Family Trees Unlocked
Bringing your ancestors to life
Terms
Family Trees Unlocked is managed by Michelle Smith professional genealogist and family historian UK based in Plymouth, Devon.
The principal email address is hello@familytreesunlocked.co.uk.
These terms should be read alongside my Privacy Policy.
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By authorising Family Trees Unlocked to commence research you agree to the following terms and conditions which is the contract between Family Trees Unlocked and yourself.
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1. Family Trees Unlocked will make every effort to search for and complete family histories of all its clients. Locating all ancestors may not be possible for numerous reasons including: incomplete, badly written, faded, damaged or lost records. Information given to record takers may not have been accurate and certain individuals were missed or avoided being recorded. Documents could have been transcribed incorrectly. Some ancestors simply do not feature in records e.g., an illegitimate child will not have a father named on their birth certificate.
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2. When you order the defined Research Package, a non-refundable deposit of 50% of the total price is required before research begins. The invoice will detail the total cost of the service agreed to and the payment method.
3. Paid time includes research, analysis and report writing time and time spent communicating with the client by telephone and email.
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4. In cases where a Family Tree Package has been purchased and it becomes clear early on that records are not available; this may mean we cannot continue with your research request. You will only be charged for work carried out up to that point and you will be issued with a partial refund. The refund amount will depend on the length of time spent on the project before coming to this conclusion.
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5. Postage and packing is included for England, Wales and Scotland. Other regions will incur an extra charge.
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6. When you commission Family Trees Unlocked you enter into an agreement with Michelle Smith to pay the price agreed in return for the product or service offered, as detailed on this website and any correspondence by Michelle Smith. You will have made this agreement in writing (either by email or letter). The agreement can be cancelled within 7 days of the first payment being made. I will charge for the cost of the research conducted up to the time of cancellation.
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7. I will request the remaining balance, payable within 7 days, once the report is print-ready. Please note that no reports will be sent without receipt in full of the cleared balance.
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8. Payment can be made by secure UK electronic bank transfer (BACS).
9. Before research can begin clients are requested to provide information or copies of any relevant documents they already hold. This includes copies of, or access to, family trees (complete or incomplete) to allow for a more efficient use of research time. The Researcher will check the basic information given to ensure it is accurate. All the information the Client holds needs to be disclosed before research starts. Anything found by the Researcher that duplicates something the Client already knows, or have found themselves during the research period, will still be billed for.
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10. It is the responsibility of the client to ensure that the details of any previous research have been conveyed to Family Trees Unlocked to avoid any research being inadvertently repeated. If you provide inaccurate information, Family Trees Unlocked by Michelle Smith accept no liability for any resulting inaccuracies in the work.
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11. Your report may include copies of birth, marriage and death certificates. Due to regional price differences this will be up to five English/Welsh certificates and up to four Scottish certificates. Certificates are included in the Research Package price.
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12. There is no guarantee that I will be able to trace families back to any specific or requested time period. In addition, I will not be held liable for any inaccuracies, omissions or errors that may occur at any time.
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13. The copyright of all reports supplied remains with Family Trees Unlocked and Michelle Smith. Therefore, the reports are for the sole use of the recipient and their family and may not be published in hard copy or digitally.
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November 2025 - Michelle Smith