My Service Agreement

Here is the meaning of some words we use in My Service Agreement:

You: Customer, your Support Coordinator, or your authorised representative

Northcott, us and we: The Northcott Society and any other related entity.

Plan: Your funded plan. For example, NDIS (National Disability Insurance Scheme) Plan, Lifetime Care and Support Plan.

Agreement: My Service Agreement (MSA).

Service(s): Northcott service(s) we provide to you, that you receive from us.

NDIS Pricing: Refers to the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits and its related current documents throughout this document.

Terms and Conditions: This Terms and Conditions document AND the relevant Service Disclosure Statements for the services you will receive from us.

SIL: Supported Independent Living

  1. What can you expect of us?
    1. We may need to change our Terms and Conditions from time to time to make sure you have the best experience with us
    2. We will give you notice of the change, including the date on which the change takes effect. For certain changes, a new My Service Agreement may be required
    3. We will work with you to provide services that best suit your needs
    4. We will follow the Disability Service Standards in everything we do
    5. We will communicate decisions with you about how services are provided
    6. We will always treat you with courtesy and respect
    7. We will keep clear records on the services provided to you
    8. A review of your services will be done with you
    9. We will deliver services to achieve the goals that you have asked us to work towards with you
    10. We may take photographs, audio and video at events and we will ask for your consent if these are to be used
    11. We will ask you for your consent if you choose to take part in research projects
    12. We follow the terms and conditions of the NDIS Pricing Arrangements and Price Limits.
  2. What we expect from you
    1. To work with us to make sure the services we provide meet your needs
    2. You must have a current My Service Agreement to receive services
    3. That you treat our staff with courtesy and respect
    4. That you let us know about any concerns or issues you may have with the services being provided
    5. If there is a medical emergency and we need to call an ambulance, you will cover the cost
    6. If you cannot attend a scheduled service, or you wish to withdraw from services, you will give us the notice set out in this Agreement and your Service Disclosure Statement or you may be charged a fee
    7. Pay all invoices for agreed services, transport, other expenses, and for any additional time to support you, for example, if you arrive earlier or leave later than your scheduled service time, within 7 days 
    8. If you have a Plan, let us know about any changes to your Plan, which includes if your NDIS Plan or Lifetime Care and Support Plan is extended or reviewed, and any changes to your goals, the funded budget available to you, or the way that your NDIS plan is being managed
    9. Let us know about any changes to your other plans. For example, Medication Plan or Behaviour Support Plan
    10. If we need to drive your vehicle to support you, it must be fully registered and have comprehensive insurance. Northcott will not be responsible for any damage caused while using your vehicle. You should tell your insurer that a Northcott employee will be driving the vehicle
    11. If you use Northcott’s internet you agree that you will not use the internet to do anything illegal. Northcott can verify if any activity is in breach of our ICT policies, we encourage all users to please ensure you are compliant with the following: Northcott Internet policy  and Internet Policy Easy English
    12. You understand that you are required to share with Northcott the elements of your NDIS Plan necessary for Northcott to be able to provide the services, as well as report to the NDIS your progress towards achieving the goals set out in your NDIS plan
    13. Attendance at first appointment – You agree that your attendance at your first appointment after the date of issuing this Agreement or any agreed changes to it, signifies your acceptance of the terms of this Agreement. This includes changes to your services listed on your My Service Agreement – Fees and Charges.
  3. What about your safety?
    1. You will be asked to take part in risk assessments to assist us in creating a safe environment. This includes your Customer Risk Profile
    2. If we decide that providing a service is not safe, we will talk to you about how to provide the service safely
    3. You cannot consume drugs or alcohol, or smoke cigarettes in a way that puts our staff or others at risk.
  4. How much does it cost?
    1. Government funded programs will not cost you anything
    2. When you are paying for a Northcott Service(s):
      1. We use the prices set by the National Disability Insurance Agency (NDIA) and these are detailed on My Service Agreement Fees and Charges
      2. You agree to pay Northcott for providing the services. Northcott will charge the full fee rates applicable to the services as listed in the current NDIS Pricing
      3. If the NDIA change the NDIS Pricing, our prices and your My Service Agreement Fees and Charges will change too.
      4. We will tell you when prices are changed
      5. You may be charged for non-face-to-face time where it directly relates to your support
      6. You may be charged a travel time fee for the support worker to travel to and/or from the service location, as well as vehicle travel costs incurred including distance reimbursement and tolls
      7. You will need to pay for any extra costs while participating in activities. For example, food and drinks, event tickets, entry fees or event costs.
    3. The NDIA needs the following statement to be included in this Agreement:
      “A supply of Services under this Service Agreement is a supply of one or more reasonable and necessary Services specified in the statement of Services included, under subsection 33(2) of the National Disability Insurance Scheme Act 2013 (NDIS Act), in the Participant’s NDIS Plan currently in effect under section 37 of the NDIS Act.”
      This means: ‘We will provide one or more of the services listed in your NDIS Plan.’
    4. If the hours in your approved NDIS plan are used up or expired, your Customer Partner will contact you to discuss  other funding options, and, if needed, talk with other people to make sure that your service is not affected.
  5. How do you pay?
    1. When you are paying for a Northcott service(s):
      1. We only claim or charge for services after they have been delivered
      2. For all Customers
        • We will either provide you with a quote, a purchase order, or a tax invoice. How and when to pay is listed on that document
        • For Customers who pay by Direct Debit, we will notify you of any changes to your charges in line with your consent and agreement forms
        • For Housing and Supported Independent Living Customers: Please refer to the Shared and Individual Housing Service Description Schedule for more information on fees and charges.
      3. For NDIS customers:
        • We will claim directly from the NDIA if you chose them to manage your Plan

