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Terms of Service

Bertrand AI — Terms of Service

Version 1.5 — revised 24 August 2026. The version a Client accepts during onboarding is logged against their submission.

1. Parties

This Agreement is between:

James Patient, a sole trader trading as Bertrand AI ("Bertrand AI", "we", "us"), of Spring House, The Drive, Guildford, GU5 0QW, Surrey, United Kingdom

and

the Client — the business named on the applicable Order Form / onboarding submission ("Client", "you").

Together, the "Parties".

2. Definitions

3. The Service

3.1 Bertrand AI will configure and operate an Assistant for the Client based on the Client Content, deployed via the tier selected on the Order Form (Off-Hours Cover / Full-Time Agent / High Volume).

3.2 The Service depends entirely on Third-Party Providers continuing to operate. Bertrand AI does not own or control the underlying voice, telephony, or AI infrastructure and cannot guarantee uptime beyond what those providers themselves guarantee.

3.3 Bertrand AI will use reasonable efforts to notify the Client of any known Third-Party Provider outage materially affecting the Service, and to restore service as soon as reasonably practicable.

4. Client Content and responsibilities

4.1 The Client is solely responsible for the accuracy of all Client Content — pricing, opening hours, service descriptions, and FAQs — supplied for the Assistant. The Assistant answers based on what it is told; Bertrand AI does not independently verify Client Content against reality.

4.2 The Client must review the generated Assistant configuration (system prompt and opening line) before the Assistant goes live, and promptly notify Bertrand AI of any required correction.

4.3 The Client must keep Client Content up to date (e.g. price changes, holiday closures) and understands that a failure to do so may result in the Assistant giving outdated information to Callers.

5. Mandatory disclosure and emergency escalation

5.1 Every Assistant's opening line must, at all times, clearly and audibly identify the Assistant as an AI receptionist acting on the Client's behalf (Bertrand AI's standard default: "Hi, this is [assistant name], [company]'s AI receptionist."). This is a regulatory requirement (Ofcom guidance on automated/AI calls identifying themselves), not a stylistic choice, and the Client may not instruct Bertrand AI to remove, obscure, or bury this disclosure.

5.2 Every Assistant is configured with a standing instruction to escalate immediately to a human contact (as nominated by the Client) or, where the Client has not nominated one, to instruct the Caller to contact emergency services directly, whenever a call reasonably appears to involve an emergency, health and safety risk, or urgent risk of harm or serious loss. The Client must nominate a working emergency/escalation contact as part of onboarding and keep it current.

5.3 The Assistant is not, and must not be represented as, a substitute for emergency services.

6. Fees and payment

6.1 No setup fee is payable for a Client's first location. A one-off setup fee of £150 is payable for each additional location added to the Client's account, collected by Direct Debit under Section 6.4 seven days after that location's Assistant is deployed. An additional location setup fee is non-refundable once Bertrand AI has begun the Assistant configuration work described in Section 3.1 for that location.

6.2 Recurring fees are as set out in the Order Form, per the plan selected (Off-Hours Cover / Full-Time Agent / High Volume / Multi-Site / Enterprise), and are billed monthly in advance - the Client is charged for each coming month before that month's Service is provided, not afterwards. The Client's first seven days of Service are provided free of charge: the first Billing Date falls seven days after the Client's first Assistant is deployed, and recurring fees then fall due on the monthly anniversary of that date (the "Billing Date"). Where the Client operates more than one location, an additional location fee of £75 per month for each location beyond the first is charged alongside the recurring plan fee, on the same Billing Date and on the same seven-day free basis.

