Fair Usage Policy

Fair Usage Policy (updated 26/09/2024)

We will only charge you additional rent for your utilities if the contract has a fair usage stipulation and you exceed the predetermined fair usage allowance. 

Where gas and electricity are included in your rent, the following fair usage policy will apply. This is to ensure that your energy usage is not excessive and stays within reasonable allowances.

If the limits are exceeded your landlord, reserves the right to apply a supplemental charge to cover the amount by which you exceeded the allowances.

The allowances are designed to be generous and if you are sensible with your energy consumption, it is unlikely you will exceed these limits.

Fair Usage Allowance for Gas and Electricity

For our bills inclusive tenants, all sections of this Policy will apply as all the utilities in your tenancy agreement are subject to Fair and Acceptable usage. Bills inclusive tenants are responsible to ensure that the use of any Services, or goods relating to the Services, by anyone in your household, including visitors, does not in any way contravene the restrictions listed in this Fair and Acceptable Usage Policy.

Where your tenancy agreement is for less than 12 months, the figures on the table in this policy will apply on a pro-rata basis.

Water and Sewerage

Many properties are on a rated meter, with fixed rate costs that increase each April by the local water authority. 

For homes with a water meter installed, the maximum usage allowed for 1 to 5-bed houses is 160 cubic meters of water and 160 cubic meters of sewerage per annum. For each additional bedroom above 5, your allowance increases by 20 cubic meters of water and 20 cubic meters of sewerage per annum.

Internet and Wi-Fi

Security & Other users

You and your co-tenants are responsible for making reasonable efforts to ensure that sensitive information, including usernames, passwords, and login details for any internet services, provided through Pickard Properties, are not divulged, or otherwise made available to any unauthorised persons or third parties. 

You shall not disclose these credentials to any third party or use the same for any purpose connected with the improper use of the network including accessing or attempting to access other parts of the services for which you do not have access rights.

You are responsible for taking all reasonable steps to prevent a third party from obtaining access to the network. You must immediately advise us if you become aware of any violation or suspected violation of these security provisions. You are responsible for all uses made of the internet through your account (whether authorised or unauthorised) and for any breach of this policy whether an unacceptable use occurs or is attempted, whether you knew or should have known about it, whether or not you carried out or attempted the unacceptable use alone, contributed to or acted with others or allowed any unacceptable use to occur by omission.

You shall not disclose these credentials to any third party or use the same for any purpose connected with the improper use of the network including accessing or attempting to access other parts of the services for which you do not have access rights.

You agree that neither Pickard Properties nor the broadband provider are responsible for any of your activities in using our network. Although the internet is designed to appeal to a broad audience, it’s your responsibility to determine whether any of the content accessed via the broadband service is appropriate for children or others in your household home to view or use.

Prohibited Activities in respect of your internet broadband services

Granting access to your broadband service to others not specifically authorised by you.

Activities that invade another’s privacy, cause annoyance, inconvenience, or needless anxiety to any person.

To realise and recognise any material which is offensive, abusive, defamatory, indecent, obscene, unlawful, harassing or menacing or a breach of the copyright, trademark, intellectual property, confidence, privacy or any other rights of any person. And to not send, receive, publish, post, distribute, disseminate, encourage the receipt of, upload, download, record, review, stream or use any of the material formentioned.  

Not to upload any material such as files that contain viruses, corrupted files, or any other similar software or programs which is known or likely to cause disruption to the broadband provision, damage any computer’s hardware or software, or equipment owned by Virgin Media or BT/Openreach and/or any other Internet user within the property. 

Anything that may disrupt or interfere with the network or services or cause a host or the network to crash.

Launching “denial of service” attacks; “mail bombing” attacks; or “flooding” attacks against a host or network.

Circumventing the user authentication or security process of a host or network.

Create, transmit, store, or publish any virus such as a Trojan, a corrupting program, or corrupted data. 

Monitoring or recording the actions of any person entitled to be in your home without their knowledge or any person or thing outside of your home or premises including, without limitation, any public highway or roadway or another person’s home or business premises.

Not to breach of any other third party’s rights or copyright by downloading, installing or distributing pirated software or other unlicensed software. Or stream, distribute or access any material that you know, or reasonably should know, that is not legally obtained. 

Extent of Service

We do not make any recommendations for particular websites the use of any websites, internet related services, or internet services and your use is carried out entirely at your own risk. 

We have no responsibility for or control over, the Internet Services you access and do not guarantee that any services are error or virus free,

We have no responsibility for, or control over, the information you transmit or receive via the Internet.

We do not guarantee:

The availability of the Internet Service

The speed at which information may be transmitted or received via the internet Service; or

That the Internet Service will be compatible with equipment or any software which you use.

Your Use of the Service

You must not use the Service to access Internet Services or send or receive e-mails, which –

a) Are defamatory, threatening, intimidatory or which could be classed as harassment.

b) Contain obscene, profane, or abusive language or material.

c) Contain pornographic material that is text, pictures, films, video clips of a sexually explicit material. 

d) Contain offensive or derogatory images regarding sex, race, religion, color, origin, age, physical or mental disability, medical condition or sexual orientation.

e) Contain material that infringes third party’s rights (including intellectual property rights);

f) In our reasonable opinion may adversely affect the manner in which we carry out our business; or

g) Are otherwise unlawful or inappropriate; Music, video, pictures, text, and other content on the internet that are copyright works, and you should not download, alter, e-mail, or otherwise use such content unless certain that the owner of such works, has authorised its use by you.

We may terminate or temporarily suspend the Service if we reasonably believe that you are in breach of any provisions of this agreement including but not limited to the clauses above.