Terms & Conditions

WHAT'S IN THESE TERMS & CONDITIONS?

Virtual Wallet facilitates the management of Direct Payments.  Virtual Wallet is operated by PPL, who are commissioned by Funding Authorities to provide the service.  Direct Payment funds are held by PPL, and Users can utilise their Virtual Wallet account to arrange and/or pay for Care Services from Care Providers.  These Terms explain the rules for using Virtual Wallet.

The following definitions apply in these Terms

• “Authorised Representative” means an individual registered on Virtual Wallet that manages a Direct Payment on behalf of another individual;
• "Care Provider" means an individual or an organisation that is registered on Virtual Wallet as a provider of Care Services;
• "Care Services" means the provision of care-related products and services to people in receipt of a Direct Payment;
• "Consumer" means an individual registered on Virtual Wallet for the purpose of managing a Direct Payment (and may be the individual in receipt of the Direct Payment or an Authorised Representative).
• "Content" means all text, audio, video, data, graphs, maps, images or other content and information made available through Virtual Wallet (and may include content which is owned or controlled by third parties);
• "Content Standards" means the standards outlined in section 9;
• “Direct Payment” means a sum of money decided by a Funding Authority that an individual may use to manage their care and support needs (it may also be referred to as a ‘DP’ a ‘personal budget’ or ‘personal health budget’);
• “Funding Authority” means a local authority or NHS organisation that operates a Direct Payments programme via Virtual Wallet;
• "PPL", "we", "our "or "us" means People Places Lives Ltd, a company incorporated and registered in England and Wales with company registration number 06654748 and licenced by the Financial Conduct Authority as a small e-money institution (firm reference number: 953987) and having our registered office at 1 Smithy Court, Wigan WN3 6PS;
• "Terms" means these terms and conditions of use, together with any documents referred to in it;
• "User, you or your" means any individual or organisation who uses Virtual Wallet (including Consumers and Care Providers);
• "Virtual Wallet" means myvirtualwallet.co.uk and related websites, applications, and services provided by us.

• These Terms are a legal agreement between the User and us for the use of Virtual Wallet.
• When using Virtual Wallet, you must also comply with our Privacy and Cookie Policy, which sets out the terms on which we process any personal data we collect from you, or that you provide to us, along with information about the cookies on the Virtual Wallet website. By using Virtual Wallet, you consent to such processing.
• We try to make Virtual Wallet as accessible as possible. If you have any difficulties using Virtual Wallet, please contact us using the contact details below.
• You may use Virtual Wallet only for lawful purposes. You must not use Virtual Wallet:

1. if you are under the age of eighteen (18);
2. in any way that breaches any applicable local, national or international law or regulation;
3. in any way that is unlawful or fraudulent, or has any unlawful or fraudulent purpose or effect;
4. to send, knowingly receive, upload, download, use or re-use any material which does not comply with our content standards at section 9;
5. to interfere with any other User’s use or enjoyment of Virtual Wallet;
6. to create, check, confirm, update or amend your own or someone else’s databases, records, directories, customer lists, mailing or prospecting lists;
7. to transmit, or procure the sending of, any unsolicited or unauthorised advertising or promotional material or any other form of similar solicitation (spam);
8. to knowingly transmit any data, send or upload any material that contains viruses, Trojan horses, worms, time-bombs, keystroke loggers, spyware, adware or any other harmful programs or similar computer code designed to adversely affect the operation of any computer software or hardware
9. to attempt to gain unauthorised access to Virtual Wallet, the server on which Virtual Wallet is stored or any server, computer or database connected to Virtual Wallet.
10. to attack Virtual Wallet via a denial-of-service attack or a distributed denial-of service attack.
    • We may prevent or suspend your access to Virtual Wallet if you do not comply with these Terms or any applicable law.