PACE Customers

  • By endorsing Northcott as your preferred provider with the NDIS, we can claim directly for services provided without delay. If you do not endorse Northcott as your preferred provider, the NDIS will send you an SMS with a link requesting your formal consent for each claim that Northcott makes for services provided.
  • It is important that you keep track of your funding by checking the funding in the NDIS participant portal. 
  • It is your responsibility to ensure there are sufficient funds available to pay for the   services as you have agreed to in the service agreement. 
  • If there are insufficient NDIS funds available to cover the cost of services provided, we will contact you directly for payment.

Self-managed or Plan Managed

  • We will invoice you directly if you self-manage your Plan. How and when to pay is listed on the tax invoice
  • We will send invoices to your Plan Manager if you chose them to manage your Plan. You will need to give us their details
  • If you change Plan Manager, we require 30 days’ notice of this change. You can notify us of this change by sending an email to [email protected] or by calling 1800 460 728.
  • We will email you a statement each month listing the services you have received. Your statement will be sent to the nominated email address. If you have any questions about your statement, you can contact us by emailing [email protected] or by calling 1800 460 728.

b. If you are buying a Program of Support:

  1. You agree to pay for the entire amount you have signed up for
  2. To exit a Program of Support permanently, you are required to give 2 weeks’ notice to withdraw from services
  3. If you stop attending services without notice, we can claim for up to four weeks from your date of exit. This is in line with the Unplanned Exit conditions
  4. Your Service Coordinator will contact you and check in every 12 weeks to review your supports and ensure your supports are meeting your goal outcomes.

c. We may put your services on hold or cease service if invoices are not paid

d. If you receive a new NDIS Plan prior to your Northcott Service Agreement end date and you decide to not continue your services with Northcott, we will claim any services provided to you under your new Plan

e. If you receive a new NDIS Plan prior to your Northcott Service Agreement end date, we will claim any services provided under your new Plan and build this into your new Northcott Service Agreement

f. Nothing in this Agreement will change or exclude your legal rights provided under the Competition and Consumer Act 2010.