6.3 Each plan includes a monthly allowance of Assistant call minutes, pooled across every location on the Client's account: Solo Cover - 350 minutes (single location only); Off-Hours Cover - 750 minutes; Full-Time Agent - 1,500 minutes; High Volume - 4,000 minutes; Multi-Site - 6,000 minutes; Enterprise - 8,000 minutes. Minutes are shared rather than allocated per location, so unused minutes at one location offset heavier use at another. Usage beyond the pooled allowance is billed at £0.60/minute (Solo Cover), £0.40/minute (Off-Hours Cover and Full-Time Agent), £0.34/minute (High Volume), £0.30/minute (Multi-Site), or £0.27/minute (Enterprise). Because usage can only be measured after the fact, overage is necessarily calculated and collected in arrears - shortly after each calendar month ends - separately from the in-advance recurring fee in Section 6.2. Live calendar integration (real-time appointment availability checking and booking into the Client's calendar) is available on Off-Hours Cover and above. It is not included with Solo Cover. Off-Hours Cover provides Assistant cover outside the Client's stated opening hours only: calls received during opening hours are routed to the Client's own staff line and then to voicemail, and are not answered by the Assistant. All other plans provide Assistant cover at any time the Client chooses, including during opening hours.

6.4 All fees under this Section (the recurring monthly fee and any overage) are collected automatically by Direct Debit through Bertrand AI's payment processor, GoCardless, under the Direct Debit Guarantee. The Client authorises this mandate during onboarding and must keep valid, funded bank account details on file for the mandate to remain active.

6.5 Fees are non-refundable except where required by law. In particular: because the recurring fee is billed in advance under Section 6.2, if the Client cancels or the Service otherwise ends partway through an already-paid month, no refund or credit is given for the unused remainder of that month — the Service continues to be available until the end of the period already paid for, and the Agreement then ends. This applies equally to cancellation by the Client and to suspension or termination by Bertrand AI under Section 13. See Section 13.2 for how any additional days beyond that already-paid period are charged during a notice period.

6.6 If a Direct Debit collection fails, or the Client's mandate becomes invalid, cancelled, or expired, Bertrand AI will notify the Client and attempt to re-collect. Bertrand AI may suspend the Service under Section 13.3 if the amount owed remains unresolved.

6.7 Bertrand AI may change the recurring monthly fee, the included monthly minute allowance, or the overage rate set out in Sections 6.2 and 6.3 by giving the Client at least 30 days' written notice in accordance with Section 16.1. Any such change takes effect from the first Billing Date falling after the end of that notice period. Price changes are not retrospective: they do not affect any month already paid for in advance under Section 6.2, or any overage already accrued under Section 6.3 before the change takes effect. The one-off setup fee in Section 6.1 is not affected once it has been paid.

6.8 If the Client does not wish to continue at the revised fee, the Client may terminate this Agreement under Section 13.2 by giving notice before the change takes effect. In that case the Service continues at the existing fee until the end of the period the Client has already paid for, and the revised fee is not charged. If the Client does not terminate and continues to use the Service on or after the date the change takes effect, the revised fee applies from that date.

7. Third-party providers and data processing

7.1 In providing the Service, Bertrand AI acts as a data processor in respect of any personal data of Callers (including call audio, transcripts, and any personal data disclosed during calls). The Client is the data controller of that Caller personal data — the Client has the direct relationship with its Callers and is responsible for having a lawful basis for processing and for providing Callers with a privacy notice (Bertrand AI provides a template for this at onboarding).

7.2 Bertrand AI will only process Caller personal data to provide the Service, in accordance with the Client's instructions as reflected in the Client Content and Order Form.

7.3 The Client consents to Bertrand AI's use of the Third-Party Providers listed in Section 2 as sub-processors. Bertrand AI will notify the Client of any change of sub-processor that materially affects the processing of Caller personal data.

7.4 Both Parties will comply with their respective obligations under UK GDPR and the Data Protection Act 2018.

7.5 On termination, Bertrand AI will delete or return Caller personal data held on the Client's behalf within 30 days, except where retention is required by law. This 30-day period applies specifically to Caller data processed under Section 7.1 during an active Client relationship — it is separate from Section 7.6.

