environments.

Part 1: Acceptable Use

1. Acceptable Use

1.1   The Customer and the Users hereby agree to:

1.1.1   use the B2B Gateway for the purposes set out by the Authority;

1.1.2   only access the B2B Gateway as a User;

1.1.3   the monitoring of transactions to verify User compliance with these Terms;

1.1.4   notify the Authority immediately of any known or suspected breaches of Customer security systems and/or software that could adversely affect the operation of the B2B Gateway;

1.1.5   make all B2B Gateway requests using the methods, formats and rules set out in the supporting technical documentation; specifically ensuring that every Order request submitted will always be preceded by a request for a Report product list for the same enquiry boundary and that the geography supplied in both cases will be a single polygon (except the mine entry interpretive report which allows two polygons) or linear feature; and

1.1.6   provide either a static IP address or range of IP addresses that will be used to access the B2B Gateway and notify the Authority giving thirty (30) days’ prior notice of any changes to these addresses. The use of IP addresses that have not been notified to the Authority may result in suspension and/or permanent removal without notice of the use of the B2B Gateway.

1.2   The Customer and the Users may not use the B2B Gateway:

1.2.1   in any way that breaches any Applicable Laws;

1.2.2   in any way that is unlawful or fraudulent, or has any unlawful or fraudulent purpose or effect;

1.2.3   to send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use or re‑use any material which does not comply with the Authority’s content standards;

1.2.4   to knowingly transmit any data, send or upload any material that contains viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time‑bombs, keystroke loggers, spyware, adware or any other harmful programs or similar computer code designed to adversely affect the operation of any computer software or hardware;

1.2.5   to access or retrieve Authority data or systems other than as permitted by these Terms;

1.2.6   to allow unauthorised access to the B2B Gateway by users or machines through the Customer’s equipment including (but not limited to) automated agent software;

1.2.7   to share or disclose account user usernames or passwords; or

1.2.8   to share documentation, test data or results with unauthorised users or third parties.

Part 2: Customer On-Boarding Process

1. Customer On-Boarding Process

1.1   Prior to the Customer and/or its Users accessing the B2B Gateway, the Customer agrees to:

1.1.1   sign and return a copy of the Terms;

1.1.2   implement the necessary systems and/or software to supply geography in a format specified by the Authority and have the infrastructure required to consume automated XML services;

1.1.3   be an account holder with a valid credit account that is neither suspended nor blacklisted; and

1.1.4   abide by the timescales defined for the on‑boarding process (such as development, testing and go‑live windows) as set by the Authority. Failure to meet these timescales could result in the on‑boarding process being delayed.

1.2   The Authority reserves the right to manage the on‑boarding of Customers in a phased approach. Selection of Customers for specific phases will be based on the readiness and capability of the Customer to engage the on‑boarding process. This will be determined by the Authority in its sole discretion.

1.3   Customers will only be accepted for the live environment when:

1.3.1   the Customer has executed Authority supplied tests and these test results have been validated by the Authority. The Authority reserves the right to levy an additional charge (subject to confirmation by the Authority) where Customer test results fail validation and the process has to be repeated; and

1.3.2   the necessary Authority resources are available and a date for the use of the live environment has been agreed with the Authority.

Part 3 Fair Usage

1. Fair Usage

1.1   Fair usage rules will be system enforced for each Customer in the form of transaction limits applied to the Customer account.

1.2   The Customer hereby agrees to:

1.2.1   the allocation of a daily transaction limit to its account as determined by the Authority. If this limit is exceeded then the Customer will be prevented from requesting further property searches and placing Orders through the B2B Gateway until the count is reset to zero at 24:00 hours on the same calendar day.

1.2.2   allow the Authority to change daily transaction limits as it requires and without notice;

1.2.3   notify the Authority (through its Customer Service Team) on not less than thirty (30) Working Days’ prior notice when it expects Order volumes to increase by 10% or more. In the event such notice is not provided to the Authority, the Authority cannot guarantee Orders the timely processing of Orders;

1.2.4   submit duplicate requests (i.e. mining report status system calls) at timed intervals which are no less than stipulated in the supporting system technical documentation. Duplicate requests received before the timed interval will be rejected by the Authority’s system and unless remedied in the Customer system and/or software this would be considered a breach of conditions of these Terms; and

1.2.5   the suspension or deletion of its B2B account should the Customer submit zero requests within any six (6) month period. Re‑activation will be at the sole discretion of the Authority and may involve repeating the on‑boarding process which could, in the Authority’s sole discretion, be subject to additional charges.

