PropPack Terms and Conditions of Use

The use of our PropPack software product is subject to the Terms detailed below.

If you use any part of the PropPack software or associated support software, then you have agreed to comply with and be bound by these Terms from the time of first such use.

By the use of PropPack you acknowledge that you have read and understood these Terms.

Desser Associates Ltd reserves the right to change these Terms at any time without prior notice by updating this page and you agree to be bound by all such changes.

You should visit this page regularly to check the current Terms applicable to all our Customers.

1. Definitions

1. 'Customer' shall mean the entity that has purchased the Licence to use the Program Product, including their authorised servants and agents.
2. 'DA' shall mean, unless the context otherwise requires, Desser Associates Ltd or DA’s servants and agents.
   DA own the Intellectual Property Rights to the Program Product.
3. 'Program Product' shall mean the licensed data processing system generally known as Prop:Pack or PropPack and includes the programs, procedures, support tools and all documentation provided as part of the Program Product.
4. 'Support' shall mean assistance to customers via the Internet and telephone with respect to use of the Program Product and to report and resolve perceived issues.
   Support cases are tracked and managed through access to DA's Customer Support Site.
   Support will be available during business hours, Monday through Friday, excluding local and Jewish holidays.
   Also excluded are Friday afternoons during the winter months, from 1 pm onwards.
5. 'Intellectual Property Rights' shall mean any registered or unregistered design rights, patents, copyright, trademarks, know-how and any other intellectual or industrial property rights, in the UK or anywhere else.
6. 'Terms' shall mean the Terms and Conditions of Use herein described.
7. With reference to Fees, these are to be interpreted as detailed in the Price List section.

2. Term of the Agreement

This Agreement is effective from the date it is accepted by DA or the first use of the Program Product by the Customer, whichever is earlier.

It shall remain in effect for as long as the Customer is licenses to use the Program Product.

3. Customer’s Right of Use

1. A License is granted to the Customer to use the Program Product either through purchase or rental.
2. Purchase allows usage for a period of ninety-nine (99) years unless otherwise terminated by the parties under the provisions of this Agreement.
3. A Rental license allows usage only for as long as the rental fee is paid in advance.
4. The Program Product is made up of the core product and optional add-on modules. The core product is available either for purchase or rental. The add-on modules are only available for rental.
5. The rental license will be suspended if the rental fee is not paid in full by the due date. Where a license is suspended, the licensed product or add-in module will cease to function.
6. The Licence granted under this Agreement permits the Customer to use the Program Product only at a single location as agreed in advance.
7. The Customer may transfer the Program Product to another location upon discontinuance of use at the current location by giving DA prior written notice and advising DA of the new location.
8. A user logged in remotely to a computer at the agreed location is deemed to be using the Program Product at the agreed location.
9. The Program Product may only be used to record details up to the maximum number of Units for which a Licence has been purchased.
10. DA reserves the right to include in the Program Product a metering mechanism which will not permit the use of the Program Product for more than the licensed number of Units. The Program Product will issue appropriate warnings prior to barring use of the Program Product.
11. Where the designated computer is or becomes part of a local-area-network (LAN) of more than one computer, the use of the Program Product is limited to only one user at a time, unless a Network-User Licence has been granted for each additional concurrent user.
12. On payment of a Network-User Licence Fee for each additional user, additional concurrent LAN users will be licensed to use the Program Product.
13. DA reserves the right to include in the Program Product a metering mechanism that will not permit the concurrent use of the Program Product by more than the licensed number of users.
14. In the event that the computer at the designated location becomes inoperative, the Customer may under the terms of this Agreement temporarily transfer the Program Product to another location or computer to allow its continued use.

4. Use of the Program Product

1. The Customer represents and warrants that it is purchasing the Program Product for its internal use and it will not directly or indirectly permit any other person or entity to use the Program Product or any part thereof.
2. The Customer represents and warrants that it is purchasing the Program Product solely for use in the course of its own business of property management on its own behalf or as a Managing Agent for others.
3. User of the Program Product as a data-processing Service Bureau is prohibited.