7.6 Separately from Caller data above, Bertrand AI acts as the data controller (not processor) for the Client's own contact details supplied at onboarding (e.g. the named business contact's name, role, phone, and email) and for any prospective client's personal data collected before a Client relationship exists — including onboarding submissions that are never approved or are rejected, and leads captured through Bertrand AI's own website demo assistant. This data is processed on the lawful basis of Bertrand AI's legitimate interest in operating and following up on sales enquiries. Where such personal data does not result in an active Client relationship, Bertrand AI retains it for no longer than 12 months from the last contact with that prospect, after which it is deleted. This retention period and its rationale are set out in full in Bertrand AI's public Privacy Policy.

8. Intellectual property

8.1 The Client retains all rights in Client Content.

8.2 Bertrand AI retains all rights in the underlying Service, including the automation workflows, call-routing logic, prompt templates, and any Bertrand AI IP incorporated into the Assistant configuration.

9. Case studies and references

9.1 Where the Client has been offered discounted pilot pricing in exchange for a case study (as described on Bertrand AI's website at the time the Client signed up), the Client agrees to reasonably cooperate with Bertrand AI in producing one, including permitting Bertrand AI to use the Client's business name, logo, and a short description or quote about the Client's experience of the Service in Bertrand AI's marketing materials, website, and sales conversations.

9.2 Outside of Section 9.1, Bertrand AI will not publicly name the Client as a user of the Service, or use the Client's name, logo, or any Caller data, in marketing materials without the Client's prior written consent.

9.3 The Client may withdraw consent given under this Section at any time by written notice to Bertrand AI (see Section 16), and Bertrand AI will stop using the Client's name/logo/quote in any materials first published after that notice, though this does not require retraction of materials already distributed before the notice was received.

10. Warranties and disclaimers

10.1 The Service is provided "as is". Bertrand AI does not warrant that the Assistant will be error-free, uninterrupted, or that its responses will always be accurate — the Client acknowledges that the Assistant is an AI system and may occasionally misunderstand a Caller, mishear an accent, or generate an incorrect response despite the guardrails in Section 5.

10.2 Except as expressly stated in this Agreement, all warranties, conditions, and terms implied by statute or common law are excluded to the fullest extent permitted by law.

11. Limitation of liability

11.1 Nothing in this Agreement excludes or limits liability for: (a) death or personal injury caused by negligence; (b) fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation; or (c) any other liability that cannot lawfully be excluded or limited (including under the Unfair Contract Terms Act 1977). This carve-out cannot be removed or narrowed by either Party.

11.2 Subject to Section 11.1, Bertrand AI's total aggregate liability to the Client arising out of or in connection with this Agreement, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), or otherwise, will not exceed the greater of (a) the total fees paid by the Client in the 12 months preceding the event giving rise to the claim, or (b) £1,000.

11.3 Subject to Section 11.1, Bertrand AI will not be liable for any indirect or consequential loss, loss of profit, loss of business, or loss of reputation, even if such loss was foreseeable.

11.4 Bertrand AI is not liable for any failure or delay caused by a Third-Party Provider's outage, error, policy change, or discontinuation, beyond the obligations in Section 3.3.

12. Indemnity

12.1 The Client will indemnify Bertrand AI against any claim, loss, or liability arising from: (a) inaccurate, misleading, or unlawful Client Content supplied to Bertrand AI; or (b) the Client's breach of Section 4 or Section 5.

12.2 Bertrand AI will indemnify the Client against any claim, loss, or liability arising from Bertrand AI's breach of its data processing obligations under Section 7.1–7.4 (Caller data processed as a data processor on the Client's behalf), to the extent such claim arises from Bertrand AI's own act or omission and not from the Client's own instructions, Client Content, or breach of this Agreement. This Section 12.2 is subject to the liability cap in Section 11.2.