  1. What if you need to change your Agreement with us?
    1. We request at least 2 weeks’ notice if you want to change your Agreement
    2. We will provide a record of any major changes to your Agreement and give you a copy
    3. We or you can ask to review this Agreement if you regularly request changes or do not attend your service/s.
  2. Renewal of Agreement
    1. To make sure your services continue without interruption, this Agreement will automatically renew at expiry, unless terminated by either Party in accordance with clause 8 of this Agreement
    2. On the expiry of your NDIS Plan, your existing supports (that is, the current roster schedule and frequency of supports) will continue and on renewal of your NDIS Plan we will confirm your ongoing service requirements in a new schedule within 4 weeks
    3. Supports delivered during the 4-week period will be claimed against your new NDIS plan or the original plan if the plan dates and funding are extended
    4. Services will cease if you do not have funding available
    5. You further agree that attendance at the first appointment following the expiry of the preceding Term signifies acceptance of the renewal of the Agreement. However, Northcott agrees that you may amend the Services provided under this Agreement at any time to reflect any changes to your NDIS Plan in accordance with the terms set out in Clause 6.
  3. Ending this Agreement
    1. Either of us can end this Agreement with a minimum of four weeks’ notice. Please refer to the Service Disclosure Statement for the service/s you access for any variation to this rule
    2. Any request to end this Agreement must be in writing. Please contact your Customer Partner, Support Coordinator, or our Customer Service Team
    3. This Agreement can be ended without a notice period because of a serious breach. A serious breach can be made by you or anyone visiting you while you are receiving our services
    4. Serious breaches may include but are not limited to:
      1. Abusing or assaulting staff or other customers in the absence of an updated or current behaviour support plan or a customer risk profile
      2. Abuse or assault of staff or other customers by a customer’s visitor to the service
      3. Intentionally damaging or misusing our properly
      4. Trafficking or supplying an illicit drug
      5. Using our premises for an illegal purpose
      6. Taking action, which is intended, or would reasonably be expected to harm us or our reputation, or could lead to unwanted or unfavourable publicity to us
      7. Continually breaching the terms and conditions of this Agreement.
    5. This Agreement may also end immediately:
      1. If you run out of funding before the end date of this Agreement
      2. If you no longer receive funding
      3. If you have not paid for the services, you have already received
      4. If you have not paid for the costs you have agreed to pay us.
    6. If your Agreement ends for any reason, you will still need to pay for the services you have already received
    7. You may qualify for a Northcott Plan Gap Agreement that will cover your services until a new Plan and Agreement is in place.
  4. How can you give compliments, suggestions or make a complaint?
    1. We welcome your compliments, suggestions, or complaints about our services. We will listen to your compliments and suggestions, and respond to complaints fairly and in a reasonable amount of time
    2. If you would like information on compliments, suggestions, and complaints, visit our website at northcott.com.au/feedback/ or call us on 1800 234 256
    3. If you are not happy with the outcome of your complaint, or you do not receive a response within a reasonable timeframe, you can contact the NDIS Quality and Safeguards Commission by:
      1.  Calling 1800 035 544 (free call from landlines) or TTY 133 677. Interpreters can be arranged
      2. Contacting the National Relay Service and ask for 1800 035 544
      3. Completing a complaint contact form.
    4. You can also contact the NDIA on 1800 800 110 if you are a NDIS customer or the Commonwealth Department of Health on 1800 020 103 if you are funded through Continuity of Support Program.
  5. What will be done with your personal information?
    1. We collect, use, disclose and secure your personal information (including sensitive information) in accordance with our privacy policy which is available at northcott.com.au/privacy/. You can also email us at [email protected] or call 1800 234 256 and ask us to send you a copy
    2. We may also de-identify and aggregate your information for:
      1. Research and evaluation
      2. Sharing on a de-identified and aggregated basis with our funders
      3. The external publication of statistical information and evaluation results. For example, the Northcott Annual Report and external presentations.
    3. If you need us to communicate with others about the support you receive from Northcott or other services, they will need to be noted on the Authority to Exchange Information Form
    4. Information may be shared with other relevant service providers who are involved in you achieving your goals. This may include healthcare practitioners, schools, insurers, legal representatives, and employees
    5. You can choose what information you provide
    6. If you do not provide your personal information, we may not be able to provide services to you
    7. As part of the NDIS provider registration and practice, an approved NDIA quality auditor will audit our customer files for quality and compliance. You can choose to opt out of audits by calling us on 1800 234 256
    8. When you give us your personal information, this means you are consenting to us entering and storing your personal information in our system
    9. You can request access to your personal information and ask us to correct information that you believe to be wrong
    10. You can ask to view your Northcott customer file at any time
    11. In exceptional circumstances, access to your personal information may be denied for legitimate purposes. In this case, we will give you the reasons why access was denied and possible remedies.
  6. How is your privacy protected?
    1. We collect, use, disclose and secure your personal information (including sensitive information) in accordance with our privacy policy which is available at https://northcott.com.au/services/policy/privacy-policy/.
    2. You can also email us at [email protected] or call on 1800 234 256 and ask us to send you a copy
    3. We adhere to the Australian Privacy Principles, Privacy Act 1988, the Health Records, and Information Privacy Act 2002 (NSW), Health Records (Privacy and Access) Act 1997 (ACT) and the NDIS Act 2013.
    4. We will not use or share your personal information with anyone without your consent, unless we have concerns for your safety, or we are required or authorised to by law. For example, Mandatory Reporting of child protection concerns. 

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If you have any questions, please speak to your Service Manager, Service Coordinator or call us on 1800 818 286.

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