• Virtual Wallet facilitates the management of Direct Payments. Direct Payment funds are held by PPL, and Consumers are issued with e-money.  Virtual Wallet enables Users to manage the entire purchase-to-pay process and to interact with other Users.    
• In consideration of you agreeing to abide by these Terms, we hereby grant to you a non-exclusive, non-transferable, licence to use Virtual Wallet.
• Access to Virtual Wallet is permitted on a temporary basis and we reserve the right to withdraw or amend Virtual Wallet and its Content at any time without notice.
• You are responsible for making all arrangements necessary for you to have access to Virtual Wallet.
• While we will use best endeavours to ensure Virtual Wallet will be secure and free from bugs and viruses, we do not guarantee this.
• We cannot guarantee continuous access to Virtual Wallet. We will strive to ensure that the periods of planned unavailability, which you will be informed of when you access Virtual Wallet at the relevant time, are kept to a minimum. If the need arises, we may suspend access to Virtual Wallet, or close it indefinitely.
• Users acknowledge that all telephone calls to/from our support team may be recorded for the purposes of training, quality control and for the welfare of our staff.
• Users acknowledge that we must conform with anti-fraud and anti-money laundering requirements, and give consent to us performing the necessary checks.
• All fees and charges in respect of Virtual Wallet are typically borne by the relevant Funding Authority. There are no charges to Consumers or Care Providers unless these are agreed separately (e.g. optional payroll service)

• Each Consumer’s Virtual Wallet account will be credited with any funds received by PPL into the safeguarded client bank account from the relevant Funding Authority or the User.
• Where payment services are provided by B4B payments, their terms and conditions can be found here - https://www.b4bpayments.com/prepaid/terms-and-conditions/
• If your Funding Authority requires you to make a contribution towards the cost of your support, you are responsible for ensuring that you make the payments in a timely manner, preferably via direct debit or standing order. On any payments you must quote the client ID that your Funding Authority allocates to you, otherwise we may not be able to allocate the money to your account.
• You should only utilise your Virtual Wallet account to purchase Care Services in accordance with any stipulations made by the Funding Authority (e.g. your support plan).
• PPL will process physical payments to Care Providers in accordance with the records on Virtual Wallet and/or instructions from you or your Funding Authority and will debit your Virtual Wallet account accordingly.
• The benefit and ownership of any balance of funds within your Virtual Wallet account (after accounting for any outstanding purchase commitments) will normally be stipulated in your Direct Payment agreement with your Funding Authority. Typically, this will state that any balance of funds belongs to the Funding Authority. 
• The Funding Authority may set a maximum amount of money which you can have in your Virtual Wallet account. They should inform you what this amount is.  If your Funding Authority instructs us to repay any excess funds to them, we will do so.
• The balance on your Virtual Wallet account will not earn any interest.
• Virtual Wallet is not a deposit, credit or banking product and is not covered by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme. All physical funds corresponding to the balance on your Virtual Wallet account are segregated from our funds and held in a client bank account in accordance with the safeguarding requirements of the Electronic Money Regulations 2011, either by PPL (in accordance with our Electronic Money Institution licence) or one of our partners (in accordance with their Electronic Money Institution licence).  In the event of insolvency, those funds are protected against claims made by any of our creditors.
• PPL will undertake any reporting required by your Funding Authority. This includes the balance on, and all transactions within. your Virtual Wallet account. 

• Virtual Wallet acts only as a platform to enable Consumers to interact with Care Providers. We do not in any way evaluate, guarantee or recommend any Care Provider or their advice, treatment, information.
• We make no representations, warranties or guarantees, whether express or implied that Content is accurate, complete or up-to-date, or to any Care Provider’s professional accreditations, expertise, eligibility, quality of work, insurance coverage, price or cost information.
• The Consumer is ultimately responsible for choosing their own Care Provider. Any provision of Care Services by the Care Provider to a Consumer is directly between the two parties and it is acknowledged that PPL is not a party to such arrangement, booking or contract. The provision of any Care Services by a Care Provider to a Consumer shall be governed by the terms of a separate agreement between those parties. Users are strongly advised to perform their own checks prior to contracting with another User.
• PPL is not an employer of the Care Providers, nor their agents. We have no control over and cannot guarantee the availability of any Care Provider at any particular time. We will not be liable for cancelled or otherwise unfilled Care Services.
• Consumers may use their Direct Payment to employ a personal assistant. If this is the case, you agree that:
  1. PPL are not, and will not become, the employer of the individual.
  2. You have understood your obligations as an employer, have undertaken adequate background checks and put in place adequate employer liability insurance.
  3. You have obtained informed consent from all individuals for their personal data to be released in accordance with the terms of this agreement.
• All Users acknowledge and agree that any complaint, grievance, issue or claim they may have that is in any way connected with a Consumer or Care Provider must be addressed and/or brought directly against them. PPL excludes any and all liability for such matters.
• You use Virtual Wallet at your own risk. You agree that the Content does not constitute advice or recommendation of any kind and must never be used as a substitute for, a professional referral based on clinical needs.