Part 4: Testing

1. Customer Testing

1.1   The Customer hereby agrees to:

1.1.1   the execution only of Authority supplied test scripts and data unless previously authorised by the Authority;

1.1.2   use the environment supplied by the Authority for testing;

1.1.3   conduct testing within the timeframes defined by the Authority and with its prior approval before starting testing;

1.1.4   only use the test system for purposes of testing and never as a replacement for the live service or as a means of validating Customer data sets;

1.1.5   destroy any test output (PDF or XML versions of the Reports) once testing is complete.

Part 5: Service Outages

1.   The Authority reserves the right to suspend access to the B2B Gateway without notice for the purposes of investigation, repair, maintenance and support.
2.   The Authority will on a reasonable endeavours basis notify the Customer by email of any planned outages as long as the Customer has supplied an up to date current email contact.
3.   The Authority will not be responsible for any losses of whatever nature and however arising due to the unavailability of the B2B Gateway. 

Part 6: Support

1.   Customers will be supported on a reasonable endeavours basis which is subject to demand.
2.   The Authority reserves the right at its own absolute discretion to determine the priority, remedy and resolution times for all incidents raised.
3.   Customers should raise all queries through the Customer Services Team.
4.   Supported hours are 9am until 5pm Monday to Thursday and 9am until 4.30pm on Fridays excluding bank holidays or service unavailability days as determined by the Authority.

Schedule 2: Mining and Ground Stability Report Contents

Part 1:

In respect of each residential and non-residential property search, Reports will provide summary information according to the records in the possession of the Authority and in the case of residential Ground Stability Reports, information also in the possession of BGS, relating to those matters referred to below on the basis of and subject to the Terms. For each search the Report will include the following information:

Information from the Authority

1. Past underground Coal Mining

1.1   Whether the Property is within the zone of likely physical influence on the surface of past underground working based on the principle of 0.7 times the depth of the working allowing for seam inclination. The Authority will indicate the number of seams involved, minimum and maximum depth and the approximate last date of working.

1.2   An indication of whether ground movement should now have stopped (when the circumstances are considered appropriate). Where coal workings are reported as being at shallow depth the Authority is unable to confirm that ground movement should have stopped by now.

1.3   An indication of the likely existence of unrecorded coal workings (reported as and where coal is believed to lie at or close to the surface), future ground movement may still subsequently occur.

2. Present Underground Coal Mining

2.1   Whether the Property is within the zone of likely physical influence on the surface of present underground coal workings based on the principle of 0.7 times the depth of the working allowing for seam inclination. The seams involved are indicated.

3. Future Underground Coal Mining

3.1   Whether the Property lies within the geographical area for which the Authority are determining whether to grant a licence, or have granted a licence, to remove coal by underground methods. The date of any granted licence is also given, together with advice as to whether the licence is conditional.

3.2   Whether the Property is within the zone of likely physical influence on the surface based on the principle of 0.7 times the depth of the currently planned future underground working allowing for seam inclination. An indication will be given of the seams involved and approximate date of working.

3.3   Information as to whether further workable coal is known or thought to exist.

3.4   Whether any notice of proposals relating to underground coal mining operations have been given under section 46 of the Coal Mining Subsidence Act 1991 (as amended by the Coal Industry Act 1994), and if so details are given of the date of the last notice.

4. Shafts and Adits ( mine entries)

4.1   Details of any shafts or adits within the Property and/or within 20 metres of the boundary of the Property.

4.2   Brief treatment details are given, where known.

4.3   A plan showing the approximate location of any shafts and/or adits is provided. To aid clarity the mine entry symbols will not necessarily be shown to the same scale as the plan. Distances are measured from the estimated centre of the shaft or centre point of an adit entrance.

4.4   Where any shafts or adits are disclosed in Reports for residential property (excluding pre‑build plots), details will be provided as to the procedure and cost of obtaining an optional, follow‑up interpretive report which provides more detailed analysis, risk assessment and advice about mine entries.

5. Coal Mining Geology

5.1   Whether the Authority has record of a fault or other line of weakness that is known to the Authority to have made the Property unstable.

6. Past Opencast Coal Mining

6.1   Whether the Property lies within an opencast site boundary from which coal has been removed in the past by opencast methods.

7. Present Opencast Coal Mining

7.1   Whether the Property is within 200 metres of the boundary of an opencast site from which coal is being removed by opencast methods.

8. Future Opencast Coal Mining

8.1   Whether the Property is within 800 metres of an area for which the Authority are determining whether to grant a licence to remove coal by opencast methods.

8.2   Whether the Property is within 800 metres of an area for which a licence to remove coal by opencast methods has been granted by the Authority.

