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Family History Research UK - what it costs
My goal is to provide you with what you are looking for, whether this is a comprehensive package of as much as I can find out, or a smaller task.
If you want to trace back a line of your family tree (your father's family, for example) then I will assess the information you already have and give you an estimated price for this.
If you prefer me to work for a certain number of hours and see what I come up with, this is also possible.
Genealogy is not an exact science and I cannot guarantee results. Records of interest to family historians in the UK are extensive but are not complete - for every type of record there are areas or dates missing for a variety of reasons. It is also important to realise that not everything is available online, even though some commercial genealogy sites may try to convince you otherwise!
My costs for family history research are calculated on an hourly basis, with additional charges for some special items if you require them (see below).
Hourly fees are inclusive of everything else, including photography and travel to record offices, archives and libraries within the M25. The map below shows the area covered by this (the M25 is the motorway in blue that encircles London):
services
The price includes the following:
- Search of all available online indexes to provide initial information, including images of original documents where these are available
- Research in London record offices and archives and others within the M25, including photographs or photocopies of original documents where this is permitted.
- Provision
of the results of my research - family tree,
written notes, tables etc. - in electronic format.
For an additional fee:
- Provision of birth, marriage and death certificates (it may be necessary to obtain these to verify information or to continue to the next stage of the research)
- Research in records offices and archives outside the M25, in cases where the information is not available within the London area or online
- Results of my research on paper in
addition to
electronic format - nominal fee plus postage costs to send this to you.
Prices
Basic hourly rate: £30 per hour (same for both online research and record office visits). This includes the results of your research job in electronic format as agreed with you.
If you prefer to pay in US dollars, the equivalent rate is $45 per hour.
Additional costs:
- printing of research results - £5 per 50 pages plus postage costs
- travel costs to record offices outside London: 45p per mile, plus parking fees at cost
- birth, marriage and death certificates at the standard GRO rate (currently £11.00 per certificate)
terms of business
I will provide you with an estimate of costs for your
approval before starting any work on your behalf. Once I have your go-ahead, I
will give you a timeline for completing the work. I will also agree with you
any additional items, such as printing, provision of certificates or travel to
record offices outside my usual area of work. None of these additional costs
will be incurred without your approval.
My report may include recommendations for further research.
You are under no obligation to ask me to carry this out and I will not go
beyond what you ask me to do without your authorisation.
I will ask you to pay a 50% deposit in advance, with the
remainder due on completion. I will provide you with a brief summary of the
results of my research and send you an invoice for the outstanding payment.
After receiving payment, I will send you the full results of my research as
previously agreed. All invoices must be paid within 14 days.
My preferred method of payment is by PayPal - this allows
you to pay securely by credit or debit card, and all payments in currencies
other than sterling must be made this way. I also accept sterling cheques. I am
not VAT-registered and no VAT will be applied to any invoices.
Family history research is not an exact science; it may
not be possible to provide all the information you want, if the records of it
are not available. I cannot make any guarantees in advance of the amount of
information I will be able to provide to you. I accept no liability for lack of
available information, and research costs must still be paid even if the
results do not provide the information you were looking for. I undertake to
make all reasonable efforts to find the information you have asked for.
I will only charge you for the time incurred - if you
agree a time limit up front and I do not reach this limit before deciding that
no further research is going to be possible for whatever reason, I will charge
you only for the time I actually spend on your research. You will not pay for
anything that I am unable to do.
Any information you provide to me about yourself or your
family members will be kept confidential and not revealed to anyone else
without your permission. The copyright of all reports provided to clients,
including images, remains with Family History Research UK and these may not be
republished in any form (including online) without my permission.
I am registered with the UK Information Commissioner’s
Office (ICO) as a data controller, registration number Z3256706, allowing me to
process personal information enabling me to provide family, local and
historical research services. This personal information may include:
·
Personal details
·
Family details
·
Lifestyle and social circumstances
·
Biographical information in connection with family, local
and historical research services.
I process personal information about:
·
customers and clients
·
family, relatives, guardians and associates of the person
whose personal information I am processing
·
enquirers
I sometimes need to share the personal information I
process with the individual themselves and also with other organisations. Where
this is necessary I am required to comply with all aspects of the UK Data
Protection (Charges and Information) Regulations 2018. These regulations replaced the UK Data Protection Act
(1998) and include the requirements of the General Data Protection Regulation
(GDPR), which is a European-wide law that came into effect on 25 May 2018. You
can find out more information about your individual rights under the GDPR here:
Where necessary or required I share information with:
·
relatives, guardians or other people associated with the
person whose personal information I am processing
·
enquirers
·
survey and research organisations
Your information will never be shared with third parties
for marketing purposes and will only be used for the purposes you specify when
you share it with me – in other words, to conduct the research you have asked
me to do. It will not be used for any other purpose. I will retain your
personal contact information after the research is complete and I may use it in
order to contact you in future. If you do not want me to do this, it is your
responsibility to inform me so that I can securely delete your contact
information from my records. You may also ask me at any time to explain what
personal information I hold about you and for what purpose I may use it.
It may sometimes be necessary to transfer personal
information outside the UK. When this is needed information may be transferred
to countries or territories around the world. Any transfers made will be in full compliance with all aspects of the Data Protection
Act.
By accepting my research proposal and instructing me
to start work, you indicate your acceptance of these terms.
Prices may vary from time to time - for up-to-date information please refer to this website.
Rev. Oct 2021