Terms and Conditions

When you attend for a scan at Beard Mill Clinic you are entering into a contract with Beard Mill Clinic Limited (“BMC”). The following terms and conditions outline the basis of this contract, none of which affect your statutory rights.

1. The services

BMC provides screening health scans of your baby and we will use reasonable care and skill in delivering these services. All of the scans are completed by a registered doctor specialising in fetal ultrasound. The primary purpose of the scan is to check the health and wellbeing of the fetus. The level of detail will depend upon the gestation, but all scans will confirm viability and the size of the baby, check for multiple fetuses and look for any obvious fetal abnormalities. If an area of your baby’s development needs to be brought to your attention, the findings will be discussed with you at the time of the scan. It may be appropriate for you to seek further assessment and care from your NHS care provider. We can support you by sending a copy of your scan and an accompanying letter to your NHS care provider, but it is your responsibility to arrange your further care.

2. Method

Your scan will normally be performed transabdominally but if your pregnancy is very early or the abdominal views are inconclusive, an internal (transvaginal) scan may be more appropriate. This will be discussed with you beforehand to ensure you are comfortable with this. A trained female chaperone can be requested but this will need to be arranged in advance of the scan in line with the Clinic’s chaperone policy. You can decline an internal scan, however, if you do you, must accept that conclusive information may not be given to you at that visit and you may be asked to come back for a repeat scan later on.

3. Safety and Limitations of Ultrasound

Ultrasound has been used routinely in pregnancy since the 1980s and is considered to be safe. There are theoretical risks of both thermal and mechanical damage to tissues from high frequency ultrasound so there are strict safety limits relating to the thermal index (TI) and mechanical index (MI). Although these levels will be monitored throughout your scan, TI and MI levels during an ultrasound scan are well below the level at which a theoretical risk of injury arises. In line with national recommendations, Doppler ultrasound is not used to listen to the baby’s heartbeat until after 10 weeks and the general “as low as reasonably achievable” (ALARA) principle is followed – meaning that scanning time and frequency are kept to a minimum level and that scans are not performed without a direct benefit.

Ultrasound uses pattern recognition to raise the suspicion of an abnormality or to reassure that an abnormality is unlikely. However, screening is not diagnostic and further tests may be required to make a definite diagnosis if an abnormality is suspected.

Not all genetic conditions or fetal abnormalities are detectable by ultrasound – there may not be any visible ultrasound features of the particular condition at the time of the scan, or the limitations of ultrasound mean that they are not obvious. A scan which identifies no abnormalities does not provide a guarantee that your child will not have a disability when it is born.

In relation to gender scans, whilst every effort will be made to identify the sex of your baby correctly, BMC accepts no liability for any incorrect indication of your baby’s gender.

4. BMC scans are not a substitute for NHS care

You understand and accept that BMC does not have access to your full medical history and therefore cannot provide medical advice relating to your pregnancy or your health generally. It is important that you still access all antenatal care made available to you by the NHS. In particular, the optimum time to screen for fetal abnormalities is at 12 and 20 weeks and these should be arranged through the NHS if not being done at these times at BMC. You should be aware that scans performed at different gestations may have reduced accuracy in terms of screening for abnormalities.

5. Photography and recording

You can request to take a short video of the scan and the end of the scan once the key checks have been completed but otherwise BMC does not allow any personal photography to be carried out.

6. Age

You must be an adult (18 years old or over). If you are a child (16 or 17 years old), a responsible adult must accompany you to your appointment. A responsible adult is defined as a person who is over the age of 18 years and is your parent, step-parent, legal guardian, grandparent or another person who is acting in place of your parent and who could reasonably be expected to exercise responsible supervision of you. BMC cannot scan anyone under the age of 16.

7. Prices

BMC’s prices are set out in our price list which is available to see on the website, as well as in the Clinic brochure and displayed in reception. BMC accepts payment by cash, debit or credit cards, but not American Express. There is no requirement for pre-payment as BMC accepts that your circumstances can change but as much notice as possible in the event of a cancellation is appreciated.

8. How your booking is accepted

Bookings can be made by telephone or email. Email confirmation will be sent once the booking has been made and BMC’s Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy will be attached to this email.

9. Information required from you

In addition to your basic demographic information, details about your pregnancy history, dates to help date the pregnancy, your maternity notes and any previous scan reports (if available) are required to allow BMC to provide a quality service. If you do not provide this information or provide incorrect or incomplete information, it may compromise the accuracy of the results from your scan at BMC. BMC will not be responsible for any inaccuracies if you do not provide the required information and reserves the right to suspend or cancel the contract with you if you choose not to provide this information.

10. Dissatisfaction with the service

Under the terms of the Consumer Rights Act 2015, you can ask BMC to repeat the scan if you feel it has not been carried out with reasonable care and skill. Details of BMC’s Complaint Policy are available on the website and displayed in Clinic. However, please understand that the quality of scan images, and most particularly in regard to 3D and 4D imaging is very dependent on both the baby’s position and physical characteristics of the mother so that good imaging cannot be guaranteed.

11. Cancellation or delay by BMC

If BMC has to cancel or delay your booking due to unforeseen circumstances, such as a technical issue, we will inform you by telephone and / or by email, an alternative booking will be offered and steps will be taken to minimise the effect of the delay but BMC would not be liable for any consequences caused by the delay.

12. What you will receive following the scan

You will receive a scan report, detailing the scan findings and measurements, and a summary of the information provided during the consultation. Several scan images provided on thermal paper will also be provided where appropriate. Further images and a USB stick containing both still images and short video clips will also be provided to those who have booked a 3D / 4D scan assuming that it is possible to obtain good images.

13. Ownership of documents

BMC retains copyright of any images that are taken during the scan. Ownership of the report shall belong to you once BMC has received payment in full for the service provided.

14. Our liability

BMC will not be responsible or liable for any injury, loss or damage to personal belongings whilst you are on our premises, including the Clinic grounds and carpark. BMC is only liable for its failure to comply with these terms and conditions. It is not responsible for any loss or damage that is not foreseeable or that is not caused by BMC breaking the contract. Loss or damage is foreseeable if it is obvious that it will happen. BMC is not liable for any indirect or consequential losses. Nothing in these terms and conditions limits any liability which cannot legally be limited, including liability for death or personal injury caused by negligence. Subject to this paragraph 14, BMC’s total liability to you shall not exceed the price paid, or the price that shall be payable, by you for the service BMC has performed, or the service that BMC has been asked to perform under these terms and conditions. For the purposes of this contract, references to liability include every kind of liability arising under or in connection with the contract including liability in contract, tort (including negligence), misrepresentation, restitution or otherwise.

15. Use of your data and your data rights

BMC will use the personal information you provide for the purposes of providing its services, processing payment, meeting its regulatory obligations and for the purpose of identifying you within the Clinic but this will not be disclosed to any external sources without your consent, unless required by law. In certain situations, it may be beneficial to your care to share the scan findings with your GP and other health care professionals, with your consent. The e-mail address provided by you will be used for e-mail correspondence with BMC, mainly to confirm appointments but it may include confidential information, scan reports or request follow-up information. You should take steps to ensure that your email account is not accessible to anyone without your permission. Further details about our handling of your data and your rights can be found in our privacy policy.

Please ask for further details about BMC’s Privacy policy, Chaperone Policy and Complaints procedure if required.