9. Subsidence

9.1   The date of any damage notice or claim made for alleged coal mining subsidence damage since 31 October 1994.

9.2   Whether the claim was accepted, rejected or whether liability is still being determined.

9.3   Where a claim has been discharged, whether this was by making good or by payment of compensation or a combination of both, no details of the works to make good will be given but an indication of the cost of repairs/compensation or both will be included.

9.4   Where a claim has been transferred to a mine operator part way through the claim the cost included in the Property search will only be the element paid by the Authority.

9.5   Whether there is any current “stop notice” concerning the deferment of remedial works or repairs affecting the property, and if so the date of the notice.

9.6   Whether there has been any request made for preventive works under section 33 of the Coal Mining Subsidence Act 1991. If yes, whether the Authority is aware of any person to have withheld consent or failed to comply with any request to execute preventive works.

9.7   The number of claims made within 50 metres of the Property enquiry boundary.

10. Mine Gas Emissions

10.1   Whether the Authority, since its creation in 1994, have record of any mine gas emission within the boundary of the Property being reported that subsequently required action by the Authority to mitigate the effects of the mine gas emission. The Report does not include reference to any alleged mine gas emission not subsequently accepted by the Authority as being related to coal mining activity, e.g. natural gas and other non‑coal mining related gas emissions, or mine gas emissions not the subject of any subsequent remedial works by the Authority (additional information may be available, subsequent to receipt of a report and additional archive research fee).

11. Emergency Call‑Out Surface Hazard Incidents

11.1   Whether, since its creation in 1994, the Authority has carried out any work on or within the boundaries of the Property following a report of an alleged hazard related to coal mining under the Authority’s Emergency Surface Hazard Call Out procedures. The Report does not include reference to any reported hazard incident not subsequently accepted by the Authority as being caused by coal mining activity (additional information may be available, subsequent to receipt of a report and additional archive research fee).

11.2   Reports for non‑residential or sites within the coal mining areas will also include the following additional information:

11.2.1   Withdrawal of Support

11.2.1.1   Whether the site lies within a geographical area in respect of which a notice of entitlement to withdraw support has been published. The date of any notice is provided.

11.2.1.2   Whether the site lies within a geographical area in respect of which a revocation notice has been given under section 41 of the Coal Industry Act 1994. The date of any notice is provided.

11.2.1.3   Working facilities orders.

11.2.1.4   Whether the site lies within an area affected by an order in respect of the working of coal under the Mines (Working Facilities and Support) Acts of 1923 and 1966 or any statutory modification or amendment thereof. The date of any such notice is provided.

11.2.2   Payments to Owners of Former Copyhold Land

11.2.2.1   Whether any relevant notice which may affect the Property has been given and, if so, details of any notice of retained interests in coal and coal mines, acceptance or rejection notices and whether any compensation has been paid to a claimant.

11.3   Additional Information

11.3.1   Where the Authority offer and provide a No Search Required Certificate (electronic services only) to confirm that a CON29M coal mining search is not required for a Property, this does not and should not be deemed to confirm:

(a)   that no coal mining strata is present; nor

(b)   that some part of any coal resources present will (subject to obtaining planning permission and any necessary licences) not be worked at some future date; nor

(c)   that minerals other than coal have not been worked in the vicinity of the Property; nor

(d)   that the Property is not affected by any natural ground subsidence hazards, including, but not restricted to, shrinkable clay, running sand, compressible materials, collapsible materials, landslide activity or soluble rocks including limestone, chalk, gypsum or salt; nor

(e)   that the Property is not affected by any flood, contaminated land or other environmental consideration.

11.3.2   Where a User erroneously requests a residential property search for a non‑residential, commercial or site, the Authority reserves the right to provide a non‑residential report instead of the residential report requested, and to charge the appropriate fee accordingly. It is the User’s responsibility to ensure that it requests the correct search. In the event that a residential property search is requested where a non‑residential property, commercial or development site search is necessary, the Authority reserves the right to claim the difference in cost from the Customer.

11.3.3   The response to mining searches made for land and property lying outside of the Authority’s defined coal mining areas will either state that the Property lies outside any defined coalfield area or provide negative responses to each and every question and sub‑question on the CON29M enquiry forms.

Information from the BGS

The Ground Stability Report will report whether the Property is in an area where shrinkable clay, running sand, compressible deposits, collapsible deposits, potential landslide activity or soluble rocks are present.

12. Shrinkable clay

12.1   Whether the Property is within an area underlain by shrinkable clay, and, if so, whether this is of low, medium or high plasticity.

12.2   An indication of whether ground movement (subsidence) could occur.

13. Running Sand

13.1   Whether the Property is within an area underlain by running sand, and, if so, whether this is of low, medium or high likelihood.

