How we work with you

1 Who these terms apply to

These terms apply when you book services from Coastal Connect Home Care Pty Ltd (ABN 97 702 183 515) and pay us directly, and when you use this website. "We" and "us" mean Coastal Connect Home Care. "You" means the person receiving our services, or the family member or representative who arranges them.

If your services are funded through Support at Home or another government program, your service agreement is with your registered aged care provider. Your fees, your contributions, invoicing and the cancellation rules all come from that agreement, and we follow your provider's conditions. How we keep visits safe, and our rules on keys, money and gifts (sections 6 and 7), apply to every visit.

2 Our services

We provide the services described on this website, such as domestic assistance, meal preparation, social support, accompanied activities, technology help and home maintenance. Before we start, we agree the details with you: what we will do, when, and how often.

• We do not provide personal care, such as showering, dressing or toileting, or clinical nursing. We cannot give or manage medicines.
• We cook only in your own kitchen. We do not deliver meals or bring in food cooked anywhere else.
• We provide transport only when an aged care provider books it for you. We do not take private bookings for transport.
• We may decline a booking if the work is outside what we do, or if we cannot do it safely.

3 Bookings and quotes

You can book by phone or email. We confirm each booking, and any regular schedule, in writing by email or text message.

If we give you a quote, it covers the work described in it and says how long it stays valid. If a job turns out to be different from what we quoted, we will talk to you before doing anything extra. We never charge for extra work you have not agreed to.

We roster the same workers for you wherever we can. If you would like a different worker, just ask.

4 Prices and payment

If your services come through an aged care provider, your provider sets your fees and invoices you. This section applies when you pay us directly.

• Prices. Your price is in your quote or booking confirmation, and it includes GST where GST applies. Any minimum visit length or travel charge is shown there too. If it isn't shown, we don't charge it.
• Invoices and payment. Before we start, we agree with you in writing how often we invoice and when payment is due. Please pay by bank transfer to the account shown on the invoice, and please don't pay our workers in cash.
• Late payment. If an invoice isn't paid on time, we will contact you, and we may pause further visits until it is paid.
• Price changes. We give you at least 30 days' written notice before changing your prices. If you don't accept the change, you can end your services before it applies, with no fee.

5 Cancelling or changing a visit

If you need to cancel or move a visit, please tell us as early as you can.

• If your services come through an aged care provider, your provider's cancellation rules apply.
• If you pay us directly, we agree with you in writing before we start how much notice you need to give, and what happens if you cancel late or we can't get in.

If we need to cancel or move a visit, we will tell you as early as we can and offer another time. We never charge you when we cancel.

6 Keeping visits safe

While we are in your home, it is also our workplace, and the law requires us to keep our workers safe. Please:

• tell us about anything that could affect safety, such as hazards in the home or garden
• let us know before a visit if anyone in the home has a contagious illness, such as COVID-19 or gastro
• keep pets secure if we ask
• not smoke in the room where we are working
• treat our workers with respect, as we will treat you

Our workers may stop work, or leave, if they feel unsafe. If that happens, we will call you to talk about it.

7 Keys, money and gifts

• If you give us a key, a lockbox code or an alarm code, we keep it secure, use it only for your visits, and return it when our services end.
• If we shop for you, we keep the receipts and give you all your change.
• To protect you, our workers cannot accept money or gifts beyond small tokens, such as a cup of tea or a homemade biscuit. They cannot borrow or lend money, or be involved in your finances, your will or other legal documents. Please don't ask them to.
• We only take photos in your home with your permission, for example to record a finished job or an incident.

8 If something goes wrong

If you are hurt, or something is damaged, during a visit, please tell us straight away. We will look into it and put things right where we are responsible.

If you are unhappy with our service, tell us. We will listen, look into it and get back to you. If your services come through an aged care provider, you can also raise it with them, and we follow their complaints process.

If we can't resolve it together, you can contact:

9 Your rights under the Australian Consumer Law

Our services come with guarantees that cannot be excluded under the Australian Consumer Law. We must provide them with due care and skill, make sure they are fit for any purpose you told us about, and provide them within a reasonable time. If we don't, you are entitled to a remedy. Nothing in these terms excludes, restricts or changes those rights.

We are responsible for loss or damage we cause by not taking reasonable care or by breaking these terms. To the extent the law allows, we are not responsible for normal wear and tear, or for damage caused by a fault we did not know about and could not reasonably have found.

10 Ending our services

• You can end our services at any time by telling us. You only pay for visits already provided and any short-notice cancellation under section 5.
• We can end our services by giving you reasonable notice in writing, for example if we can no longer provide what you need. If your services come through an aged care provider, we follow its conditions and work with it so your support continues.
• We may end our services straight away if one of our workers is threatened, abused or harassed, or if visits cannot be done safely.

11 Using this website

• The information on this website is general. It is not financial, legal or health advice. For questions about funding and eligibility, contact My Aged Care on 1800 200 422.
• We try to keep the website accurate and available, but we can't promise it always will be.
• Our name, our logo and the words on this website belong to us. Please don't copy them without our permission.
• Links to other websites are there for your convenience. We are not responsible for what those websites say.
• Our privacy policy explains how we handle your personal information.

12 Changes to these terms

We may update these terms. The current version is always on this page, with the date it was last updated. If a change affects services you already receive from us, we will tell you at least 30 days before it applies, and you can end your services before then with no fee.

These terms are governed by the laws of New South Wales.

13 Contact us