• Supported account. Where a Consumer utilises our supported account service, we may administer aspects of your Virtual Wallet account on your behalf. However, responsibility for your Direct Payment remains with you, in accordance with the principles of choice & control, and the Direct Payment agreement that you have with your Funding Authority.  
• Virtual Wallet payroll service. If you utilise PPL’s payroll service, you agree that:
  1. You and your employee will utilise the electronic timesheet functionality for the submission and approval of timesheets.
  2. You will abide by applicable pension auto-enrolment law and authorise PPL to administer services in accordance with any applicable legislation. PPL’s selected auto-enrolment pension provider is NEST Pensions. Any of your eligible employers will be automatically enrolled into this scheme unless you advise otherwise. 

• You must not disclose your password any third party, nor permit any third party to have any unauthorised access to Virtual Wallet at any time without our written consent.
• If you know or suspect that anyone other than you knows your password, you should change it promptly or notify us at info@myvirtualwallet.co.uk

• You must comply with the spirit and the letter of the following standards when contributing any Content.
• Content contributions must be accurate (where they state facts) or be genuinely held (where they state opinions) and comply with applicable law in England.
• Content contributions must not:
  1. contain any material which is defamatory of any person;
  2. contain any material which is obscene, offensive, hateful or inflammatory;
  3. bully, insult, intimidate or humiliate;
  4. include material relating to child sexual abuse;
  5. include or promote sexually explicit material;
  6. include or promote material which includes content which is violent in nature;
  7. promote or include material which relates to discrimination based on race, sex, religion, nationality, disability, sexual orientation or age;
  8. infringe any copyright, database right or trade mark of any other person (legal or natural);
  9. be likely to deceive any person;
  10. be made in breach of any legal duty owed to a third party, such as a contractual duty or a duty of confidence;
  11. promote any illegal activity;
  12. be in contempt of court;
  13. be threatening, abuse or invade another’s privacy, or cause annoyance, inconvenience or needless anxiety;
  14. be likely to harass, upset, embarrass, alarm or annoy any other person;
  15. be used to impersonate any person, or to misrepresent your identity or affiliation with any person;
  16. give the impression that any materials you submit emanate from us, if this is not the case; or
  17. advocate, promote or assist any unlawful act such as (by way of example only) copyright infringement or computer misuse.
  18. contain any advertising or promote any services or web links to other sites.
• If you find any content that you believe may breach our Content Standards, please notify us immediately and we will use reasonable efforts to remedy the position.

• We will determine, at our discretion, whether there has been a breach of these Terms through your use of Virtual Wallet. Where a breach has occurred, we may take such action as we deem appropriate, which may include issuing a warning, temporary or permanent withdrawal of your use of Virtual Wallet, pursuing legal action against you and disclosing information to government bodies and law enforcement agencies as appropriate.
• We may terminate these Terms immediately and without notice to the other party (resulting in the withdrawal of your right to use Virtual Wallet). You may terminate these Terms immediately and without notice to us by deleting your account and refraining from using Virtual Wallet thereafter.
• Upon termination for any reason, all rights granted to you under these Terms shall cease.