5. Installation and Training

1. Upon acceptance of this Agreement DA agrees to:-
• Provide documentation on how to download and install the Program Product.
• Help with the installation of the Program Product if necessary.
• Provide a total of one day’s training (7 hours) in the use of the Program Product free of charge.
2. The time taken to provide installation assistance may be deducted from the free training time.
3. Any additional assistance requested by the Customer may be billed at the then current daily rate.
4. Travel costs and out-of-pocket expenses to provide on-site support, where available, will be billed at cost to the Customer.

6. Proprietary Information

The Customer acknowledges that the ideas and the expressions thereof contained in the Program Product are confidential information proprietary to DA and that all rights in the Program Product in all its forms are retained by DA. The Customer will not for the duration of this Agreement or at any time thereafter without the written permission of DA:-
• Copy, duplicate or permit anyone else to copy, duplicate or reproduce the Program Product except as a security backup.
• Access or attempt to access the source code of the Program Product.
• Modify or attempt to modify the Program Product in any way.

7. Assignment of Agreement

This Agreement may not be assigned and the Customer shall not sell, sub-licence, charge, assign, transfer, or part with possession of the Program Product or any materials or copies relating thereto or copies or adaptations thereof.

8. Limited Warranty

1. DA warrants for a period of twelve (12) months that the Program Product will perform substantially according to any documentation accompanying the Program Product. The Warranty period starts from when the Program Product is installed on the Customer’s computer.
2. After the expiry of the Warranty period, DA disclaims all responsibility for the Program Product unless the Customer is covered by Extended Maintenance as detailed in section Maintenance and Support below.
3. All Reports, Demands, Documents and Notices produced by the Program Product are provided "as is" without warranty of any kind, expressed or implied. It is the responsibility of the user to ensure that all such texts are legal and fit for the purpose for which they are being used.

9. Disclaimer of Liability

1. After the expiry of the Warranty period, DA disclaims all responsibility for the Program Product unless the Customer is covered by Extended Maintenance as detailed in section Maintenance and Support below.
2. To the maximum extent permitted by law, DA excludes all liability to the Client in contract, tort (including negligence), or otherwise, for any loss or damage resulting directly or indirectly from any use of, or reliance upon, the Program Product.
3. The Customer’s exclusive remedy shall be for DA to repair or replace the Program Product in so far as it does not perform as per the Limited Warranty given above.
4. The total liability of DA (whether in contract or tort or otherwise) hereunder shall not exceed the amount paid by the Customer hereunder and in no event shall DA be liable for loss of profits or any other consequential loss or damage.

10. Maintenance and Support

1. For an initial period of twelve (12) months from the date of installation of the Program Product, DA will at no additional charge to the Customer other than travelling and other out of pocket expenses:-
• Provide solutions relating to any known problem with the current functioning of the Program Product as such solutions become known to DA
• Supply corrections for problems that DA diagnose as defects in the currently supported version of the Program Product.
• Provide support in the form of counsel or advice on the use of the Program Product. This advice will be delivered primarily via the Ticketing service on our web site, by email, or by telephone for urgent queries.
• Provide the Customer with new releases of the Program Product as and when DA elects to make these available.
• Enhance the Program Product, at the discretion of DA, in response to reasonable requests from the Customer.
2. Corrections and updates of the Program Product will be provided by one or all of the following methods:-
• Remote access by a technician into the Customer’s computer.
• Provision of an updated copy of the Program Product. It is the responsibility of the Customer to download and install such an update.
3. DA reserve the right to make a charge at their Standard Hourly Rate for the resolution of problems which do not originate from the Program Product.
   Examples of such events include, but are not limited to, the following:-
• Failure of the Customer’s hardware
• Failure of Microsoft Windows, Microsoft Access or any other system software on the Customer’s PC
• Accidental or intentional deletion of one or more components of the Program Product.
• Loss or damage of the PropPack database.
4. Continuation of the maintenance service described above beyond the initial period is defined as 'Extended Maintenance'.

   For as long as DA is offering maintenance services for the Program Product, Extended Maintenance is automatically provided and renewed in periods of twelve (12) months at the standard DA annual maintenance fee then in effect.

   Such amount shall be payable to DA at the beginning of each such Extended Maintenance year.

   The Customer may elect to discontinue the Extended Maintenance service as detailed in section 'Termination' below.

