MAKE YOUR FREE Cleaning Contract
What we'll cover
What is a Cleaning Contract?
When should I use a Cleaning Contract?
Use this Cleaning Contract:
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if you provide cleaning services
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for clients who are private individuals (ie not other businesses)
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if your business is in England, Wales or Scotland
Sample Cleaning Contract
The terms in your document will update based on the information you provide
CLEANING SERVICES CONTRACT
This Agreement is made on the date of last signature below between:
Parties
- of , , (the Client).
Agreement
- The Cleaner shall provide services to the Client relating to the cleaning of residential property. These services include, but are not limited to the:
(the Services).
- The provision of Services will start on (the Effective Date) and will take place:
From to .
- The Services will be provided at , , (the Premises).
- The Client shall provide such access to the Premises as is reasonably required by the Cleaner for the provision of the Services.
Term
Fees
- The Client is responsible for the payment of fees. The Cleaner will charge the Client for the Services at the rate of £ per hour (the Fee).
- The Client will receive an invoice. Any invoices submitted by the Cleaner must be paid within days of the date of invoice. Payment can be made by BACS or a standing order can be set up by the Client.
- If the Client fails to make payment by the date the invoice is due, the Cleaner has the right to charge interest on the outstanding Fee at a rate of 2% above the Bank of England base rate for every day the invoice remains unpaid.
Equipment
- It is the Cleaner’s responsibility to ensure that they have for the provision of the Services. In the event of loss or damage to the Cleaner’s equipment used when providing the Services, the Client is not responsible for the provision, maintenance, replacement or repair of such equipment.
Return of property
- Upon the end of this Agreement, all equipment, materials and property (including documentation, keys and any alarm or building codes) given to the Cleaner by the Client, must be returned to the Client in the state that it was given in.
Ending the agreement
- Either party may terminate this Agreement by giving the other party written notice.
- The Client may end this Agreement with immediate effect if the Cleaner breaches any of their obligations under this Agreement and the Cleaner has not, or cannot put right that breach within a reasonable period (for the avoidance of doubt, 30 calendar days).
- The Cleaner may end this Agreement with immediate effect if:
the Fees are not paid;
the Client breaches any of their obligations under this Agreement and has not, or cannot put right that breach within a reasonable period (for the avoidance of doubt, 30 calendar days); or
a Client displays abusive, threatening or otherwise inappropriate behaviour.
- The provision of Services may be suspended (meaning the Cleaner will temporarily not provide the services) if:
if the Cleaner is suffering from an illness which may easily be passed onto others at the Premises; or
if the Client, or someone in the Client’s household, is suffering from an illness which may easily be passed onto the Cleaner; or
an event beyond the Cleaner’s reasonable control compels them to reduce the available hours.
Liability and Insurance
- If the Cleaner’s performance of its obligations under this Agreement is prevented or delayed by any act or omission of the Client, the Cleaner shall not be liable for any costs, charges or losses sustained or incurred by the Client that arise directly or indirectly from such prevention or delay.
- Nothing in this Agreement limits or excludes either party’s liability for:
- death or personal injury caused by its negligence;
fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation; or
any other liability which cannot be limited or excluded by applicable law.
- Subject to the above clause, neither party shall have any liability to the other party, whether in contract, tort (including negligence), for breach of statutory duty, or otherwise, arising under or in connection with this Agreement for:
loss of profits;
loss of sales or business;
loss of agreements or contracts;
loss of anticipated savings;
loss of or damage to goodwill;
any indirect or consequential loss;
any loss resulting from a claim made by any third party;
any loss or damage to the party’s property or belongings.
- Subject to the two preceding clauses, the total liability of the Cleaner for any other loss of Client in respect of any one event or series of connected events shall not exceed the Cleaner's insurance limit.
- During this Agreement, the Cleaner shall maintain in force with a reputable insurance company, insurance sufficient to indemnify risks for which they may be responsible, including for their respective sub-contractors, agents and employees, in connection with the Services and shall, on either parties’ request, produce both the insurance certificate giving details of cover and the receipt for the current year's premium.