13.2   An indication of whether ground movement (subsidence) could occur.

14. Compressible Deposits

14.1   Whether the Property is within an area underlain by deposits which could be compressed and cause ground movement, and, if so, whether this is of low, medium or high likelihood.

14.2   An indication of whether ground movement (subsidence) could occur.

15. Collapsible Deposits

15.1   Whether the Property is within an area underlain by deposits which could collapse and cause ground movement, and if so, whether this is of limited or high likelihood.

15.2   An indication of whether ground movement (subsidence) could occur.

16. Landslide Activity

16.1   Whether the Property is within an area susceptible to landslide activity, and, if so, whether this is of low, medium or high likelihood.

16.2   An indication of whether landslide activity is likely to occur.

17. Soluble Rocks

17.1   Whether the Property is within an area underlain by soluble rocks, and, if so, whether this is of low, limited or high likelihood. The four soluble rocks considered by the Ground Stability Report are limestone, chalk, gypsum and salt.

17.2   An indication of whether ground movement (subsidence) could occur.

17.3   There may be uneven damage or subsidence if the Property is on ground that moves. Notwithstanding the natural instability conditions reported, or otherwise, users should always consider the possible consequences before they:

17.3.1   carry out any building or excavation work;

17.3.2   alter the ground surface or drainage of surface or ground water; or

17.3.3   plant or remove large shrubs or trees.

17.4   Developers should always carry out an appropriate risk assessment before starting any work on, or around, a property.

17.5   In the event that a property is damaged by ground movement, property‑owners should contact their insurance company and anyone else who has an interest in the property, for example, the mortgage lender.

17.6   Where the ground stability report identifies that ground movement (subsidence) could occur, home‑owners should tell their professional advisers, insurers, valuers and lenders.

Schedule 3: Ground Stability Report Limitations

Part 1:

Limitations of the Ground Stability Report

The Ground Stability Report is prepared with reasonable skill and care from records available to the Authority, but has a number of limitations which are set out in these conditions which the Customer and the User acknowledge and accept when relying on it.

1. Sources of Information

1.1   The Report has been prepared by the Authority using information held by the Authority, together with information supplied to it by BGS. The Report is based on, and is limited to:

1.1.1   the specific features identified in the Report, as more particularly described in the Guidance; and

1.1.2   each Supplier’s interpretation of the records it holds relating to the particular features for which the Report states that the Supplier is responsible (and, in the case of information from BGS, as provided to the Authority) at the time the Report is prepared.

1.2   The Customer and the User therefore acknowledge and agree that the records used to prepare the Report do not represent an exhaustive or comprehensive list of all records that may exist or may be available for the Property. The Customer and the User also acknowledge that no physical inspection of the Property has or will be carried out in the preparation of the Report.

1.3   Without prejudice to paragraphs 1 and 1.2 above:

1.3.1   information from the Authority is based on records in its possession relating to coal mining activity. There may be information held by others on historical coal mining, and information on other types mining, which is not searched as part of the Ground Stability Report;

1.3.2   information from BGS relates solely to the following six natural ground stability hazards: shrinkable clay; running sand; compressible deposits; collapsible deposits; landslide activity; and soluble rocks. It does not cover any other geological hazards, or man‑made hazards (such as contaminated land). BGS may hold data on other geological hazards and features that may affect the Property which are not searched as part of the Ground Stability Report and consequently the Ground Stability Report should not be taken as a guarantee that there are no other geological hazards or other issues affecting the Property; and

1.3.3   information from BGS is prepared using the BGS GeoSure database which is based on 1:10,000 scale geological mapping reduced to 1:50,000 scale. The Customer and the User therefore acknowledge that BGS may be able to provide a more specific and detailed interpretation relating to the geological conditions and ground stability at the Property than that which is included in the Ground Stability Report. A more detailed interpretation is available via the BGS GeoReports service on the BGS website.

1.4   The information from the Suppliers may be derived from records from a number of disparate sources which vary in age, quantity and quality. Such records may include material donated to the Suppliers by third parties, which may not have been subject to any verification or other quality control process.

1.5   Raw data used to prepare the Reports may have been transcribed from analogue to digital format, or may have been acquired by means of automated measuring techniques. Although such processes are subjected, where possible, to quality control to ensure reliability, some raw data may have been processed without human intervention and may in consequence contain undetected errors.