13. Term and termination

13.1 This Agreement begins on the date the Service is activated and continues monthly until terminated.

13.2 The Client may terminate this Agreement at any time, with no notice period, either by the method in Section 16.1 or by using the "Cancel my subscription" function in the Client's dashboard; where given via the dashboard, cancellation is treated as effective at the time of that action, and Bertrand AI will confirm it and the resulting end date by email in accordance with Section 16.1. Where the Client has already paid for the current month in advance under Section 6.2, the Service continues until the end of that paid period, and no refund is given for any unused part of it (Section 6.5). No further amount of any kind is charged after cancellation: no notice-period fee, no pro-rated charge, and no further monthly collection. Where the Client cancels before any payment has been collected, including during the free period under Section 6.2, nothing is charged at all. Bertrand AI may terminate this Agreement on 30 days' written notice to the Client under Section 16.1.

13.3 Bertrand AI may suspend or terminate the Service immediately if fees are overdue by more than 7 days, or if the Client instructs Bertrand AI to remove the disclosure or emergency-escalation safeguards in Section 5.

14. Force majeure

14.1 Neither Party is liable for any failure or delay in performing its obligations under this Agreement (other than payment obligations) caused by events beyond that Party's reasonable control, including natural disaster, fire, flood, war, civil unrest, act of government, national or regional internet or power infrastructure failure, or industrial action — provided the affected Party notifies the other as soon as reasonably practicable and uses reasonable efforts to mitigate the impact.

14.2 This Section is separate from, and does not limit, Section 3.2's specific allocation of risk for Third-Party Provider outages, which applies regardless of whether such an outage also independently qualifies as a force majeure event.

15. Assignment

15.1 The Client may not assign, transfer, or sub-contract this Agreement or any of its rights or obligations under it without Bertrand AI's prior written consent.

15.2 Bertrand AI may assign or transfer this Agreement, in whole, to a successor entity carrying on the same business (for example, if Bertrand AI later incorporates as a limited company), provided the successor assumes all of Bertrand AI's obligations under this Agreement unchanged, and Bertrand AI gives the Client reasonable written notice of the change.

16. Notices

16.1 Any formal notice under this Agreement (including notice of termination, breach, or withdrawal of consent under Section 9.3) must be in writing and sent by email to: (a) if to Bertrand AI, hello@bertrandai.uk; (b) if to the Client, the contact email address given on the Client's Order Form / onboarding submission (or any updated address the Client has since notified in writing). A notice is treated as received on the next business day after it is sent.

16.2 Routine operational communication (support queries, Client Content updates, billing queries) does not need to follow this Section and may be sent through Bertrand AI's normal channels.

17. Dispute resolution

17.1 If a dispute arises under this Agreement, a senior representative of each Party (for a sole-trader Client, the owner; for Bertrand AI, the proprietor) will first attempt in good faith to resolve it informally within 14 days of either Party raising it in writing, before either Party commences formal legal proceedings.

17.2 This Section does not prevent either Party from seeking urgent injunctive relief, or from exercising Bertrand AI's suspension rights under Section 13.3, at any time without first following this process.

18. General

18.1 Governing law and jurisdiction: This Agreement is governed by the law of England and Wales, and the Parties submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of England and Wales.

18.2 If any provision of this Agreement is found unenforceable, the remaining provisions continue in full force.

18.3 This Agreement, together with the Order Form, is the entire agreement between the Parties regarding the Service.

18.4 Variation: Except for fee changes made under Section 6.7, no variation of this Agreement is effective unless agreed in writing by both Parties. Bertrand AI may publish updated versions of these Terms from time to time. The version in force between the Parties is the version the Client accepted at onboarding, and it continues to apply until Bertrand AI gives the Client at least 30 days' written notice under Section 16.1 of an updated version, together with a plain summary of what has changed. The updated version then applies from the end of that notice period. If the Client does not accept the updated version, the Client may terminate this Agreement under Section 13.2 by giving notice before it takes effect, in which case Sections 6.5 and 13.2 govern what remains payable. If the Client does not terminate and continues to use the Service on or after the date the updated version takes effect, that constitutes acceptance of it.