1.0 ABOUT US
1.1 www.design-association.org is a web site owned by The Design Association Limited ("we"/"us") whose aim it is to award accreditation to its members, provide benefits in support of accreditation, promote design business best practice and encourage the study of design techniques for the benefit of the community. We act as a body of design businesses and in-house design teams regulating and monitoring design practice for the benefit of industry and the public.

1.2 These terms and conditions apply to all and any use of the web site. If you do not accept these terms and conditions please do not use the web site and leave now.

1.3 Since the web site is principally aimed at UK designers, we cannot guarantee that the web site accords with local laws of any other countries. You are, therefore, responsible for compliance with the laws of your jurisdiction.

2.0 INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY RIGHTS
2.1 We do not give you any right or interest in any copyright or other intellectual property rights in any text, images, tables, compilations or other works featured on the web site nor do we give you the right to reproduce the same in any form.

2.2 Copyright in all software relating to the design, development or maintenance of the web site is owned by or licensed to us, unless otherwise specified, and may not be used, replicated, copied, modified, distributed, adapted, printed or downloaded without our express permission.

2.3 We may provide links to web sites controlled and owned by third parties. All text, images, tables, compilations or other works featured on such web sites belong to third parties and you should obtain consent from such third parties before reproducing any part of their works.

2.4 Our name, the web site and logos are our trade names and/or trade marks and may not be used by you or anybody else without our express permission.

2.5 We do not make any warranty or representation in respect of any other trade marks other than those owned by us. Any other trade marks featured on the web site are featured at their owners' risk.

3.0 SERVICES
3.1 We may provide certain services via the web site for the benefit of our members and other people visiting the web site. We have the right at any time at our sole discretion to stop providing any such services previously available via the web site.

3.2 We may also promote services provided by third parties on our web site when we consider that such services are useful to our members and add value to our aims. Reasonable efforts are made to ensure that such third party providers are legitimate and proper and that the standard of the services they provide is satisfactory.

3.3 We will try to keep our web site as up to date as reasonably possible but cannot guarantee all services and functions featured on the web site will always be available.

4.0 MEMBERSHIP & JOINING
4.1 You can join us as a member via the five stage accreditation process set out on the website by submitting an electronic membership form online and completing and returning to us our standard payment form by post for the application fee and making payment to us of the application fees and annual renewal fees as follows or as otherwise set out on the web site from time to time:

4.1.1 Application fees are as follows:

4.1.1.1 The initial application fee is £750 plus VAT.

4.1.1.2 For applicants where one director or principal is a member, Fellow or Associate Member of the Chartered Society of Designers the application fee is £500 plus VAT.

4.1.2 Following the award of DA Accredited Status the annual membership fees are as follows:

No. of design staff	Cost £ sterling (+VAT)
2 - 5	950
6 - 10	1400
11 - 15	1850
16 - 20	2300
21 - 25	2750
26 - 30	3200
31 - 35	3650
36 - 40	4100
41 - 45	4550
46 - 50	5000
51 - 100	7500
101 +	9500

4.2 Alternatively, we may accept membership forms and payment forms submitted by other means such as by fax or by post. By submitting a membership form and payment form you are demonstrating your willingness to join us, subject to these Terms and Conditions.

4.3 Once you have submitted a membership form we will confirm its receipt by email.

4.4 In order to be admitted as a member you are required to be evaluated (Stages 3 and 4) in accordance with the accreditation process on the website during which you may be asked to provide additional evidence in support of your submission for DA Accredited Status.

4.5 Once you have successfully gained DA Accredited Status you become a DA Accredited Member subject to the prompt payment of the annual membership fee set out in clause 4.1.2 above and as described in Stage 5 of the accreditation process.

4.6 We may refuse your request to join as a member or cancel your membership at any time at our reasonable discretion. We may also refuse your entry to the members' area of the web site at any time at our sole discretion.

4.7 In the event that your application to join us and become accredited fails at Stage 2 of the accreditation process, we will refund an amount of £250 of the application fee.

4.8 All costs shown in theses terms and conditions are subject to VAT at the prevailing rate unless stated.

5.0 MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS
5.1 As a member you will be entitled to certain membership benefits which are outlined in more detail on the web site.

5.2 You will be entitled to the membership benefits for the duration of your membership but we reserve the right to withdraw any of the benefits at any time.

6.0 PAYMENT
6.1 You may pay the application and membership fee with a credit or debit card. You may do so by telephoning DA or using the payment form which can be downloaded from the website. You may also choose to pay by cheque.

6.2 Your credit card company may carry out an additional security check to confirm it is you who is making the payment.

6.3 All orders and invoices will be sent to the credit or debit card billing address and not the shipping or delivery address where the two addresses differ.

6.4 All information that you supply to us whilst placing an order via the web site is encrypted prior to transmission to protect your details and your privacy.

7.0 PRIVACY
7.1 We recognise the importance of protecting your privacy whilst you use the web site. Therefore we do not collect information for purposes other than keeping accurate records of our members, distribution of email newsletters, informing you of events that might be of interest and monitoring training programmes. We may also collect information to enable us to process your application and maintain your membership and to provide you with an up to date, efficient, and reliable service.

7.2 In order to improve our services and the web site we may use cookies to store certain type of information each time you interact with the web site. Cookies are a means by which information relating to your internet activity is recorded and used by us to improve the web site and the information and products features and promoted on the web site. If you do not wish to use cookies we cannot guarantee that you will be able to use the web site in the same way (or at all).

7.3 We will not provide any of the personal information you give to us to any third party, except with your prior express consent.

7.4 We will retain the personal information you provide within the United Kingdom, and will not transfer it to any other country or any other person, except with your prior and express written consent.

7.5 We are committed to the security of your personal information and we have security procedures in place to protect the loss, misuse or alteration of information under our control. We have security measures in place to protect our user database and access to this database is restricted. All information collected or processed via our web site in encrypted making it secure, inaccessible and unrecognisable to any third parties.

7.6 We may amend these terms and conditions from time to time. If we make any substantial changes in the way we use your personal information we will make that information available by posting a notice on our web site.

8.0 GUARANTEES & LIABILITIES
8.1 We have used our best efforts to ensure that all information on our web site is correct but make no guarantee and accept no liability as to the correctness of any such information. Use of and reliance on any information will be entirely at your own risk.

8.2 We have tried to make the descriptions of the services offered via the web site as accurate as possible. However, the services may differ slightly from the descriptions featured.

8.3 We use reasonable efforts to make the web site available at all time and ensure that all services and functions are available. However, we cannot guarantee that the web site/services/functions are always available and retain the right to withhold any functionality at our sole discretion.

8.4 We will not be liable for any indirect or consequential loss to you.

8.5 We will have no liability in respect of any other web site or page on the internet accessible from our web site.

8.6 Except as provided above we give no other warranties, conditions or other terms, express or implied, statutory or otherwise and all such terms are hereby excluded to the maximum extent permitted by law, subject to your statutory and common law consumer rights which remain in full force and effect.

9.0 GENERAL
Our web site and these terms and conditions are subject to the laws of England and any disputes must be brought in English Courts.

You can contact us by post:
1 Cedar Court
Royal Oak Yard
Bermondsey Street
London SE1 3GA.

by email at:
info@design-association.org

by telephone during office hours on:
0207 357 8282

by facsimile on:
0207 407 9878