Privacy
- The Cleaner respects the Client’s privacy and complies with the GDPR with regard to the Client’s personal information.
- This Agreement should be read alongside and is in addition to the Cleaner’s Privacy Policy.
- For the purposes of this Agreement:
'Data Protection Laws' means any applicable law relating to the processing of Personal Data, including, but not limited to the Data Protection Act 2018 and the GDPR.
'GDPR' means the UK General Data Protection Regulation.
'Personal Data' and 'Processing' shall have the same meaning as in the GDPR.
- Where the Client supplies Personal Data to the Cleaner for the provision of the Services and the Cleaner Processes that Personal Data in the course of providing the Services to the Client, the Cleaner will comply with the obligations imposed by the Data Protection Laws:
before or at the time of collecting Personal Data, the Cleaner will identify the purposes for which information is being collected;
the Cleaner will only Process Personal Data for the purposes identified;
the Cleaner will respect the Client’s rights in relation to Personal Data; and
the Cleaner will implement technical and organisational measures to ensure the Client’s Personal Data is secure.
- For any enquiries or complaints regarding data privacy, the Client can email the Cleaner at .
General
- This Agreement contains the whole agreement between the parties relating to its subject matter and supersedes all prior discussions, arrangements or agreements that might have taken place in relation to the Agreement. Nothing in this clause limits or excludes any liability for fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation.
- No party may assign, transfer or sub-contract to any third party the benefit and/or burden of the Agreement without the prior written consent (not to be unreasonably withheld) of the other party.
- No variation of the Agreement will be valid or binding unless it is recorded in writing and signed by or on behalf of both parties.
- The Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 does not apply to the Agreement and no third party has any right to enforce or rely on any provision of the Agreement.
- Unless otherwise agreed, no delay, act or omission by a party in exercising any right or remedy will be deemed a waiver of that, or any other, right or remedy.
- A provision which by its intent or terms is meant to survive the termination of the Agreement will do so.
- If any court or competent authority finds that any provision (or part) of the Agreement is invalid, illegal or unenforceable, that provision or part-provision will, to the extent required, be deemed to be deleted, and the validity and enforceability of the other provisions of the Agreement will not be affected.
- This Agreement is not an employment contract and nothing in the Agreement will establish any employment relationship between the Cleaner and the Client.
- Any notice (other than in legal proceedings) to be delivered under the Agreement must be in writing and delivered by pre-paid first class post to or left by hand delivery at the Cleaner's registered address or place of business, or sent by email to the Cleaner's main business email address: . Notices:
- sent by post will be deemed to have been received, where posted from and to addresses in the United Kingdom, on the second Working Day (which, for the purposes of this Agreement, means any day other than a Saturday, Sunday or public holiday in England and Wales) and, where posted from or to addresses outside the United Kingdom, on the tenth Working Day following the date of posting;
- delivered by hand will be deemed to have been received at the time the notice is left at the proper address; and
- sent by email will be deemed to have been received on the next Working Day after sending.
Governing law and jurisdiction
- This Agreement will be governed by and interpreted according to English and Welsh law. All disputes and claims arising under the Agreement (including non-contractual disputes or claims) will be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English and Welsh courts.
The parties have signed this Agreement on the date(s) below:
_________________________________ | _________________________________ |
About Cleaning Contracts
Learn more about making your Cleaning Contract
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How to make a Cleaning Contract
Making your Cleaning Contract online is simple. Just answer a few questions and Rocket Lawyer will build your document for you. When you have all the information about the intended service relationship prepared in advance, creating your document is a quick and easy process.
You’ll need the following information:
The cleaner and the client
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What is the cleaner’s name, address, and legal structure? If it’s a company, what is its company number?
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Who is the cleaner’s signatory, if it’s a company or a partnership? This is the person who will sign the Contract on the company’s or partnership’s behalf.
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What are the client’s name and address?
How the cleaning services will be provided
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If the cleaner is a company or a partnership, what is the name of the individual who will provide cleaning services under this Contract?
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Where will the cleaning services be provided?
