Terms & Conditions
Posted: 21 May 2022
Effective: 21 May 2022Texas Interpreters Fellowship and the interpreters we contract with, uphold high standards of professionalism and ethical conduct. We are committed to providing the best service and meeting our client's needs.
The Services are provided by Texas Interpreters Fellowship, located at 5118 Woodcraft, San Antonio, Texas 78218, United States.
Acceptance of these Terms
You must be of legal age to enter into a binding agreement in order to accept these Terms. If you do not agree to the Terms, you may not use our services or access our websites. By using our Services, you agreeing to be bound by these terms, including those additional terms, conditions, and policies referenced herein and/or available by hyperlink. Please read them carefully.
If these terms are considered an offer, acceptance is expressly limited to these Terms.
Any new features or tools which are added to our websites shall also be subject to these terms. You can review the most current version of these Terms at any time on our website. We reserve the right to update, change, or replace any part of these Terms by posting updates and/or changes to our website. It is your responsibility to check this page periodically for changes. Your continued use of our Services following the posting of any changes constitutes acceptance of those changes.
Privacy policy
When you engage in our services, we collect the information you give us such as your name, address, phone, email address, and any information about the organization that you represent.When you browse our website, we also automatically receive your computer's internet protocol (IP) address, browser and operating system information.
Email marketing (if applicable): With your permission, we may send you emails about our services. We will provide options to opt out of our email marketing which can be found at the bottom of the emails. If such information is not found, you can contact us to request to be opted out at any time.
We do not sell, share, or rent your information to any third party or use your email address for any unsolicited communication. Any email, or SMS, sent by us will only be in connection with the provisions of agreed services.
When using our services you consent to our collecting and using your information to provide the services requested.
Disclosure
We only disclose your information as needed to provide our services, collect on outstanding invoices, or as required by law.Confidentiality and Security
Maintaining confidentiality and keeping confidential information secure is paramount, especially in today’s environment. In order to comply with local, State, Federal, and contractual requirements TIF has established policies that cover keeping confidential information secure and safe. The following documents are our policies covering this. Interpreters, TIF staff, contractors, vendors, and any other persons contracted to assist TIF are required to comply with these polices, and any client specific requirements, as part of these terms.
Policy for Personally Owned Electronic Computing Device and Storage Media Standard Click here to view
Policy for Password Standard Click here to view
Policy for Electronic Media Sanitation Process Click here to view
Third Party Services
We use third party services to provide and coordinate services for our clients. Your data is stored through their data storage, databases and their general application(s). They store your data on a secure server behind a firewall. We continually evaluate their services and work with our data providers to ensure that all of your data is safe, secure, and meets all required confidentiality and security requirements.Our Interpreters
Our interpreters are some of the best in our area. Our interpreters hold a wide range of training, skills and abilities, we are confident in our interpreters and their ability to serve all of our client's needs.All interpreters must adhere to a Code of Professional Conduct. In Texas, local, State, and Federal laws are in place to ensure that they do adhere to the Code of Professional Conduct. To view the code visit Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID) at “http://www.rid.org/ethics/code-of-professional-conduct/”.
If you would like to let us know how are interpreters are doing or report any issues, please visit our website at “https://www.tifsa.com/interpreter-feedback.html” or email us at tifsa@tifsa.com to let us know.
Scheduling
All requests for interpreting services should be scheduled as soon as possible.Each assignment will be scheduled with a minimum of 1 hour. Appointment time after that hour, or after the time scheduled, will be calculated in 15-min intervals.
If an appointment is longer than 1.5 hours it may become necessary to have two, or more, interpreters that will alternate. You will be invoiced for each interpreters.
When you contact us for an appointment we will need the location address and a general idea of the interpreting situation. Example: men prefer male interpreters at physical examinations. If a particular interpreter is requested we will do everything we can to arrange for that person, if the person is listed with us. There are situations where it is mandatory to have and interpreter who is legally qualified or where certain interpreters are needed because of skill level, and/or language, and/or technology needed, we will need to know that. Your needs are our first priority; we will do everything possible to meet them. Due to the shortage of interpreters please book appointments as soon as possible.
*See the below section, "Conferences", for exceptions to this section.
Conferences
If you schedule a conference with us we offer a 5% discount if scheduled more than 10 business days before the start of the conference.Once the conference is scheduled, if it, or any part, is canceled within 5 business days of the conference start date, or the deaf participant(s) is a no show, you will be invoiced for the scheduled time.
Cancellations Or No-Show
Any appointment that is canceled with 24-hours, or less, notice* or is a no show will be invoiced for the scheduled time.*Please refer to "Conferences" section for exceptions to this section.
Pricing For Services
We offer community, government, military, conferences, concerts, and education pricing for our services. Discounts are also available. For specific rates please contact us to receive our pricing or to request a quote for services.Travel
Any appointment that is outside our service area that requires more than 20 minutes of driving one way may be charged a travel fee. We calculate travel the same way that the State of Texas requires us to calculate the travel time for their assignments.. Travel is charged based on the shortest route to the assignment, as determined by either MapQuest* or Google Maps. We will subtract 20 minutes each way from the travel time (the 20 minutes each way are part of the administration fee). Travel time is billed in 15 minute intervals. We charge for travel at the same rate as the start of the appointment.Parking
Parking fees are normally covered as part of the 1st-hour fee. We may ask for reimbursement for the parking fee if the fee is considered excessive, after 5 pm or is covering parking fees for more than 2 hours.Invoicing
We will send an invoice upon completion of the appointment by email (preferred method), fax or mail.If you require different invoicing terms or wish to have us invoice you weekly or semi-monthly please contact our office prior to scheduling any appointments for approval. With the exception of Government contracts we do not offer monthly billing.