   An invoice for the forthcoming year will be sent 7 days before the start of the next Extended Maintenance year and payment must be received on or before the due date - which is the first day of the Extended Maintenance year. The 7 day period can be extended on request.

   As a concession we would consider a temporary reduction in the license entitlement and thereby reduce the annual fee. Such requests must be received before payment is due for the next year.

5. Maintenance will generally only be provided for the latest release of the Program Product.
6. The Program Product is based on the Microsoft Windows operating system and Microsoft Access database product.

   The Program Product will be enhanced as necessary so as to remain compatible with the latest generally available version of Microsoft Windows and Access.

   The Program Product may remain compatible with an earlier version of Windows or Access but no assurance is given that this compatibility will be maintained.

   The Customer is required to maintain his PC or Server at his own cost so that it remains compatible with the latest release of the Program Product.

7. Maintenance will generally only be provided for the latest release of the Program Product.

11. Unpaid Invoices

1. Where any DA invoice remains unpaid at the Due Date, DA reserves the right to withhold support services until all outstanding amounts are received into our bank and processed into our accounting system (typically one working day).
2. Where an invoice remains unpaid for more than 7 days from the date it is due, support will only be reinstated on the third working day after payment is processed.
3. Where an invoice remains unpaid for more than 30 days from the date it is due, support will only be reinstated on the seventh working day after payment is processed.
4. During this waiting period, emergency support may be provided at the discretion of DA. It will be charged at our Emergency Hourly Rate, which is available on request.
5. Where the outstanding invoice relates to an upgrade to the PropPack license, DA reserve the right to give 24 hour notice and then downgrade the license to what it was prior to the upgrade.
6. Where the Program Product is rented rather than purchased, DA reserve the right to suspend the license for the Program Product after giving 24 hour notice.

12. Customer Support Site

1. The Customer Support Site (CSS) will be provided by DA to assist Customers with the correct use of the Program Product and to report any questions or issues they may have.

2. The CSS consists of two parts: FAQ and Ticketing:

   1. The FAQ section contains articles providing answers to frequently asked questions as well as describing and detailing the functionality of the Program Product.

      DA will frequently add FAQ articles in response to support queries or issues submitted by Customers.

   2. The Ticketing section allows for the submission by the Customer of queries or issues that need to addressed.

      Customers must provide all relevant information, including, but not limited to: Program Product version number; complete description of the issue; what has already been tried.

   3. Customers are expected to have searched the FAQ section for a solution to their issue before submitting a ticket.

13. Termination

1. The Customer may terminate this Agreement by giving one months written notice to DA prior to the start of the next Extended Maintenance year.
2. Such notice may only be given if the Customer shall have paid to DA all such fees as are due to DA per this agreement.
3. DA may terminate this Agreement by giving written notice to the Customer when the Customer continues in any breach of the terms of this Agreement for fourteen (14) days after being warned by DA in writing of such a breach. Where such a breach is not capable of being remedied, DA may terminate this Agreement by written notice to the Customer at any time.
4. Where the Agreement is terminated by either party in the middle of an Extended Maintenance year, no refund will be due to the Customer on the unexpired portion of that period.

14. Obligations upon Termination

1. Upon termination of this Agreement by the customer, the Customer will be entitled to continued use of the then installed program version of the purchased Program Product.

   The Customer will no longer be eligible for Extended Maintenance or support of any kind from DA.

   Where the Program Product is rented, it may no longer be used by The Client after the termination date.

   Rented add-in modules may no longer be used by The Client after the termination date.
   
   The Customer may not install or use any new version of the Program Product or add-in modules that have been released by DA after the date of termination of the Agreement.

2. Upon termination as aforesaid neither party shall have any claim against the other and this Agreement shall be terminated save for the purposes of putting the terms of this Agreement into effect.

15. Reinstatement of Extended Maintenance

1. The Customer may request Reinstatement of Extended Maintenance after it having been previously terminated.
2. Reinstatement may be granted at the discretion of Desser Associates Ltd subject to the conditions below:
1. The Customer must pay Desser Associates Ltd a fee for all the years for which Extended Maintenance had not been in effect.
2. The fee will be based on the number of users and units being managed at the time of renewal and at 80% of the published rates in effect at the renewal date for each missing year, unless the period of cancellation is less than or equal to a year, in which case the full fee is payable.