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Which services will be provided? For example, is cleaning kitchen fixtures required? Dusting? Making beds and changing bed linen?
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Will the client provide any of the necessary cleaning equipment and materials? If so, which items?
When the cleaning services will be provided
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Will the cleaning services be provided as a one-off event or on a recurring basis? If recurring, will you set an end date?
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If the services are being provided on a one-off basis, how many hours of cleaning services are involved? Over how many days will they take place?
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If the services are being provided on a recurring basis, will they be provided weekly, fortnightly, or monthly? On which days?
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When will the cleaner start providing cleaning services?
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If an end date for service provision is being set, what is it?
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What time of day will the cleaner start? What time will they finish?
Payments
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What is the cleaner’s hourly fee? Is VAT included, excluded, or not applicable?
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How frequently will invoices be issued?
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How many days does the client have to pay invoices?
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Does the cleaner accept cash payments?
The Cleaning Contract and other documents
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How much notice must be given to end the Contract?
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Can the cleaner’s Privacy policy be found on their website?
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What is the cleaner’s main email address?
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If the cleaner or the client is based in Scotland, will the Contract be governed by the laws of England and Wales or the laws of Scotland?
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Common terms in a Cleaning Contract
Cleaning Contracts set out the terms of a services relationship for the provision of cleaning services. To do this, this Cleaning Contract template includes sections headed:
Parties
The Contract starts by clearly identifying the cleaner and the client (ie the parties to this Contract).
Agreement
This section sets out the main terms of the Contract. Specifically:
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that the cleaner will provide services to the client by cleaning a residential property, and which cleaning activities this will include
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who will provide the services, if the cleaner is a company or partnership
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which days and times the services will be provided, and over what timeframe (eg on a one-off or a recurring basis)
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when the service provision will start
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where the services will be provided
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the client’s obligation to provide the cleaner with access to the property as necessary to enable them to clean
Term
This section explains when the Contract will end (eg on a specified date or after either party gives the specified amount of notice).
Fees
The hourly rate that the client must pay in exchange for the services is set out here, alongside how interest on late payments and VAT are handled.
This section also deals with invoices. For example, it sets out when they will be sent and how long after their being received payments should be made.
Equipment
This section sets out who is responsible for supplying which of the equipment required for cleaning. If the client is providing any equipment, it also sets limits on how the cleaner may use this (eg only to clean for this client and whilst taking reasonable care of it) and makes the cleaner responsible for any damage to it beyond reasonable wear and tear.
Return of property
This section contains the cleaner’s obligation to, at the end of the arrangement, return any equipment, keys, and similar that the client gave them.
Ending the agreement
This section sets out how the Contract may be ended. For example, by either party giving a specified amount of notice or by either party (without notice) if the other breaches certain terms of the Contract (eg by not paying fees).
This section also sets out when the Contract may be temporarily suspended. For example, if one party is ill or an event outside of the cleaner’s control forces them to reduce their available hours.
Liability and insurance
This section primarily sets out limits on the cleaner’s liability in certain circumstances. For example, most types of losses that the cleaner may cause the client will be limited to the cleaner’s insurance limit.
The section also sets out instances in which neither party is usually liable to the other (eg for loss of profits) and instances in which liability cannot be limited (eg if one party causes the other death or personal injury by their negligence).
Privacy
The cleaner’s obligations related to upholding the client’s privacy are set out here. These obligations largely relate to how the cleaner will comply with their obligations under data protection law.
General
This section deals with various other points of law that govern how this Contract operates. For example:
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stating that this Contract is the entire agreement, ie the Contract contains all of the agreement between the client and the cleaner (ie there are no additional terms). This helps avoid confusion if, for instance, other terms were in contemplation during negotiations
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restricting how the parties can deal with the Contract (eg preventing them from assigning their rights or obligations under the Contract to others without the other party’s permission)
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requiring that any variations to the Contract must be made in writing and signed
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excluding the Contracts (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 or the Contract (Third Party Rights) (Scotland) Act 2017. This essentially means that third parties (ie not the cleaner or the client) that would otherwise be able to enforce obligations under this Contract under the Act cannot do so
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setting out how any notices or other similar communications that are given under the Contract should be delivered
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clarifying that the Contract does not create an employment relationship between the client and the cleaner
Governing law and jurisdiction
This section sets out which country’s legal system must be used to resolve any disputes (ie the Contract’s ‘jurisdiction’). This is necessary as the legal systems of England and Wales and of Scotland are different.