1.6   The records available to the Suppliers are constantly being updated. The Suppliers cannot be responsible to the Customer or Users for any changes in the information on which the Ground Stability Report is based which occur after the date on which the Ground Stability Report is prepared. Where this Ground Stability Report is for a residential Property, insurance is included to cover loss in property value caused and arising from these circumstances. The Ground Stability Report includes a policy and key facts summary which outlines the significant features, benefits and limitations of the cover provided. The full terms, conditions and exclusions are shown in the policy document.

2. Maps

2.1   The Customer and the User must take all reasonable steps to check that the details in the Order are correct and that the Ground Stability Report provided by the Authority has been prepared for the correct location and property type, and that the boundaries of the Property as shown in the Ground Stability Report’s plan correspond with those of the Property. Any discrepancies between the Order and the Ground Stability Report must be notified to the Authority within twenty eight (28) days of the issue date of the Ground Stability Report and Authority will, in the case of error by the Authority, issue a revised Ground Stability Report free of charge; otherwise a new Ground Stability Report should be Ordered with payment of the appropriate Fee.

2.2   The plan or plans accompanying the Report must not be enlarged otherwise the accuracy will be affected.

2.3   The Authority will not provide any mapping or mapping products in the provision of CON29M and No Search Certificate Constituent Parts. It is the responsibility of third parties to determine and provide any requirements in this regard.

3. Reliance of the Ground Stability Report

3.1   Subject to paragraph 2 below, only the following persons may rely on the Ground Stability Report:

3.1.1   the owner of the Property at the time the Ground Stability Report is prepared;

3.1.2   any purchaser of the whole of the Property from the owner described in a above; and

3.1.3   any person who provides funding to the persons in paragraphs 3.1.1 and 3.1.2 above which is secured on the whole of the Property.

3.2   The Ground Stability Report gives an indication of whether ground movement could occur at the Property. This does not necessarily mean that the Property is or will be affected by ground instability. Such an assessment can only be made by inspection of the Property by a qualified professional, such as a surveyor or engineer. The Report does not therefore:

3.2.1.1   include any information or warranty relating to the actual state, or the structural or other condition, of the Property;

3.2.1.2   determine the saleability or value, or the safety, of the Property;

3.2.1.3   indicate the suitability of the Property for any particular purpose (including, without limitation, its suitability for development (within the meaning of section 55 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990 as amended) or any building, excavation or landscaping work); or

3.2.1.4   act as a substitute for any physical inspection, specialist interpretations and/or professional advice.

Schedule 4: Use of CON29M and No Search Certificate Constituent Parts

1. Customers and User Obligations

1.1   Customers and Users agree to:

1.1.1   use the textual elements (as denoted in the XSD by the ‘SectionList’ element within its start and end tags) of any report returned in XML format as a complete set and in the textual order the parts appear in the XML output;

1.1.2   use the geographical elements (as denoted in the XSD by the ‘PlotList’ element within its start and end tags) of any report returned in XML format as a complete set;

1.1.3   ensure that the consumption of the CON29M Constituent Parts in its report(s) is in accordance with the rules defined by the Law Society;

1.1.4   only store the contents of the XML output for the purposes of reproducing the Report in its original format; and

1.1.5   provide on request examples of any of its reports for review by the Authority.

1.2   Customers and Users shall not:

1.2.1   use the output from any single Order request in more than one Report;

1.2.2   use the output for any other purpose but the inclusion in a single instance of its Report;

1.2.3   store/use the contents of the XML output for (but not limited to):

1.2.3.1   the creation of a Knowledge Base of any type or for any purpose;

1.2.3.2   resale of the information contained within the Report;

1.2.3.3   the inclusion in any other product offered by the Customer; or

1.2.3.4   any other matter which the Authority may deem, in its sole discretion, as an unacceptable use.

2. Authority Logos and Copyright

2.1   The Authority shall have no liability to Customers or Users for, and the Customer/Users shall indemnify and hold harmless the Authority against all Claims and Losses, including all legal fees, arising out of any breach or non‑observance by the Customer of any of the obligations set out in paragraph 1 above.

2.2   Customers and Users are required to use any of the Authority supplied logo(s) in its Reports and such use must strictly adhere to the rules defined in the style guide. This guide is available on request from the Authority.

2.3   All material of whatever nature generated by the Authority and reproduced in the CON29M or in No Search Certificates shall be subject to clause 9 of the Terms and shall include at the end of the textual elements the form of acknowledgment of copyright set out in clause 7 of the Terms using a font and font size which is clearly legible in both electronic and printed forms.

3. Report Review

3.1   The Authority reserves the right to review the use of its data (content and presentation) in Customer and User Reports and where the Authority considers its use contrary to these Terms reserves the right to withdraw the use of the B2B Gateway until all necessary changes as required by the Authority have been made by the Customer/User.

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