16. Terms of Payment

1. All Fees must be paid in full by the due date, which is seven days from date of invoice unless agreed otherwise in advance.
2. All payments must be made directly into our designated bank account as shown on the invoice. Payment by cheque is not acceptable.

17. Sole Agreement

This Agreement together with our Privacy Policy here constitutes the entire Agreement between the parties relating hereto and shall supersede all prior Agreements and understandings between the parties in respect of the Program Product to be provided hereunder during the Term of this Agreement.

This Agreement may not be changed by or on behalf of either party except in writing signed by both parties.

18. Applicable Law

1. This Agreement shall be governed by the Law of England.

Desser Associates Ltd Privacy Policy

The target of this document are our Clients ('you', 'your').

Desser Associates Ltd (DA, 'we', 'us', 'our') is committed to protecting and respecting the privacy of our Clients.

For the purposes of data protection legislation, we are the Data Controller and we will process your personal data in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation (EU) and any national laws which relate to the processing of personal data.

DA provides you with one or more of our Program Products, and we then continue to provide you with ongoing Support.

Please read the details below to understand our practices regarding your personal data and how we will deal with it.

1. Web Site Visitors

1. We do not collect any personal data on our web site
2. When you link to our Support Centre you will log in with the user ID or email address that you have previously provided for this purpose.
3. Any messages you send to us will be saved for the sole purpose of us providing you with support for our Program Product.
4. Such messages, together with our responses, are retained for the sole purpose of providing continuity of Support.
5. Old messages will be deleted periodically when they are deemed to be no longer relevant.

2. Cookies

1. The Support Centre site uses a cookie to record your user ID or email address so you do not have to enter it each time.
2. We do not use any other cookies that may contain personal information.

3. Personal and Financial Details

1. We hold in our accounting package your company or personal name, address, phone and email details for the purpose of communicating with you in the course of our mutual business relationship, and to comply with our contractual obligations.
2. We keep a record of all the financial transactions that have taken place between you and DA.
3. We will retain your information as long as you remain our Client and for a period of 6 years thereafter.

4. Your Business Data

1. We do not normally have access to your business data.
2. At your sole option, you may grant us remote access to such data on your own computer system, for the purpose of providing you with Support. Such data will not be copied outside of your system.
3. At your sole option, you may also upload your data to our servers so that we can investigate problems or issues you may be having.
4. Such data is encrypted while it is uploaded. It will be decrypted within our computer system and used only for investigative purposes as necessary for us to provide you with Support.
5. It will be held securely and not be available to any parties outside of DA.
6. After such support activity is concluded, you have the choice to instruct us to destroy the uploaded data.
7. If no such instruction is given, we will retain it but only for the purpose of providing you with further Support.

5. Court Orders

DA will not disclose your personal information to a third party without your explicit consent. However, we may be required to disclose your personal information without consent in order to comply with any court order or other legal request.

6. Security of your Information

1. We hold all your personal data on our own in-house servers.
2. We follow industry standard methods for securing such data.

(License fees last updated 11 March 2024. Other amendments last done 11 August 2024)

Prices effective from 1st April 2024
(Previous price list published 1 April 2019)

This price list supersedes all previously published prices and is subject to change. This document is for guidance only and does not form part of any Contract.

Prop:Pack is licensed as a 'Base' product plus several optional Add-on modules.

All licenses are granted on an annual rental basis. The rental fee includes Support.

All fees are subject to VAT.

1. Base License

The Base License provides the Prop:Pack package for a single user. This does not include the Nominal Ledger and the other optional Add-on Modules.

Prices are based on the the number of Units being managed.

A Unit is defined as a single entity that is to be let or leased individually. A flat with several tenants, let on a singe tenancy agreement, is considered one Unit. Individual rooms, let on separate tenancy agreements, are each counted as a Unit.

Rental Inclusive of Support

The prices shown are Annual Rental fees - inclusive of Support - for a single user of Prop:Pack

Rental Fees are set each year on 1st April based primarily on percentage increase of RPI between February of the prior year and January of the current year.

Additional Users

The above prices are for a single user of the base product.

Prop:Pack is a multi-user system and additional users can be licensed to use Prop:Pack.