Signatures
The Contract ends by providing spaces for both parties to sign and date the document in order to make it legally binding.
If you want your Cleaning Contract to include further or more detailed provisions, you can edit your document. However, if you do this, you may want a lawyer to review the document for you (or to make the changes for you) to make sure that your modified Cleaning Contract complies with all relevant laws and meets your specific needs. Use Rocket Lawyer’s Ask a lawyer service for assistance.
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Legal tips for cleaners and clients
Make sure you communicate
Having a formal, written contract in place sets out the key terms of the service relationship between a cleaner and their client. You should make sure, however, that your communication isn’t limited to formal exchanges like this. Where possible, discuss the client’s expectations and the cleaner’s plans for meeting these in a comprehensive way. This could help you to, for example, establish any unique ways of doing things that work for both parties (eg cleaning a bedroom but leaving the desk untouched, or leaving the houseplants for the client to tend to).
Understand when to seek advice from a lawyer
In some circumstances, it’s good practice to Ask a lawyer for advice to ensure that you’re complying with the law and that you are well protected from risks. You should consider asking for advice if:
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the Cleaning Contract doesn't meet your needs or doesn’t cover what you want
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you want to provide cleaning services to a business
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you are based outside of England, Wales and Scotland
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Cleaning Contract FAQs
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What is included in a Cleaning Contract?
This Cleaning Contract template covers:
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the cleaner’s and the client’s details
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a list of the services to be provided (eg ironing, vacuuming, and cleaning of windows)
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the dates of the cleaning service
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how payment should be made and procedures for late payment
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how often Invoices will be issued
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what equipment (if any) will be provided by the client
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privacy provisions
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termination of the contract
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Why do I need a Cleaning Contract?
Creating a formal, written Cleaning Contract offers certainty to both the cleaner and their client and helps to protect both parties by setting out the terms of their agreement for the provision of cleaning services. It ensures that both parties know what’s expected in terms of payment, services provided, and managing (eg ending) the contract. This can help the parties to avoid any costly future legal disputes.
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Can I use an employment contract instead of a Cleaning Contract?
An Employment contract is used to hire employees, whereas a Cleaning Contract is used to hire a cleaner who provides services in their capacity as an independent contractor. The cleaner could be operating as an individual, sole trader, company, or partnership.
Independent contractors work for themselves in their respective trade or field, whereas employees have an employer. Employees have a different set of legal rights to independent contractors, so the distinction is important. When a cleaner is hired to provide cleaning services and not as an employee, an employment contract is not the correct document and a Cleaning Contract should be used instead.
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Who needs to provide the equipment for the cleaning services?
It is up to the parties to decide who will provide the equipment required for the cleaning services. You can agree that the cleaner provides all of the equipment, that the client provides all of the equipment, or that both the client and the cleaner provide some equipment.
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Do invoices need to be issued?
An Invoice provides a record of services provided (or goods sold) and the amount payable in exchange for them. A cleaner should send an invoice to request payment for their cleaning services. Their client should then pay the invoice in accordance with this Cleaning Contract. For more information, read Invoicing.
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Do I need a privacy policy?
Cleaners need to have a Privacy policy in place if a client supplies personal data to them for the provision of the services. Personal data is information that relates to private individuals who can be personally identified from that data, either on its own or in conjunction with other information held (eg names, addresses, or IP addresses).
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How can the Cleaning Contract be ended?
This Cleaning Contract allows you to specify the notice period that must be given by either the cleaner or the client if they wish to terminate (ie end) the Contract. It also allows the parties to suspend services temporarily in the event that either the cleaner or the client is suffering from illness.
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