If you request weekly or semi-monthly invoicing we try to make sure to invoice you for all appointments in the period covered. There may be situations that not all assignments will be invoiced in the period. Regardless of when an appointment is invoiced you are still responsible to pay for the service.
If you have any issues with an invoice received or our services please contact our office immediately so that we can resolve the issue. We reserve all rights regarding the modification of an invoice. Once we receive a payment for the invoice, or the invoice has reached the due date on this invoice, it will be considered accurate and complete.
Payments
Cash, Check, all Major Credit Cards, eChecks, Bank Transfer, and PayPal are all acceptable forms of payment. Our terms of payment are payment due upon receipt. Payment constitutes that we have met your needs, expectations and resolved any issues.Any payment that does not clear, are canceled, or reversed will be subject to a $35 charge charge back fee. We may also charge you for any fees or fines that arise from the payment not clearing.
If we owe you a credit, it will be applied to any open invoices or applied to your next invoice for service. Reimbursement of any credits will only be made if the credit is from an over-payment and we received written request. All other credits have no cash value unless it is applied to pay for our services. Reimbursements will be made by check and mailed to you, please allow 2-4 weeks to receive the reimbursement.
Collections
If payment is not received by the "Due Date" of the invoice, there will be a 6% APR monthly late fee charged. To avoid the late fee contact us before the due date to make payment arrangements.If an invoice is 90 days, or more, past due we will begin our collection process. In addition to the 6% APR monthly late fee we will charge an additional $15 monthly collection fee and any and all fees and additional cost, including any legal fees, that arise from the collection process. These fees will not be waived and it is your responsibility to pay them.
Governing Law; Disputes
By using our Services, you agree that the Federal Arbitration Act, applicable federal law, and the law of the State of Texas, without regard to its principles on conflicts of laws, will govern these Terms and Conditions, your use of our Websites and Services, and any dispute of any sort that might arise between you and Texas Interpreters Fellowship.If a dispute arises between you and Texas Interpreters Fellowship, our goal is to provide you a neutral and cost effective means of resolving the dispute quickly. To that end, you agree to first contact Texas Interpreters Fellowship by phone, mail, or email via the contact information below to describe the problem and seek a resolution. If that does not resolve the issue, then you and Texas Interpreters Fellowship agree that any dispute or claim relating to your use of our Services or Websites will be resolved through binding arbitration, rather than in court, except that you may assert claims in small claims court if your claims qualify. In addition, you and Texas Interpreters Fellowship both agree that either party may bring suit in court to enjoin infringement or other misuse of intellectual property rights. If for any reason a claim proceeds in court rather than in arbitration, you and Texas Interpreters Fellowship each waive any right to a jury trial.
You and Texas Interpreters Fellowship agree that each may bring claims against the other only in your or its individual capacity, and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class, consolidated, or representative action. Further, unless both you and Texas Interpreters Fellowship agree otherwise, the arbitrator may not consolidate more than one person’s claims, and may not otherwise preside over any form of a representative or class proceeding. Notwithstanding the foregoing, this arbitration agreement does not preclude you from bringing issues to the attention of federal, state, or local agencies. Such agencies can, if the law allows, seek relief against us on your behalf. This entire arbitration provision shall survive termination of this Agreement and the termination of your Texas Interpreters Fellowship account.
To begin an arbitration proceeding, you must send a certified letter requesting arbitration and describing your claim to Texas Interpreters Fellowship, 5811 Woodcraft, San Antonio, TX 78218. The arbitration will be conducted by the American Arbitration Association (AAA) under its rules, including the Commercial Dispute Resolution Procedures and the Supplementary Procedures for Consumer Related Disputes of the AAA, as modified by this Agreement (collectively, "AAA Rules"). The AAA Rules and costs are available online at www.adr.org or by calling the AAA at 1-800-778-7879.
Miscellaneous
Assignment. We reserve the right to assign or transfer our rights and obligations under this Agreement. These terms are personal to you and, as a result, you may not, without the written consent of Texas Interpreters Fellowship, assign or transfer any of your rights and obligations under this Agreement. There shall be no third-party beneficiaries to this Agreement.Serviceability. In the event that any term of this Agreement is held to be invalid or unenforceable by a court of competent jurisdiction, the remainder of these terms shall remain valid and enforceable. We can replace any term which is not valid and enforceable with a term of similar meaning which is valid and enforceable.
Waiver. Any failure by us to enforce any term of the terms of this Agreement shall not affect our right to require performance at any subsequent time, nor shall the waiver by us of any breach by you of any provisions of these terms be taken to be a waiver of the provision or provisions itself.
Complete Agreement. This Agreement, including any terms, conditions and policies expressly referenced herein, together with any legal notices published on the Websites, shall constitute the complete understanding and agreement between you and us, and shall supersede and cancel any prior or contemporaneous understandings and agreements, except as expressly provided otherwise by Texas Interpreters Fellowship.
Periodic Review
TIF shall conduct an annual and, as needed, periodic review of these terms to ensure that it remains appropriate and relevant.Information And Assistance
Texas Interpreters Fellowship will make available this and all applicable policies on their website.Direct any questions, comments, suggestions, or requests for further information to the Owner of Texas Interpreters Fellowship by email at tifsa@tifsa.com or by mail at Attention: Owner, Texas Interpreters Fellowship, 5811 Woodcraft, San Antonio, Texas, 78218.