The licensing fee for each additional users is 10% of the base rental fee.

Optional Add-ons

The prices shown are Annual Rental fees - inclusive of Support.

• Open Banking: £10/week payable annually (£520) (No additional Users fee applicable)
  
  

  Allows banking transactions to be imported directly from the bank into Prop:Pack several times a day allowing the Prop:Pack bank and ledger details to be kept up to date virtually in real-time.

  Main benefits:
  • Download and import of banking details without having to log into the bank.
  • Any member of staff can do it.
  • Same-day transactions can be imported
  • It can be done several times a day.
  • Automated importing based on pre-set schedule
  
  
• Managing Agent Split: £10/week payable annually (£520) (No additional Users fee is applicable)
  
  

  Allows a Managing Agent to keep his accounts in a separate database that is not accessible by regular Prop:Pack users.

  This option includes Income [Invoice Ledger], Expenditure [Expense Ledger] and Banking. It does not include the use of the rental system [Rent Ledger].

  While these details are stored separately, this secondary Prop:Pack system is tightly integrated with the regular Prop:Pack so that there is no duplication of data. Details that do not have to be kept private are shared by both systems.

  
  
• Google Contacts: £5/week payable annually (£260) (No additional Users fee applicable).
  
  

  Consists of a dedicated Google Contacts account that is maintained up-to-date by Prop:Pack with Contact and Tenant details. For use in external systems like a switchboard to show caller IDs, or linked into a smartphone.

  
  
• Mail Server: £2.31/week payable annually (£120) (No additional Users fee applicable).
  
  

  A Mail Server service is provided by Desser Associates Ltd to facilitate trouble-free sending of emails, without reliance on problematic and constrained third-party SMTP servers.

2. Nominal Ledger Module License

The Prop:Pack Property Management System Base license includes a financial reporting module.

The base Prop:Pack product produces management reports as well as an Accountant's Pack for year-end accounting. However, it does not include the Nominal Ledger module.

This add-on module requires a separate license. The fee is independent of the number of Units managed.

Annual Rental Option inclusive of Support

• RN1: Nominal Ledger Module Rental License: £1,050 per annum.
  No additional Network Users fee applicable

3. Additional Network User License

Networked users, beyond the initial single user that comes with a base license, require a Network User License for each additional user.

• N2: Network Users: Per User: 10% of total License Fees.

Look at your current license entitlements (Support button at the bottom of the Prop:Pack Main Menu) from which you can calculate the total license fees and then take 10% of that for each extra user.

This surcharge is applicable to all license fees except where explicitly excluded.

4a. License Upgrades - Rental

License upgrades can be done at any time. The difference between the old and the new rental fee will be charged pro-rata from the date of upgrade until the next renewal date.

4b. License Upgrades - Puchase

Existing clients who have purchased a license should contact us for a quote.

5. Prop:Pack Support and Maintenance

Rental Licenses

• Support is included in the rental fee.

Purchased Licenses

For clients who have purchased their Prop:Pack license, there is an annual support fee:

• Annually, 50% of the annual Rental license fee applicable at the time.

6. Initial Training

• Free: Total seven hours remote personal training. Total includes time spent on Prop:Pack installation, where requested.
• Additional Hourly Rate: £100 per hour

7. Consultancy and Support Fees

All services provided to Clients by Desser Associates Ltd (DA), not covered by the Support service, will be charged at this rate.

DA can provide advice and assistance related to Prop:Pack and other business matters. This service is discretionary.

DA on request by the Client, will investigate apparent errors and discrepancies.

Where such issues turn out to be due to operational errors on the part of the Client, the Consultancy Fee will be charged for the time taken to investigate the issue. If the Client is then unable or unwilling to fix the problem, DA can be requested to do so. DA will then charge for the time involved.

The standard rate applies during working hours. Outside normal working hours, the Emergency Hourly Rate will apply.

• Standard Hourly Rate: £120 per hour, charged in 15 minute increments.
• Emergency Hourly Rate: £250 per hour, charged in 15 minute increments.

8. Backup Service

Desser Associates Ltd offers an optional off-site monitored backup service. This is unique in that the results of the backup are manually checked each day, and investigated in the event that the previous night's backup is missing.