• Your privacy and personal data are important to us. Any personal data that you provide to us will be processed in accordance with our Privacy Policy available at myvirtualwallet.co.uk which explains what personal data we collect from you, how and why we collect, store, use and share such information, your rights in relation to your personal information, how to contact us and supervisory authorities in the event you have a query or complaint about the use of your personal data.
• We are the owner or the licensee of all intellectual property rights in Virtual Wallet. Those works are protected by copyright laws and other laws and treaties around the world. All such rights are reserved.

• Nothing in these Terms excludes or limits your or our liability for death or personal injury arising from your or our negligence, or your or our fraud or fraudulent misrepresentation, or any other liability that cannot be excluded or limited by English law.
• The User shall indemnify and hold us harmless from all claims and all direct, indirect or consequential liabilities, costs, proceedings, damages and expenses incurred by us, to the extent that such liability, loss, damage, injury, cost or expense arises as a consequence of a breach of any of these Terms by the User.
• We shall bear no liability for any loss or damage caused by the negligence of a Care Provider or their failure to hold appropriate licenses, certifications, accreditations and insurances to provide Care Services.
• We will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by a virus, distributed denial-of-service attack, or other technologically harmful material that may infect your computer equipment, computer programs, data or other proprietary material due to your use of Virtual Wallet or on any website linked to it.
• To the extent permitted by law, we shall not be liable for any loss or damage that results from any dealings between a Consumer and any Care Provider including but not limited to any direct, indirect, consequential or inconsequential loss of any kind.
• Any links to third party websites should not be interpreted as endorsement by us of those linked websites. We will not be liable for any loss or damage that may arise from your use of them.
• Our maximum aggregate liability to you under or in connection with these Terms, whether in contract, tort (including negligence other than where such limitation is not permitted by law) or otherwise, shall in all circumstances be limited to a sum equal to £25,000.

• We may revise these Terms at any time. Please check from time to time to take note of any changes we have made, as these shall be binding on you. If you do not agree to such changes, you should not use Virtual Wallet. Your continued use of Virtual Wallet after the date the modified terms are posted will constitute your acceptance of the modified terms.
• We are required to provide certain information to you in writing. By accepting these Terms, you agree that we can communicate with you electronically either by email or by posting a notice on Virtual Wallet.
• If any of these Terms should be determined by a court of law, ombudsman or other administrative body having judicial powers to be illegal, invalid, or otherwise unenforceable, it shall be severed from these Terms and deleted. The remaining terms shall survive, remain in full force and effect, and continue to be binding and enforceable.
• If we fail to insist upon strict performance of any of these Terms, or if we fail to exercise any other right or remedy to which we are entitled, this will not constitute a waiver of such right or remedy and will not relieve you from compliance with any such obligation. No waiver by us of a breach of obligation arising under these Terms shall constitute a waiver of any other breach.
• Third Party Rights. A party who is not a party to these Terms shall have no rights under the Contract (Rights of Third Parties) Act 1999 or otherwise as a third party to enforce any terms of these Terms save for any parent, subsidiary, or affiliate entity within our group company.
• Entire Agreement. These Terms and any document expressly referred to in it constitute the whole agreement between us and supersede any previous discussions, correspondence, arrangements or understandings between us.
• Governing Law and Jurisdiction. These Terms and any dispute or claim arising out of or in connection with it or its subject matter or formation (including non- contractual disputes or claims) shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the law of England.

• We will try to resolve any complaints or disputes with you quickly and efficiently. If you are unhappy with us, please contact us as soon as possible using the contact details set out at the bottom of this page.
• All complaints will be subject to our complaints procedure, a copy of which is available upon request.
• In most cases we will provide a full response by email to your complaint within 15 business days after the date we receive your complaint. In exceptional circumstances where we are unable to respond in full to your complaint, we will inform you of this giving our reasons for the delay and the timeframe within which you will receive a full reply, which in any event shall be within 35 business days of the date we received your complaint.
• If we fail to resolve your complaint to your satisfaction you may refer your complaint to the Financial Ombudsman Service. See financial-ombudsman.org.uk for more information.  

If you have any queries in relation to these Terms or any aspect of Virtual Wallet, please email info@myvirtualwallet.co.uk or call 03300 582692.